Susanne Wenger, the Austrian artist who dedicated her life to saving traditional Nigerian spiritual beliefs, has died aged 94.<\/p>\n
Mrs Wenger was a devotee of the animist culture of pre-Christian Yoruba gods from Nigeria’s south-west.<\/p>\n
She won Unesco protection as a world heritage site for an under-threat sacred forest grove in Osun state.<\/p>\n
She lived in Nigeria for 58 years, supporting a large group of artists and fostering the town of Osogbo.<\/p>\n
The grove’s few acres of primary forest are filled with sculptures by her and her students. <\/p>\n
The annual festival of the fertility god Osun held there in August attracts thousands of worshippers and tourists.<\/p>\n
She was buried in a secret ceremony in one of the shrines at the grove she helped save.<\/p>\n
Reclusive in her old age, Mrs Wenger gave what would be her last interview to the BBC in August.<\/p>\n
“I don’t believe in legacies,” she said. “Osogbo is a creative place, it did that by itself, it didn’t need me.”<\/p>\n
Her friends and adopted children said she was the “saviour” of spirit-worshipping traditions in Osogbo.<\/p>\n
When she arrived in Osun state in 1957, the practice of worshipping animist spirits had been all but wiped out by Christian and Muslim missionaries. <\/p>\n
She led the defence of the grove from developers – on one occasion lying down in front of a bulldozer – and prevented religious groups from destroying her sculptures in the grove.<\/p>\n
Sometimes a fearsome woman, according to friends and enemies alike, she encouraged Yorubas not to give up their traditional cultures.<\/p>\n
For some that meant rejecting even the most basic education, as schools were run by Muslim or Christian organisations that did not tolerate animist beliefs.<\/p>\n
Her funeral was attended by the area’s three high chiefs and journalists were barred from entering.<\/p>\n
“Susanne Wenger left her mark indelibly on the cultural map of the world,” Nigerian Unesco delegate Michael Omolewa said.<\/p>\n
“She will always be remembered for her impressive works and love of the Yoruba people.” <\/p>\n
BBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-239073","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\n