Buying Black art in Lagos

Work by a living artist: No export permit neededNigeria's National Commission for Museums and Monuments Act reaches antiquities: archaeological material, relics of early Nigerian civilisation, work made before 1918, and objects of traditional art used in religious or ceremonial life. A new canvas by a living artist is none of those and leaves as ordinary goods. Take a dated invoice naming the artist, the year, the medium and the dimensions. Exporters routinely ask the Commission for a written no-objection anyway — it costs little and settles the argument at the airport rather than at the gate.