A Clay Moulding Workshop Led by Bisila Noha
London-based ceramicist, writer, and researcher Bisila Noha recently spent six weeks in residence at G.A.S. Foundation. She began her residency in Lagos, using it as a base to engage with local potters in the Ayobo community. Midway through, she travelled to Ilorin and Osogbo, where she visited the Sacred Grove dedicated to Osun, the Yoruba goddess of fertility. For the final three weeks, she relocated to the G.A.S. Farm House in Ikiṣẹ, where she developed sculptural experiments using soil, clay, and bricks left over from the building’s construction. During this time, she also made regular visits to the nearby Ìganran Pottery Community, developing her understanding of local ceramic traditions.
As her residency concluded, she hosted Ile Ọkàn – A Gathering at the House of the Soul on 13 February 2025, bringing together fellow residents, staff, and members of the Ayobo pottery community. The event centred around Ile Ọkàn, a temporary structure crafted by Bisila from 27 reclaimed bricks from the Farm House construction and 85 hand-crafted tiles made from local clay, blended with clay from Ingaran inspired by Nupe flooring tiles which she’d encountered researching in the G.A.S. Library and Picton Archive. Bamboo and banana leaves from the Farm gathered with the help of farm and residency staff, provided the installation with a canopy.
Ile Ọkàn was inspired by Mbari houses, distinct cultural and spiritual edifices of the Igbo people, particularly in the Owerri region and several towns in Imo and River States, Nigeria. These ceremonial buildings serve as artistic tributes to Ala, the Earth goddess, and other deities, embodying the intersection of artistic practice, spiritual devotion, and communal tradition within Igbo society.
Bisila reflects on Ile Ọkàn:
“Reading about Nigerian art, I came across the Mbari Houses. Igbo anthill clay constructions made to appease Mother Earth, their goddess Ala, who also had the role of fountain of creativity in the world in the Igbo pantheon.
A collective effort. Filled with sculptures. A temporary construction meant to naturally decay once the goddess was satisfied. It was the collective, crafty and artistic nature of the Mbari Houses that spoke to my heart. Made of our clay and an offering to Mother Earth. Something I instantly related to.
Then, on my second week at G.A.S., after having spent quite a lot of time reading about altars and ceramics at the library in Lagos, we visited Osun-Osogbo. Yoruba traditions that share space with other religions like Islam and Christianity — seemingly peacefully.”
— Noha, Bisila. "Ri Koko: Totems and Textures." Substack, 13 February 2025, https://bisilanoha.substack.com/p/ri-koko-totems-and-textures.
The gathering culminated in a collaborative clay moulding workshop, where the group created offerings which were later placed around her installation. Bisila invited everyone to spend time inside the structure which she’d envisioned as a spiritual, meditative, and communal environment, one that welcomes all belief systems while encouraging reflection on Nigeria’s deep-rooted traditions of religious coexistence.
Discover more insights from Bisila’s residency via her Substack and website.
EVENT DETAILS
Date: 13th February, 2025
Time: 12:00 pm - 2:00 pm
Location: G.A.S. Farm House, Ecology Green Farm, Yinka Shonibare CBE Street, Off Omu Ijebu Road.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
BISILA NOHA is a Spanish-Equatoguinean London-based artist. With her work, she aims to challenge Western views on art and craft; to question what we understand as productive and worthy in capitalist societies; and to reflect upon the idea of home and oneness pulling from personal experiences in different pottery communities.
She is a storyteller with a particular interest in the contributions of women of colour to the history of art and craft. As such, her words are a bridge bringing the past —the forgotten, the belittled— to us. Her ceramics practice extends from wheel-thrown pieces to sculptures using different techniques and materials which connect her to her roots, the makers that precede her and our past.
Bisila is also involved in various social justice organisations. She leads the London LGBTQ+ Community Centre; co-directs the arts and activism organisation Lon-art Creative; and is part of the Steering Committee at Design Can.
Bisila's residency is generously supported by kó Art Space.
