Obiageli Okoye (Ph.D)
Department of Archaeology and Anthropology
University of Ibadan
[email protected]

Abstract
Art exhibition entails public display or collection of art objects in a gallery, often
times providing opportunity to showcase a people’s cultural heritage, the artists
and their works. When art exhibitions are carried out in rural communities by a
National Art Gallery, it has the potential of promoting tourism, and encouraging
budding artists in the locality. This study examines the extent to which the National
Gallery of Art, Igbo-Ukwu, southeast Nigeria, promote tourism in Igbo-Ukwu
through art exhibitions, with a view to establishing the impacts of these exhibitions.
Data gathering techniques employed are: participant observation, key informant
interview focus group discussions and photography. The study discovers that art
exhibitions in National Gallery of Art Igbo-Ukwu have contributed to promoting
tourism, skill acquisition and income generation to the artists in the community and
neighbouring towns. The gallery provides platform for budding artists to exchange
ideas with more established artists, and at the same time make young people to see
art as a viable profession. The study recommends that the exhibitions should be
publicized more to increase wider participation of artists and tourists.
Keywords: Art Exhibitions, tourism, Rural Communities, National Gallery of Art