‘NEMA’ explores how various digital techniques and ways of thinking can intersect with traditional methods of making culturally inspired art and design. In this study, the traditional methods being focused on are the use of clay and paint on surfaces to create cultural designs that hold the significance of traditional heritage, beliefs, power, and ancestral knowledge within them. The digital techniques and methods being researched and studied are the use of digitally fabricated approaches like 3D modeling, scanning, and digital printing. “The goal of this research-creation work is to combine both digital and traditional methods to create an immersive experience that Africans in the diaspora can identify with, while also encouraging a wider audience to engage with African cultural heritage.”
This research seeks to find ways to effectively preserve cultural and traditional practices through ways of thinking through making. As Dr. John Henry Clark says, “Take the best of what you are good at and use it to help your people.'' Through this work, I use my art to address certain negative notions about my Nigerian culture, opening discourse to bring about enlightening people and showcasing the richness of my cultural heritage, while also preserving it by creating an archival set of culturally inspired works through these methods.

Keywords: Ancestral Knowledge, Archival Works, AR/VR, Diaspora, Culture and Tradition, Lived Experiences, Indigenous Cultures, Africa, Marghi Ethnic Group, Nigeria, Heritage, Cultural Identity, 3D modeling, Cultural Preservation, Documentation, Art and Design