Foreword
By Ayeni Adekunle Samuel
Adaora Zinno-Orara passed on, on December 21, 2014.
It was the end of a chapter, and the beginning of a new one for her husband Zinno Orara, and their kids – Chidera, Majiri, Kesena, and Princess.
It was the end of years of pain and anger and drugs and hope and fear and tears and all the mix of emotions, burdens and tribulation you could think of.
It was the beginning of a new life, without a wife, without a mother; without the string that binds. A new life with no hope, and a lot of hope. With no life, and a lot of life.
Next month will mark the third anniversary of her death, and her husband, the renowned artist Zinno Orara is confirming something I’ve always suspected; known: if an artiste falls in love with you, then you can never die.
And it’s not just because this exhibition, Orara’s second solo in three years, is dedicated to her. It’s not even because he continues to use his brush to refresh her memory with every opportunity. So, why is this so?
I guess we’ll never know.
But we can begin by paying attention to the works Zinno Orara is showing us at this exhibition, aptly titled ‘Life’s Journey’. We can begin by looking and thinking deeply, by asking important questions, of him, and of ourselves, and by taking a look at our own lives, the people, places and things we care about, and what this entire journey means – to us, and everyone sojourning with us.
To find that meaning, is to find life itself; and to live in a world where nothing, no one, really ever dies.