Developing an Original Theoretical Framework for Understanding the Aesthetics of Nigerian Postcolonial Visual Art

The aesthetics of Nigerian postcolonial visual art has been analysed through imported critical frameworks, primarily Western modernism, postmodernism, and postcolonial theory, without the systematic construction of a theoretical framework that draws primarily on indigenous Nigerian philosophical and aesthetic traditions while remaining in critical dialogue with global discourse. This study developed an original theoretical framework for the aesthetics of Nigerian postcolonial visual art. A multi-stage theory-building methodology was employed: systematic review of 94 critical texts on Nigerian visual art aesthetics published from 2015 to 2024; philosophical analysis of aesthetic concepts in Yoruba (iwa-pele, ewa), Igbo (iku boi, nka), and Hausa (wadata, kyau) traditions; case study visual analysis of 40 works by Nigerian artists across three generational cohorts; and expert validation through a two-round Delphi consultation with 22 art criticism and aesthetic philosophy specialists. The systematic review confirmed that Nigerian art criticism applies Western aesthetic frameworks with insufficient interrogation of their cultural premises. Philosophical analysis identified seven indigenous aesthetic principles that have no adequate equivalent in Western aesthetic theory: communal beauty consensus, functional beauty integration, spiritual visual activation, generational aesthetic continuity, ecological visual embeddedness, social regulatory aesthetics, and performative over static beauty valuation. The original Nigerian Postcolonial Aesthetic Framework synthesises these principles with postcolonial theory's insights into how colonial interruption affected aesthetic transmission and hybridisation. The framework was validated as theoretically original and practically applicable for art criticism and curatorial practice by the expert panel. It constitutes a significant original contribution to global aesthetic theory.