The string art ABU presented to Dr Ngozi Okonja-Iweala
High point of the visit to Ahmadu Bello University by Dr Ngozi Okonja-Iweala to deliver a pre-convocation lecture was the presentation to the distinguished economist of a string art made of her soon after the lecture.
String art is an art form that uses thread stretched across evenly spaced nails to create geometric patterns and eventually detailed images.
In the artwork, which is also called ‘pin and thread art’, the image of Okonjo-Iweala emerged purely from straight-line geometry.
Okonjo-Iweala was highly excited for the gift which she described as “special and extraordinary”.
The string art made of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was created using 230 evenly spaced nails, about 2.3 kilometers of thread, and over 25 hours of stringing.
It was Abdulmalik Ibrahim who did the pin and thread art. And amazingly, the 400 Level student is from the Department of Computer Science, and not Fine Art as many would expect.
In carrying out the artwork, the student first mapped 230 nails evenly around a circular board to ensure symmetry. Then, he used the algorithm-generated sequence from his web app, and traced the thread step by step across those nails.
Each connection is a straight line; but when hundreds of those straight lines over, they form an optical illusion that gradually turns into detailed portrait.
And after over 25 hours of continuous stringing, the final image of Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala emerged purely from straight-line geometry.
Abdulmalik Ibrahim’s talent in creative art came into open when he participated in the ABU research fair organised recently as part of the activities marking the institution’s 45th convocation.
At the close range, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Adamu Ahmed, didn’t seem to appreciate the work until when the student who did it asked him to move back a bit far. And when Prof Ahmed watched the work at far, he now saw the full image of Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala emerged in it.
On the motive behind the work, the maker of the work told the Vice-Chancellor that he wanted it be presented to Okonjo-Iweala as a gift in acknowledgement of her commitment to excellence, integrity, and service to humanity.
And on 30th January, 2026, the artwork was presented to Okonjo-Iweala by His Highness, Malam Ahmed Nuhu Bamalli, CFR, the Emir of Zazzau, shortly after the pre-convocation lecture she delivered.
She received the souvenir in the presence of the Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, His Majesty, Igwe Alfred Nnaemeka Ugochukwu Achebe, CFR; and the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman, ABU Governing Council, Mahmud Yayale Ahmed, CFR.
Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), was visibly impressed with the gift.
She said she had stopped collecting portraits of her but she accepted the string art made of her by ABU as she said it was “special and extraordinary”.
On why as a computer science student making art, Abdulmalik Ibrahim said he had been drawn to art since childhood as he had always loved visual expression.
“Instead of complaining about not studying a ‘creative’ course, I decided to merge both worlds. During my SIWES period, I stumbled on the works of Petros Vrellis. I studied his process deeply”, he said.
He said he built his own web app that generates string sequences, using open-source algorithm as a base.
Ibrahim also said the web app became the tool he used to physically create his artworks.
“For me, programming became the brush, and algorithm became the design process”, he stressed.
Ibrahim further stated that he started making art from home for fun and uploaded it on social media, saying that in a short time the work began gaining traction.
For example, Ibrahim said he was recognised by King Ateke and Wizard Chan all in Port Harcourt in Rivers State because of his artworks. This is in addition to gaining recognition from Jesse Pollak, the Chief Executive Officer of Base, he also said.
Abdulmalik Ibrahim said his work equally received visibility within the Polkadot ecosystem, saying that one of his string pieces of Davido generated over one million impressions across social platforms.
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Public Affairs Directorate,
Office of the Vice-Chancellor,
Ahmadu Bello University,
Zaria (NEWS/AAI&PIC/TKU) Tuesday, 3rd March, 2026
