CULTURAL HEROES RECOGNIZED AT LAST

                                                              Mufasa the Poet won a cultural heroes award

By Margaretta wa Gacheru (posted 6 November 2019 for 8.11.19)

Mashujaa celebrations came and went in a single day. But in all the fanfare and recognition of unsung heroes, there was one group that got left out. It was the Cultural Heroes, men and women who had contributed immensely to our contemporary culture.

Sadly, culture is something like the air you breathe. You take it for granted but life would be difficult and dull without it.

But thanks to a project initiated more than six months ago, a Cultural Heroes Campaign got launched last May. The occasion coincided with a ‘World Day for Cultural Diversity’ which was established by UNESCO.

Organized under a British Council program called ‘Cultural Heritage for Inclusive Growth’, the BC collaborated with Mount Kenya University, Book Bunk Trust, African Digital Heritage and Heva Fund.

Together, they selected judges, established criteria for selecting the finalists and conducted a survey, asking a wide range of cultural organizations to pick the Kenyan creatives that they felt fulfilled the criteria and fit into any one of seven specified categories of culture. The judges included Joy Mboya, Prof Kimani Njogu, Dr Kiprop Lagat, Dr Mbugua wa Mungai, Floice Mukabana, Prof Kennedy Mutunda and Thomas Mwiraria.

                                                                                          Dr. Kimani Njogu

Then, all of this was collated by Gong Communications, an independent organization that also did its own desk research of Kenyan and international media to add its input into the process.

The categories included were Food, Fashion, Film, Music, Theatre, Visual arts and a Special Mention category for creatives whose contribution didn’t quite fit into any one of the other seven.

And the criteria included everything from Creativity, Originality, Impact both here and beyond Kenya, Advocacy, Participation in Industry and Legacy.

The ‘finalists’ were actually named on Mashujaa Day, but only on the social media pages of the British Council, including its website.

There was also a brief photographic exhibition of the seven winners up McMillan Library which ran from 30^th October to Monday, 4^th November. But after all that effort, one imagines there should have been a bit more fanfare given to the cultural heroes finally selected.

The Seven included Sauti Sol for Music, Wanuri Kahiu for Film, Kioko Mwitiki for Visual Arts, the late Francis Imbuga for Theatre, Ann McCreath for Fashion and Chef Ali Mandhry for Food. The Special Mentions went to Muthoni Garland, founder of Storymoja Publishers and Mufasa the Poet.

Hopefully, Cultural Heroes will be included in Mashujaa celebrations next year.

                                                                            Joy Mboya, one of the Judges

NEW ART VENUES OPENED IN 2019

                        Graffiti artist Chela painted walls, doors and ceiling at Kukito in 2019

BY Margaretta wa Gacheru (posted 30 December 2019)

While a number of Nairobi art spaces shut their doors in 2019 (some temporarily, others permanently), and others lost a degree of artistic energy, the local visual art scene remained vibrant nonetheless.

                          David Thuku, cofounder of Brush tu exhibits with One Off Gallery now but is based at Kobo Trust

The leading lights in Kenya’s art industry thrived in 2019. These include galleries like One Off, Circle Art, Red Hill and Banana Hill, all of which were busy throughout the year. They as well as venues like the Nairobi National Museum, Alliance Francaise, Goethe Institute and Nairobi Gallery were also booked solid all year.

                                 Victor Mwangi is based in Railway Museum studio but exhibited in 2019 at One Off

Nonetheless, there were many artists who felt disheartened, given the virtual shut down of spaces like the GoDown, Polka Dot Gallery, the Attic, Shifteye Gallery and Paa ya Paa, all of which had once promised artists limitless possibilities for exhibiting their art.

Yet as demoralizing as the shut downs may have seemed, they stimulated lots of fresh initiatives on  artists’ and curators’ part. Many resorted to mounting Pop-Up exhibitions. 

                    Ooko used to exhibit at the now defunct Gallery Watatu. In 2019 he showed at Chelenge's Home Studio

Among the spaces that were popular for pop-ups were various hotels, restaurants, and malls as well as offices like Ikigai and Ogilvy Africa. Hotels that opened their doors to local artists included the Sarova Stanley, Fairmont Norfolk, Trademark, Tribe, Intercontinental, Sankara and Radisson Blu where the Art Auction East Africa will again be held in March, curated by Circle Art. And even country clubs like Muthaiga and Karen Clubs hosted pop-up shows in 2019.

                      At Village Market with Evans Ngure, Patrick Kinuthia, Milena, Usha, Kathy Tate-Bradish and me

The most popular malls that showcased artists’ work were Village Market, Lavington Mall and Roslyn Riviera (where One Off opened up an ‘annex’ late in 2018 which has been busy ever since).

Restaurants like Talisman and Que Pasa have been hosting artists’ works for years. But in 2019. venues like the Lord Errol, Alchemist, Wasps and Sprouts, 45 Degrees Kitchen, Lava Latte and even fast food eateries like Kukito have not just mounted exhibitions. Some have even invited graffiti artists to cover whole walls with their art.

                          Nelson Ijakaa photographed model Naitiemu for exhibition at The Attic which closed in 2019

One other major trend that picked up in 2019 was artists setting up their own art venues. Adrian Nduma did it sometime back with Bonzo Gallery; Nani Croze did it when she started Kitengela Glass and even Patrick Mukabi established Dust Depo both to show his own and others’ art and to mentor young artists. But more recently, we’ve seen Paul Onditi open his own Art Cupboard, Chelenge van Rampelberg launch her Home Studio, Kioko with Kioko Mwitiki Gallery, Jeffie Magina with Studio Soko, Adam Masava with Mukuru Art Club and George Waititu did it by building his own Tafaria Castle Art Museum.

                    Florence Wangui began studio work with Makabi at the GoDown. Now she is signed with One Off

In fact, a number of artists have moved out of town and opened home studios, including photographer James Muriuki, C-stunners’ Cyrus Kabiru and painters like Peterson Kamwathi, Yony Waite, Zihan Herr, Peter Elungat, Geraldine Robarts and others.

                                                                 Interning artist at Brush Tu Art Collective 2019

At the same time, artists’ collectives proved to be one of the best places to see art ‘works in progress’ in 2019. These include spaces like Brush Tu, Maasai Mbili, Kobo Trust, Kuona and BSQ which is part of a thriving arts community at the Railway Museum. For not only is Dust Depo there. There’s another art space just next door, and right behind the Museum, there are railway cars transformed by graffiti artists like BSQ into studios cum gallery spaces.

                       Coster Ojwang exhibited at Polka Dot Gallery before it had to move out of the Souk, Karen, 2019

What’s more, BSQ has carried on the tradition initiated by Mukabi of mentoring up-and-coming artists. The main difference between the two is that BSQ mentors graffiti artists whom they also invited in 2019 to carry on another tradition, of spray-painting graffiti art on the ‘Great Wall’  of the Museum that stretches all the way from the Technical University of Kenya down to the Museum, creating a collective work of art that changes periodically just as graffiti does worldwide.

                                                                 Part of the 'Great Wall of Railway Museum' 2019

Finally, a number of events stood out dramatically this past year. One was the Art Auction East Africa which is an annual event. But this past year at Radisson Blu, there were record-breaking sales of regional art which effectively illustrated how fine art can be taken seriously by Kenyans as a profession and livelihood.

                                                     Kids by Patrick Mukabi of Dust Depo Art Studio

The other landmark moment for Kenyan and other regional artists in 2019 was One Off Gallery’s opening its own Sculpture Garden on more than two acres of ground. The Garden turned out to be not just one venue for viewing the wide range and beauty of East African sculpture. Carol Lees’ call out attracted so much amazing art that it filled the garden as well as indoor galleries at One Off and the onr at Rosslyn Riviera mall.  

              Wildebeasts by Yony Waite, cofounder of defunct Gallery Watatu showed at Polka Dot in 2019 before it closed

Angelique Kidjo on Austin City Limits "Pata Pata"

SANAA THEATRE AWARDS LIT UP DYNAMIC THEATRE SCENE

                            Xavier Ywaya won at Sanaa Awards for Best Actor in Lwanda Rockman playing title role

By Margaretta wa Gacheru (posted 23 December 2019)

Sanaa Theatre awards are the only folks in tow
n giving national recognition to Kenya’s burgeoning performing arts scene.

Some people claim there should be more awards ceremonies. They note there should be at least one that focuses exclusively on professional and semi-professional theatre, leaving out TV shows and stars as well as winners from Schools Drama festivals.

The critics contend the theatre scene in Kenya is dynamic enough not to see Sanaa pad their awards program with TV and schools shows. But that is not the view of Sanaa founder-journalist, George Orido.

                                                          Breathe 2 by Back 2 Basics also earned Sanaa award

Audiences were grateful there were fewer awards given this year than last. And for the most part, the winners represented much of the best theatrical work staged in 2019, although there were a number of outstanding performances, actors and playwrights that were bypassed. But that must always be the case given theatre in Kenya is currently thriving, no matter what some critics content.

For instance, we saw more original script-writing by Kenyans this year that ever before. That included not only the winning playwright, Xavier Nato who deserved his award for Son of Agich. But then, writers like Seth Busolo, Walter Sitati, Mbeki Mwalimu, Too Early for Birds and Heartstrings all produced outstanding original works this past year.

                                               Fabulous acting in Too Early for Birds 5th Edition on Tom Mboya

The same could be said for directors. Stuart Nash certainly deserved first prize for directing Sarafina, but there were others, including Mugambi Nthege, Nick Ndeda, Esther Kamba, Gilbert Lukalia, Sammy Mwangi and Mbeki Mwalimu among others.

And as for actors, there is no doubt the judges must have had a difficult time selecting the best actors and supporting actors, since there is so much theatrical talent emerging in the country currently. This is an exciting time for Kenyan theatre. But one could see how challenging these choices must have been. For instance, Sanaa gave two actors, Ian Mbugua and Bruce Makau the best supporting actor award, suggesting it was a difficult choice to ultimately make. Xavier Ywaya deservedly won best actor’s prize, but he could also have won for his performance as Tom Mboya in the Too Early for Birds production of ‘Tom Mboya as well as for his leading role as Lwanda Rockman.

Sanaa had the same problem with best actress, but I can understand. Both Sheila Munyiva and Nice Githinji were brilliant.

                                             Sheila Munyiva as Sarafina won Best Actress tied with Nice Githinji

My one query for Sanaa Awards is its controversial choice of Best Supporting Individual.

FILM REVIEW: JUMANJI: THE NEXT LEVEL

By Margaretta wa Gacheru (posted 23 December 2019)

^{‘Jumanji: The Next Level’ came out just a week before Christmas and has done well at box offices, both in Nairobi and overseas.}

^{I didn’t see the first ‘Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle’ but I got a briefing from a child who had seen it and loved it and was eager to see ‘the next level.’}

^{Billed as a children’s movie, there are a couple of swear words sprinkled in the film that might disturb sensitive parents. But for the most part, Jumanji II is a marvelous action adventure that has a fun story line and keeps both kids and adults alert to the clever antics of a group of teens.}

^{In fact, Jumanji II might have been constructed specifically to entertain both the parents and grandparents as well as the kids since the film mixes comedy and fantasy with action-adventure and heaps of special effects. There are also assorted age groups represented in Jumanji II. The old folks are played by Danny Glover, Sr. and Danny DeVito who get morphed into semi-super hero-styled characters early on in the film. There are also present-day stars like Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Jack Black and Kevin Hart in it as well as a load of up-and-coming actors like Karen Gillan, Madison Iseman and Awkwafina.}

^{The story initially revolves around a quartet of former high school buddies who have gone separate ways but are hoping to reunite during the holidays. They were the stars of Jumanji 1, including Spencer, the geeky one, Martha his former girlfriend, Bethany and Fridge. They all seem to be doing well except for Spencer who ended up in a going-nowhere job. So once he gets home, he makes the reckless decision to reconstruct the old video game, called Jumanji, which had previously sucked the four into its game world in the first film.}

^{Once the other three realize Spencer is missing, they follow him back into the game world (by magic of course). That is when their ‘avatars’ (their representatives acting in the game) appear. Spencer now becomes ‘the Rock’ (Dwayne Johnson, who also co-produced the film); Martha becomes a karate queen (Karen Gillan); Fridge becomes the Kevin Hart character and Jack Black becomes Bethany.}

^{If that sounds confusing, that’s just half of it since events occur leading to some of them switching roles (or ‘avatars’). Either way, their story is full of fantastic adventures as they need to retrieve a specific gemstone to actually get out of Jumanji. Otherwise, they will be stuck inside the video game forever!}

^{This is when the story gets exciting and action-packed. The Rock shows off his muscularity, beating up enemy gangs, carnivorous ostrich-like herds of birds and other hairy, scary creatures who aim to devour them all. Karen Gillan as Martha also acquires super-hero-style karate moves; and Kevin Hart becomes a linguist who speaks fluently with animals.}

^{Naturally, since Jumanji II targets teen audiences especially, one can be sure, the ending won’t give anyone nightmares.  Instead, the film is a story well-told.}

KAGGIA COMES ALIVE AS A SERIOUS HOLIDAY GIFT

                                                           Kaggia and Wambui (Martin Kigondu and Lucy Njoroge)

By Margaretta wa Gacheru (posted 21 December 2019)

Everybody knows the mind can play tricks on you. I swear I saw John Sibi-Okumu’s ‘Kaggia’ twice in 2014. But the ‘Kaggia’ that was staged last weekend at Kenya National Theatre seemed very different and only distantly related to the one directed by Nick Njache, starring the late Harry Ebale with Lydia Gitache, Yriime Mwaura and Bruce Makau.

Much of the script and structure are similar. There are effectively two casts, one a kind of retrospective view of Bildad Kaggia and his wife Wambui, the other a present-day team of researchers preparing to assemble the story of the Mau Mau freedom fighter turned politician turned aging posho miller.

But the play’s current director Tim Kin’goo apparently had quite a different interpretation of the Sibi-Okumu script. Or that is how it felt. The differences were both subtle and overt. For instance, there was far more music injected into the Unplugged Footprints production. It came during scene changes and ranged from hip-hop and spoken word poetry to the 1950s version of Doris Day singing ‘Que sera sera’ (Whatever will be will be).

It also could be seen on the KNT stage where Kin’goo created a split set so that both casts could be on stage simultaneously (with lights shifting our attention back and forth).

But one of the biggest differences between the 2014 and 2019 shows was the latter seemed to create many more opportunities for the two casts to interact. What was also clearer (in my mind) this time round was that the two researchers, Stacy (Mwajuma Belle and Justin Miriichi) were seriously committed to creating a screenplay around Kaggia’s life. It felt like there was more solid debate between the two who often had differing views of Kaggia and his wife. But then one perspective would take tangible shape in the form of Kaggia (Martin Kigondu) and Wambui (Lucy Njoroge) dramatizing the very ideas that were being visualized in mainly Stacy’s mind.

Previously, I hadn’t quite grasped that Kaggia’s character was a projected interpretation of either one of the researcher’s points of view. This might very well have been there in 2014; but if it was, I must applaud the playwright, Sibi-Okumu for injecting this relativist view of history and historical figures into his script.

No doubt, Kaggia was and continues to be a controversial character in Kenyan history. For he was a freedom fighter who was one of the Kapenguria six alongside Jomo Kenyatta and the rest. But he broke ranks with Kenyatta post-Independence over the corruption he saw creeping into government early on. Just as salient was he view that the values and vision for which the Land and Freedom Army had fought were not being embodied in Kenyatta’s government.

I don’t recall Kaggia stating in 2014 that he was a socialist as he did in 2019, although it was implied in his concern over the inequitable land distribution and the way freedom fighters were sidelined after Independence. I also felt there was a bit more historical detail in the recent show, one which revealed Kaggia as not only a one-time member of KPU and later of KANU, but also a man who spent more time in England after World War 2 than had previously been clear.

All four cast members were amazing. Most notably, Justin Miriichi had the most challenging part to play since he portrayed multiple characters, from Kenyatta, Daniel arap Moi and the British Magistrate who sentenced him at Kapenguria to a torturing Kenyan home guard, a pleasant and a patronizing white man and finally, his caretaker who told his daughter Njoki that her dad was dead.

Njoki was played as both a child and mature woman by Mwajuma, who also took on several other roles. But it was her Stacy that played a greater part in shaping the outline of the screenplay. It was also Stacy who sought to ensure Wambui got recognized as the pillar who helped hold up Kaggia’s life.

In fact, I can’t recall a more poignant moment in ‘Kaggia’ than when Lucy Njoroge gave a monologue about what it meant to be a woman in Wambui’s day. Her selfless, unquestioning devotion to her man was touching despite the fact that her view of womanhood might well be contested in this day and age.

Ultimately, it was Martin Kigondu whose portrait of Kaggia stole the show. He embodied the spirit of this wise yet enigmatic man to the max. Kigondu’s return to acting is long overdue as his Kaggia clearly confirmed.

For those who may have missed Kaggia this time, Kin’goo promised he’ll bring it back early next year.    

Dr Peter Kimani at Macondo Festival on African history

MICHAEL SOI’S MAGICAL SATIRE AT CIRCLE ART

                                                                                        Heaven can Wait

By Margaretta wa Gacheru (posted 20th December 2019)

Michael Soi is a Kenyan artist that the public tends to either love or love to hate.

The lovers of Soi’s artwork are in the majority. For who cannot love his playful caricatures and almost cartoon-like portraits of Nairobi’s nightlife. His bar scenes are always filled with colorful characters who are clearly having fun although not necessarily in the most innocent of ways. But even his scenes of seduction are playful and agreeable to all parties involved.

The problem with the minority who don’t love Soi’s art is that they tend to read too much naughtiness into it. Instead of understanding the artist is a satirist making fun of human foibles and frailties, the haters tend to be judgmental critics who assume Soi condones everything he paints.

In fact, Soi is as non-judgmental a figurative artist as they come. He paints what he sees although his art isn’t exactly realism. It’s more like social realism in that his subject-matter is all about society with a specific focus on Nairobi club life, including all that transpires there.

He cannot help it if his paintings tell stories about relationships, be they inter-racial, inter-generational and even bi-sexual or gay.

Funny thing is that in his current exhibition, running through January 10^th at Circle Art Gallery, entitled ‘Heaven can Wait’, Soi spends less time exploring club life. Whether he aimed to tone down his salacious satire on purpose for the more ‘respectable’ audience that would come view his work at Circle, we cannot know.

But Soi’s artwork has never been exclusively about life in the bars and the discos. He has also had a political edge that often finds its way into his work. It can be found at Circle Art in pieces like ‘Mr Headmaster’ and ‘Everyone Loves Africa’.

‘Mr Headmaster’ reveals a man dressed respectably in a suit but climbing on the back of a large woman with a beer clutched firmly in hand. He’s holding the woman (perhaps a fellow teacher) just as tightly. But he’s surrounded by gapping eyes of children dressed in school uniforms, taking note of their head teacher’s out-of-control conduct. Not the best role model for young men or women in the crowd to see. But in today’s Kenya, too many school teachers, including headmasters are sexually abusing (mainly) young women and girls. It’s an issue society shouldn’t ignore, which is what Soi’s painting is effectively saying.

The other overtly political piece in his latest solo show is ‘Everyone Love Africa’. In the past, he’s created an extensive body of work around the theme, ‘China Loves Africa’. But in this piece, he’s not only observing one grabby super-power moving in on Africa. ‘Everyone’ in this case is represented by four grabby hands, each painted with a super-power flag and reaching out towards the African continent. There are also four small circles hovering between the hands, as if to say it’s not just the super-powers, EU and the rest, reaching in toward the region. It’s also lesser powers involved in the restaging of the 19^th century ‘Scramble for Africa’, only with cooler, more calculating hands.

Otherwise, the piece that I found the funniest in Soi’s show (it made me laugh out loud!) is the one he calls ‘Married People’. Soi’s art is rarely subtle, but that’s partly what makes it such fun. He’s tuned into what really happens to human beings, be they sex workers prepared to get to work in ‘Thursday Night Live’ or ‘Monday Morning’ where the man is so hung over from the weekend, he has to be wheel-barrowed to the bus stop by the wife who is also heavy-laden with a child wrapped onto her back.

‘Married People’ portrays the husband and his wife sharing the bathroom as she shaves her armpit while he sits on the ‘can’ reaching for the toilet paper and observing his wife in her scanty underwear. Soi packs the whole story in a painting. These two are no longer in the phase of wedlock known as romantic love. They are now more like roommates who must endure one another’s earthy habits and essential toiletries.

Soi only has 18 pieces in ‘Heaven can Wait’ but everyone has multiple tales to tell. And while quite a few have already sold, it’s still worth a trip to see them all, be they sold or not, at Circle Art.

By the way, for your calendar, Circle’s Art Auction East Africa will take place March 6, 2020 at Radisson Blu Hotel.

                                                       Michael's Queen of Hearts

HOW DALE WEBSTER MORPHED FROM PHILOSOPHER TO PORTRAIT ARTIST PAR EXCELLENCE

                                                      Margaretta by Dale Webster 2019

https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/magazines/How-Dale-morphed-from-a-philosopher-to-portrait-artist-/1248928-3150410-15cbl0x/index.html