[BCMA] Kamloops Art Gallery Media Release | Ral Ojah opens in The Cube September 13

[Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv]

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Ral Ojah, Ekpe (Ohafia African Regalia), 2025, Dutch wax fabric, mixed media, plywood, 152 x 213 cm, Photo courtesy of the Artist

MEDIA RELEASE

For immediate release from
Kamloops Art Gallery
September 4, 2025

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Ral Ojah
mgbe mmụọ na-agba egwu (When Spirits Dance)

The Cube
Exhibition September 13, 2025 to January 10, 2026
Opening Reception Saturday, September 13, 6:30 to 8:00 pm

Curated by Craig Willms

Ral Ojah Reimagines Nigerian Masquerade Through Fashion and Movement at Kamloops Art Gallery

In this new body of work, Raluchukwu (Ral) Ojah explores cross-cultural exchange and the immigrant experience through fashion and dance. Drawing on the traditional Ekpe masquerade from his hometown of Amaekpu, Ohafia, Nigeria, Ojah reimagines this spiritual ritual through life-size, wall-mounted dancing figures that reflect his roots and the ways ancestral practices are expressed in contemporary Nigerian and Western fashion. His figures capture the dynamic movements of Igbo, Enugu, and Ohafia dances, which have influenced contemporary dance, including hip-hop and club culture.
The Ekpe masquerade occurs alongside community events throughout the year, marking times of renewal and celebration. These include the Ota Omu Age Grade, a traditional retirement ceremony that passes knowledge from elders to younger generations, and seasonal planting rituals that celebrate growth and harvest. Ojah connects these rites to his own experience of leaving Nigeria and moving to Canada in 2021, where he recently completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts at Thompson Rivers University.
Ojah incorporates colourful Dutch wax fabric to reference its colonial history in Nigeria. Introduced by the Dutch in the 1880s, the fabric was adopted across Central and West Africa and adapted with local designs, proverbs, and symbolic codes to preserve cultural traditions. Today, it remains central to Nigerian regalia and contemporary fashion.
Through this work, Ojah considers how global exchanges of people and material culture influence art and fashion, while also telling a personal story of heritage and migration.
Artist Biography

Ral Ojah is a Nigerian visual artist currently living in Kamloops, BC. He completed his Bachelor of Fine Arts at Thompson Rivers University in 2025.

Media Information
Craig Willms, Assistant Curator, Kamloops Art Gallery
250.377.2410
cwillms at kag.bc.ca<mailto:cwillms at kag.bc.ca>
About the Kamloops Art Gallery
The Kamloops Art Gallery, established in 1978, is situated on the unceded and unsurrendered lands of the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc within Secwepemcúl’ecw, the traditional territory of the Secwépemc people. The largest art gallery in Secwepemcúl̓ecw (the Interior of British Columbia), the Gallery offers national caliber art experiences through a diverse range of accessible and affordable exhibitions, talks, tours, and studio-based programming for all ages and abilities, and boasts a collection of over 3,000 works of art.




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CRAIG WILLMS [he/him]
ASSISTANT CURATOR

cwillms at kag.bc.ca<mailto:cwillms at kag.bc.ca>
250.377.2400 ext. 2406


KAMLOOPS ART GALLERY
101 – 465 Victoria Street, Kamloops, BC  V2C 2A9
250.377.2400  |  www.kag.bc.ca<http://www.kag.bc.ca/>


The Kamloops Art Gallery is situated on the unceded and unsurrendered lands of the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc within Secwepemcúl’ecw, the traditional territory of the Secwépemc people.

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