Africa has been portrayed by many scholars as a culture with an insignificant representation of

flowers; the proof is in the non representation of flowers in the visual art domain. The research

examines the 'floral gap' as postulated by Mazrui (2004) and the general assumption that flowers

are western not African. Jowit (2010), reports that 'more than one out of four of all flowering

species are under threat of extinction'. For this reason, there is a dire need for artists in Nigeria to

respond to the environment and issues that pertain to it through artistic research. Five flowers

have been selected; hibiscus, lily, zinnia, sunflower and rose; they are explored to create

sculptures in relief and round forms to satisfy the canons of representational and abstract art. The

approach of this study is studio-experiment, and culminates in a thesis describing the processes,

materials and techniques applied in producing a body of work found in the catalogue. This study

therefore, provides insight on the use of flowers in artistic inquiry in Nigeria, particularly in the

field of sculpture. The purpose of this research is to promote a flower culture in Nigeria, making

flowers a relevant subject matter in expressing thoughts and ideas in art. This was achieved

through the following objectives: 1) select a group of flowers within ABU, Samaru campus for

exploration in sculpture. 2) create representational flower sculptures composed into identifiable

objects 3) explore parts of the flowers; its petals, sepals, pistils and stamens to create abstraction.

Art is an important aspect of culture it has the power to influence society. Kleiner (2013) asserts

that artists and architects can affect History by reinforcing or challenging cultural values and

practices through the objects they create. By implication since the artist has been able to produce

sculptures from the selected flowers, this research then serves as a platform for the promotion of

a flower culture in Nigeria using art as a vehicle. It suggests to artists, government and other

individuals the right attitude we ought to portray regarding flowers. Secondly a lot has been said

about the non-representation of flowers in African art; however, little has been mentioned about

flowers in contemporary sculpture in Nigeria. Therefore, this thesis will add to knowledge in the

area of literature. Lastly, the researcher developed a chart showing the life cycle of a flower

which is postulated on the basis of the Egyptian mythology of "life after death". It could be

applicable to other artistic research that have to do with nature elements like insects, animals,

leaves and a host of others