Fashion for Peace

The Festival for African Fashion and Arts (FAFA) was set-up in 2008 during the post-election violence which took place in Kenya. As many countries throughout the region continue to know human rights abuse, civil unrest and war, FAFA aims to change perceptions of other communities’, one mind at a time by exploring and bridging cultures through fashion, art and music.

African talent and creativity, ethical consumerism, and a stunning backdrop – this is what FAFA 2010 was all about. Acknowledging and celebrating the immense creativity and beauty in the arts and in the fashion industry in Africa, FAFA hosted their 3^rd Annual Fashion for Peace gala evening on the 30^th October in Nairobi National Park.

Photo: Sylvia Gichia

Conceptualized by Ann McCreath, creator of Kenyan fashion label KikoRomeo and founder of FAFA, the objective is to draw attention to the immense creativity and sophistication which exist in Kenya and on the African continent while striving to add tremendous value for the people, the environment across the continent and the entire industry.

“Ethical fashion is one of the fastest growing trends within the global fashion industry. It is involves key areas such as recycling, sourcing organic materials, applying fair trade principles and packaging them in a fashionable product that consumers want to buy. Following decades of mass production, wastefulness and unfair treatment of workers, consumers around the world, including here in Africa, are looking at ethics and sustainability as key components of the products they choose to buy. In this sense, FAFA provides a very real entry point for designers on the African continent to be taken seriously”, says Ms. McCreath.

The African continent is slowly emerging as a fashion powerhouse in terms of creativity and innovation.  Through increasing the capacity and well-being of the people and communities behind this powerhouse fashion can play an active role in poverty reduction, the development of sustainable livelihoods and in the reduction of harmful effects on the environment.

Trade in fashion products provides key opportunities for communities in Africa. The nature of the fashion and arts industry means that it is possible for those in fashion and the creative arts to work with the community organizations which directly benefit the poor. In Kenya alone 30, 0000 people are employed in the apparel sector. The net effect and return from the fashion industry to the development of communities, families and individuals is enormous.

Photo: Sylvia Gichia

 In line with its original mission of fashion for peace, FAFA 2010 aimed to stimulate the industry in Kenya by providing young women and girls – many of whom were affected by the 2008 post-election violence - with the necessary skills and tools that will enable, encourage and support their aspirations and goals of being successful and economically-empowered African women.

 Fashion for Peace is a not-for-profit event and proceeds from ticket sales goes to Seed of Hope centre’s which teach young women basic tailoring skills in order to enrich their lives and communities. Through FAFA master classes, these young women will benefit from the know-how of established designers in refining their craft and business growth.

Exhibition: NORTH meets WEST

Ole Lislerud and his friendship with the African – Norwegian artist Samuel Olou from Togo and Ghana have now resulted in the exhibition: NORTH meets WEST. There are not that many points of interaction between West Africa and Norwegian art and culture. Based on this fact we hope that the project will create interest amongst artists and different focus groups in the ongoing change within the Norwegian society. The artists have been chosen based on their experience with international art projects and commitments.  

r. Samuel Sidibe at Musee National du Mali in Bamako will host the exhibition in the National Museum. Professor Abdoulaye Komate at the art academy in Bamako will host the workshops and seminars. The national Museum of Mali plays an important role in west Africa because it is one of the few instituins that has a profile promoting contemporary art. Furthermore the concept of the project is to host a similar workshop and exhibition in Oslo in 2011 in the new premises for the Oslo National Academy of The Arts at Seilduken at Grunnerløkka, and an exhibition of the work at Vigelandsmuseum in 2012.  

One of the most important aspects of the project NORTH meets WEST is the documentation and production of a catalogue. Video journalist Lene Midling Jensen is joining the project in Mali. The idea is that she will interview the artists and reflect on their motivation and goals for being part of a multi cultural art project. Photographer Anders Bergren who has done a number of art books will join the last week to document for a future publication.

Furthermore articles by journalists like Knut Olav Aamos, artcritics and scholars from the social sciences should be included presenting the art project North meets West, in a broader political, social and cultural context. The Oslo National Academy of The Arts will host the workshop and the seminar related to the opening exhibition in Oslo. This project will highlight the position of the academy in an interesting way as an important institution focussing not only on art but on the role of artists and continuous change of our multi cultural society.

The exhibition is showing in the National Museum in Bamako, Mali from 16 October - 30 November.

ARTerial Network Mid-September Alert

Call for Applications/Proposals

Call for Applications: BERLINALE TALENT CAMPUS 2011

The 9th Berlinale Talent Campus (12-17 February 2011, Berlin) brings up to 350 filmmakers from around the world together with seasoned experts for a week of learning and networking. The theme next year is "Framespotting - Filmmakers Positioning Themselves". Apply online: www.berlinale-talentcampus.de.
Deadline is October 6, 2010.

Call for Applications: Al Mawred Al Thagafy (Culture Resource)

 a. Cultural Management Workshop
Applications from Arab nationals who work in any field of arts and cultural management are invited for this workshop (1 to 8 November, Damascus).
Deadline: 21 September 2010

b. Production Awards Program for Young Creative Arab Artists
This program aims to encourage and support a new generation of Arab artists and writers by funding their early projects in the various fields of arts and culture.
Deadline for applying 30 September

http://mawred.org/en/services/

Call for Proposals: “THEATRE FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES, CULTURE, SOCIETY”

The International Theatre for Young Audiences Research Network, is calling for proposals for the Second International Theatre for Young Audiences Research Forum at the 17th ASSITEJ World Congress in Copenhagen-Malmoe May 20, 2011. More information: http://www.assitej2011.info/ www.ityarn.org
Email proposals by October 1, 2010 to: post@ityarn.org.

 

Calls for Papers: 4th Global Conference - Interculturalism, Meaning and Identity

To be held in Prague, Czech Republic, on 8-10 March 2011, seeking to explore the new and prominent place that the idea of culture has for the construction of meaning and identity through innovative trans-disciplinary dialogues, invites papers from all disciplines, professions and vocations which explore the forging of identities in rapidly changing national, social and cultural contexts.

More information: http://www.culturelink.org/conf/diary/2011.html
The deadline for submissions is 1 October 2010.

Meetings/Conferences & Events

Festival: 14th POETRY AFRICA

 

Poets from around South Africa, Africa and the world will descend on Durban for an exhilarating rollercoaster of words, rhythms and ideas at the 14th Poetry Africa international poetry festival, which takes place from 4 to 9 October. Organised by the Centre for Creative Arts (University of KwaZulu-Natal), and with principal support from the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund, Poetry Africa’s exciting week-long programme is preceded by a three-stop Poetry Africa tour to Cape Town, Zimbabwe and Malawi.

Tour dates:
Cape Town, South Africa: Cape Town ICC, 26 September
Harare, Zimbabwe: Manneberg and Book Café 28 & 29 September
Malawi: Blantyre Arts Festival 1 October
Durban, South Africa: 4 – 9 October 2010

Website: http://www.ukzn.ac.za/cca/poetry_africa.htm

CD-launch: My Roots by Suzanna Owiyo

Suzanna Owiyo , Kenya's biggest female artist is launching her new CD on the KKV in cooperation with Mimeta. “My Roots” is the second CD in the Imagine Africa campaign.

The prolific singer and songwriter who has performed at the Mandela concert in New York and at the Nobel concert in Oslo, has in contrast to many large African artists, chosen to stay in Kenya and resist the temptation to move to London or Paris.
Suzanna Owiyo has two previous releases behind her. In connection with the new, "My Roots "says the artist: - Let me take you on a journey to my roots. Please feel free to share this special language that we all own together: Music. My musical instrument " Nyatiti "can stand as a symbol of the disc's title. My grandfather was a prolific nyatiti player. The instrument was used at special occasions and gatherings, but it was only used by men. For women, it was taboo even just touching the instrument. But this did not stop me when I wanted to learn to master it. And I was even more excited when I was at our local TV station and saw a Japanese woman, called Anyango play on it. It was the first time in my life that I saw a woman playing Nyatiti, but she gave my own ambitions to do the same thing a push.

Suzanna sings lyrics about corrupt power figures, good leaders, about the appreciation and sharing of the beautiful gifts we have been given by God, alcohol abuse dangers, forgiveness, fathers who run away, faithfulness in friendship, violence against women and addiction that promotes begging and prevents the development.

In addition to singing and playing Nyatiti , Suzanna also plays acoustic guitar, shakers and bongos on the disc. She has also brought a large team of skilled musicians from Nairobi : Tobi Imani , Eric Desire Buchumi , Freddie Bryant , Rocky Bile , Tobby Koech , Dave " Mob " Otieno and Combo Chokwe all plays guitar. Eric Mwangi , Chagala Wycliffe , Eric Mwangi and Annette A Aguilar on percussion. Robert Kamanzi and Hussein " Meya " Mwidani : Drums . Sadie Kinyunda , Dave " Mob " Otieno , Isaac Gem : collaborate on bass, and Lydia Ogoti sings backing vocals and plays Calabash
In addition, Barry Olsen on trombone , Rob Thomas on violin and Shadrack Muithya on keyboards .

The release is published in cooperation between KKV and Mimeta , a Norwegian center that supports artists and artistic groups that contribute to culture and development. The disc is part of the series”Imagine Africa”. Imagine Africa www.imaginafrica.org is a project initiated by the Arterial network www.arterialnetwork.org

To purchase: http://www.kkv.no/

Economy of Creativity – Meeting business community

That culture plays an important part in the development of society goes without saying. Yet it often seems to be left in the wake of other sectors. Who should be primarily responsible for cultural life – the state or civil society? How can we bring the business sector and the cultural sector closer together?

Following the GoDown’s 1^st Creative Economy meeting in 2009, it was recognized that an exclusive meeting with business people needed to be held, to give them greater understanding of the characteristics, opportunities and challenges of the creative industries. A study of the local creative economy was therefore commissioned by the GoDown to be shared with the business community. The Swedish Ambassador generously hosted this meeting at her residence.

10 selected investors attended together with representatives from the British Council and the Alliance Francaise, who separately and in collaboration with the GoDown are interested in the development of Kenya’s creative economy. Artists from the music, visual arts and film sectors were also present, in addition to the Norwegian Ambassador, Swedish Embassy officials and representatives of Mimeta and the GoDown.

It was understood that the GoDown was inviting the business community to join in establishing an interfacing structure between business and the arts that will help to build deeper and more sustainable ties between business and arts.The meeting successfully achieved its main outcome, which was to gain the buy-in and commitment of the business representatives to continue discussions and exploration of setting up a business/arts structure beyond the meeting.

The next meeting of the group will be in September.

The Economy of Creativity at GoDown

A talk show hosted by John Sibi Okumu where renowned business personalities, artists and public funders from government and donor world, had an interactive discussion on the opportunities and challenges encountered by investors and creators in the arts and culture field, in attempting "to do business together". For the talk show, business moguls and well known industrialists such as Manu Chandaria and Pete Ondeng engaged with comedians - Churchill and Nyambane; great musicians - Joseph Kamaru, Nameless; and public funders - the Director of Culture in the Ministry of Heritage and Culture and the Swedish Institute, in lively debate, in front of a live audience.

The talk show was followed by a two-day workshop where selected private and public investors and people in the creative industry engage, in-depth exploration to identify practical common tools and strategies between them, for mutual business benefit. A first in the country, the Economy of Creativity initiative was extremely well received; the next steps of the same programme are being plotted :- to hold a separate workshop for the Kenyan business & investment sector; to introduce them to the idea of bridging business and creators and to learn from them where they see the gaps are in forging this relationship and possible solutions; and to continue to develop materials and tools to help ready artists to engage more knowledgeably with the economy.

The Money and Meaning workshop provided 15 participants with tools, techniques and structured reflection that would assist creative individuals in developing their ideas, projects and businesses. The facilitators for this were from N�tverkstan in Sweden, who shared the tools based on experiences made at the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts' Creative Pioneer Programme in the UK. The participants who attended this workshop were mainly visual artists from The GoDown arts studios as well as independent contemporary dancers and writers.

From: http://www.thegodownartscentre.com/recent-progs/e-creativity.html

Stories from Mali

With the support of Mimeta three books are now published at the La Salihenne publishing - inspired from the rich and diversified well of Malien stories. From everyday life - to kings.  

TOUAREG 1973-1997
By Sidi Alamine Ag Doho

This book is the story of the long walk experienced by nomadic Tuaregs impoverished by successive droughts. Confronted with the harsh laws of wandering ( at  home and outside), the hard living conditions and  also the  thinning of solidarity and friendship too briefly lived,  a young boy crosses the borders of neighboring countries, without ever reaching a normal childhood. Become adult now, he witnessed the turbid of the political leaders and the rebellions that resulted from.
Going through the undecided lines of this book, the reader feels heartily very touched since so great is the injury of this child and his will to survive.  

The Author of the book:
Sidi Ag Alamine Doho is director of the school of  Tarkint, north of Gao. In early 1990 he was a typing agent to the “éditions de sahélienne”. He took the  advantage of this very short time of his busy life to start writing short stories about the Tuareg and tell his years of wandering.

IL N’YA QU’UN SOLEIL SUR TERRE (There is only one sun on the earth)!
(Kel-Adagh  Touaregs’ tales, proverbs and riddles) 
By Mohamed Ag Erless

The Kel-Adagh people live in the "Adrar Iforas" in the Kidal region, city of the same name located about 1,600 km from Bamako, the capital of Mali.
The Adagh-which means "mountain", is renowned for the abundance and quality of its oral literature. This literature is the backbone of the traditional education which aims to build the child in the image of typical Haman being.
In Adagh, tales, proverbs, riddles, poetry, music ... do not belong to any particular social stratum, but to all of them.

The Author of the book:
Mohamed Ag Erless was born and raised in Adagh. Social scientist, currently director of the Cultural Mission of Kidal Es Souk, Ag Erless is a pure product of the Institute of Social Sciences of Mali, where he started his career thirty years ago.

ABUBAKARI  II (EXPLORATEUR MANDINQUE)
(ABUBAKARI  II,  AN EXPLORER FROM MANDE)
By Gaoussou Diawara

The author achieves in this book the synthesis of more than twenty years of research on the Mandingo emperor Abubakari II, who, in 1312, voluntarily relinquished the power and then explored the limits of ocean. His fleet would have anchored on the coast of Brazil.

Abubakari II was one of the pioneers of the era of great discoveries ... Before Christopher Columbus, Magellan and Vasco de Gama.

The Author of the book:
Gaoussou Diawara was born in Ouelessebougou, some 80km in the south of Bamako. He completed his primary and secondary schools in the country before obtaining a doctorate (PH. D Specialty Drama) in Soviet Union. He is author of several award-winning work created for the stage or studied in schools and universities in Mali. Gaoussou Diawara is a Knight of the National Order of Merit in France, Knight of the National Order of Merit of Mali, UNESCO Prize for poetry and Cross-African drama prize.

9 out of 90 million Euros for Culture in EC's ‘Investing in People’

From Decision C (2010)3094 of 18 May 2010
Download Action Programme: http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/documents/aap/2010/af_aap_2010_dci-people.pdf

In 2010 the programme will focus on the governance of the cultural sector, so as to support the implementation of effective cultural policies and the development of enabling institutional, regulatory, economic and professional environment, essential to foster access to culture and creation, promote cultural diversity and support the sustainable development of the cultural sectors.

Support to the governance of the cultural sector will be addressed through two complementary actions: Firstly, the programme will support the structuring and the strengthening of the cultural sector through capacity-building of cultural actors and structures, including public and private entities and civil society organisations, so as to enhance their own governance and their role in national governance of the cultural sector. The call for proposals will promote cooperation and exchange of experiences between different countries and regions in this regard.

Secondly, the programme will support developing countries in their efforts to improve the governance of the cultural sector through an expert facility to be managed by UNESCO. The expert facility will provide demand-driven technical assistance to ministries and public institutions with responsibilities in the cultural sector or influencing sector governance, as well as to local authorities, for the development of cultural policies and public initiatives enhancing the role of culture as a vector of sustainable human and social development. The initiative brings an important contribution to the objectives of the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions

Identified actions:

(1) A call for proposals 'Supporting capacities in the cultural sector' will be launched in 2010,

with a budget of EUR 7 000 000 (Annex H).

(2) A EUR 1 000 000 contribution agreement (joint management with an international

organisation) will be signed with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural

Organisation (UNESCO)

Bringing culture and business together

Joy Mboya with representatives from SI and the Foreign MinistryThat culture plays an important part in the development of society goes without saying. Yet it often seems to be left in the wake of other sectors. Who should be primarily responsible for cultural life – the state or civil society? How can we bring the business sector and the cultural sector closer together? These were two of the key questions discussed at a seminar at the Stockholm Cultural Centre in June.

The seminar was organized by the Norwegian foundation Mimeta in collaboration with Creative Force, and specially invited guests were Joy Mboya from Kenya and Mike van Graan from South Africa. The questions under discussion were then taken on to the Tällberg Forum in Dalarna.

In Sweden, the state has prime responsibility for cultural life, whereas in South Africa as in many other African countries it is civil society. In South Africa, cultural workers have come together in their own networks. One successful example is the Arterial network, headed by dramatist Mike van Graan as secretary-general. This pan-African network brings together 150 organizations from 30 countries. Joy Mboya, who is a member of the Arterial executive, is also head of a private institution, the GoDown Arts Centre in Nairobi, which is funded by such bodies as the British Council and the Goethe Institute.

“But just as important as financial support are heart and brain exchanges with other cultural workers around the world,” she says. “We need more capacity development and we survive by networking and by joining workshops.”

Joy Mboya and Mike van Graan also took part in Rework the World in Tällberg, where the discussions on culture’s place in society continued. One of the themes there was how the cultural sector can create jobs and promote growth. In September, a follow-up meeting will be held at the GoDown Arts Centre on the theme of culture and enterprise under the heading The Economy of Creativity, again in collaboration with Mimeta and Creative Force.

A text from the last newsletter from Swedish Institute (http://www.si.se/Svenska/):

Culture and development talks in centre of Stockholm

On 1st of June Mimeta, the city of Stockholm along with the GoDown Arts Centre (Kenya) and the Arterial Network (Africa) shared their experiences on the role of cultural sector in development of society. About 60 persons involved in cultural exchange, Swedish arts and culture administration participated in discussions at the Culture House situated in the centre of Stockholm. The event also got coverage in Svenska Dagbladet – one of the main newspapers in Sweden. (Read article here (in Swedish)).

In the evening – our partner – Swedish Institute (SI) – brought us to dinner at Moderna Museet – where we continued our discussions with representatives of Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, SI and Sida.