International Journal of Arts and Social Science www.ijassjournal.com ISSN: 2581-7922, Volume 7 Issue 3, March 2024 ADIE ANTHONIA UGIEBEME Page 81 The Role of Museums and Gallery in Nigeria Heritage and Management: the Artist Experience 1 ADIE ANTHONIA UGIEBEME, 2 ENYA VICTORIA ECHENG Department of Fine and Applied Arts University of Calabar, Calabar Nigeria. Abstract: The functions of art galleries and museums are such that is vital in the preservation of social, cultural and political heritage of a nation. They have continued to build bridges across time boundaries and artists have found them very useful as historical pivot and a source of references in their creative enquiries. This paper probes into the origination and progressions of these art institutions and how they have metamorphosed into a digital space. It has also appraised the role of the museum and art galleries in the preservation of national heritage as it concerns the administration and management of the art industry, then, identify how much it has benefitted the Nigerian artist. I. INTRODUCTION Museums are such establishment, saddled with the responsibilities as nurturing, preserving and judiciously protecting artefacts, art heritage and historical events and transmit them from one generation to another. These artifacts are the pride of the people in relation to their cultural heritage and way of life. On this premise, Oladumiye, Bolajoko, & Tolulope,(2014) agree that the nation or its people cannot exist without the preservation of the cultural posterity of its territorial integrity. Museums and galleries are beyond the building structures, the content of museums is the heritage and wealth of the people, while the art gallery displays visual art for aesthetic consumption, cultural enrichment and for purpose of marketing. The gallery is also a platform where the potentials of the artists are showcased to the society. The duo however, work hand in hand since they both are institutions for the study, preservation and restoration of art. The role of the museums and art galleries in Nigeria in the preservation of national heritage as it concerns the administration and management of the art industry is worthwhile, to appraise the value it has added to nation building and how much it has foster national integration. Then to identify how much it has benefited the Nigerian artist. These and more are the points this paper is poised to delineate through this discus. The Advent of Museums in Nigeria According to Momin,K. and Okpoko, A., (2010), the practice of museums in Nigeria can be traced to pre-Arab and European times. During these periods, various cultural materials of ritual, religious and political importance were fashioned, conserved and preserved in temples or traditional shrines and in the palaces of kings and chiefs. Kings and other influential members of the society would commission artists who made important pieces of art works that symbolized the way of life of the people as a means to boost their religious and socio – political statue. Apart from housing such cultural materials like ivory, bronze and carved wooden objects, these institutions like the temples, shrines and palaces were regarded as museums. In these precolonial museums, objects were preserved because of their utilitarian or symbolic value. An observation on this practice shows that originally there had been a system where art objects that project cultural existence in a creative artifact were preserved and presented both for the posterity of culture and visual satisfaction.