Living Legacies: Benin Then and Now is a collaborative photography project with Nigerian artist Victor Ehikhamenor. Inspired by Alonge’s early portraits and the discovery of his patrons in Benin City, Lagos, London, New York, and Washington, DC, Living Legacies explores the photographic history of Benin City through the lives of longtime residents and the Ideal Photo Studio Collection. While many of these individuals are in their 70s and 80s, they still have vivid memories of Alonge and his studio. Their individual stories and the re-photography of local community members, schools, social clubs, civil workers, as well as historic sites and shrines, are part of a then-and-now approach to the living history of Benin City.
Unless noted otherwise,
- “Then” images were photographed by Solomon Osagie Alonge in Benin City, 1930s–70s.
- “Now” images were photographed by Victor Ehikhamenor in Benin City, New York, and Philadelphia, 2019–20.
