Zimbabwe

Batapata '05 workshop spurs new ideas

By Martin Chemhere, in Harare

Two years ago, Zimbabwean visual artist, the late Keston Beaton, described the second edition of the Batapata International Artists Workshop as "a networking group of artists working in defiance of an oppressive and wicked (modern-day) system". He had urged artists to "stick together in these trying times and step up the networking”. He passed away recently, but Keston’s vision for the prosperity of African art communities still lives on.

His inspiring words are immortalized in a brochure of the Batapata 2003 workshop, though perhaps largely unnoticed. They nonetheless provide a source of creative encouragement in a country bogged down by economic and cultural hiccups. Keston witnessed the socio-economic meltdown of once a prosperous nation whose artists enjoyed lavish lifestyles for years. His words were considered as a wake up call for the artists’ to rise up in tough times and keep the artistry flame ablaze.

oasis of creative ideologies

This year’s edition of the Batapata workshop held under banner ‘Beyond Freedom’ echoes Keston’s vision, though the theme is being viewed as a broadside at the repressive authorities. The forum not only stood out as an oasis of experimental and creative ideologies, but also rose above debilitating realities such as high inflation and state of homelessness facing many Zimbabweans.

Fifteen visual artists drawn from across the continent converged for the workshop. Their artistic energies stirred up unfettered bursts of imagination, spurred on by venue’s vicinity to a tranquil lakeside, where friendly waves splash gently on the shores, chirping bird sounds punctuate the air and wild game intermittently nibble shrubs in the nearby savannah plains.

Artists in residence represented nationalities and cultural backgrounds spanning six central and southern Africa countries. They included Mary Ogembo (Kenya), Doreen Perekisi (Botswana), Shiya Karuseb (Namibia), Baaba Jakeh Chinda and Nezius Nyirenda (Zambia), Norman O’Flynn (South Africa), Linda Vongai Taremeredzwa, Owen Maseko, Albert Wachi, Gareth Nyandoro, Zodwa Juma-Mkandla, Charles Kamangwana, Stephen Garan’anga and Chikonzero Chazunguza  (all from Zimbabwe).

It is Batapata’s tradition to host artists in an environment wherein the ambience is undisturbed to enhance boundless creativity. "This venue was chosen for its inspirational atmosphere; here artists are detached from distractions and unwanted intrusions. The setting also contributes to the theme ’Beyond Freedom’, observed Chazunguza.

Some of the pieces created during the workshop are impressive. Maseko’s mixed media piece Losing Identity is a metaphorical symbolism for cultural decadence and hits out against Africans who "embrace foreign cultures whereas white people react differently. Is this perhaps their sense of freedom?", he poses.

freedom of the mind

The piece further highlights the dilemma facing many blacks, who may have abandoned their traditions in favour of Western lifestyles. “It brings to mind typical African caught between modernity and traditional preservation. It is important to adapt, but many pick up bad influences", he quips. Maseko also uses white and black ropes to illustrate the notion that "whites always protect their cultures while most blacks don’t. The symbolism also signifies blacks’ absorption in habits and ways foreign to average Africans. We thus become masters of a white man’s lifestyles at expense of our own".

Zambian artist Nezius Nyirenda’s work titled Freedom of the Mind (mixed media) depicts a common practice to suppress what lies in the inner soul against what most people project at face value. “Many individuals are likely to pretend but deep within they harbour different emotions. One may choose to interpret such tendencies as freedom of the mind or the heart. I am saying some people can be free outside while also being oppressed inside", explains Nyirenda.

His compatriot, Baaba Jakeh Chinda’s Trapping the Wind, which fits the description of a philosophical installation, is an experimental piece that seeks to trap the wind blowing from the shores of Lake Chivero, venue of the Batapata workshop. The almost 2.5 metre high clothing piece forms a dome-like shape as it sways to and fro the direction of the wind seemingly trapping the gusts. A group of visiting students from various art colleges in Harare are also captivated by Chinda’s work. "I like the form, shape, and the feeling of the wind being trapped. There is a kind of force in control", the artist points out.

In another piece, he uses his nude body to create a self-image cloth labeled Drawing with Firewood. He lies down the cloth, as a colleague sears the edges of his body with a burning flame leaving in its wake a brownish colour on the fabric. "He used the flame with utmost care; there was no danger of getting burnt. I like the fire’s effect on cloth. This new media is gratifying compared to carving stones. Back in Zambia, I get too busy and don’t get to develop my own ideas like this", says Chinda.

shared progressive ideas

Linda Taremeredzwa experiments in a series of works like My Wedding Bells, Crown Fit for an African Queen, and Typical of Me. The last one, she says, “is a mirror of my character, a multi-faceted modern African woman". She also perceives the series as a "celebration of being black". Another untitled piece, symbolizes death, as a way to freedom. “Many believe that one achieves their utmost freedom in death or death brings freedom to mankind”, notes Linda. She concedes being overwhelmed by the absolute power of the work in progress at her debut participation in a workshop.

Namibia’s Shiya Karuseb explores the theme of ‘love’ in Ancestral Guidance, a fascinating stone sculpture installation. Norman O’Flynn worked with stone for the first time, but finds serpentine a friendly medium despite its unfamiliar hardness. Despite a depressing economic backdrop, the participants at the workshop rose above myriad challenges to share progressive ideas.

Commonwealth award-winning Kenyan artist Mary Ogembo summed up the collective, prevalent mood: "Everything has been exciting, we had a chance to experiment with varied mediums. We learnt amongst each other and established networks and friendships we never imagined possible before coming here".

mchemhere@yahoo.com