MKEKA: Exhibited around Dar’s CBD-Impose/Expose

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Paul Nduguru's work
'My City, My Image' at the
NBC Bank gardens in Dar's city center

When art and space come together the possibilities arouse my curiosity to no end. Recently I witnessed this, in a first for Tanzania. A public art exhibition involving multiple fine artists both from Tanzania and abroad with (wait for it), three native Tanzanian curators; best of all, the venue was at various points in the city center of Dar es Salaam.

The exhibition ‘Impose, Expose’ launched on the 26th Sept'15, went on till the 10th of Oct'15. With guided tours given during the weekends, where one could find maps of the route at the National Museum HQ in Dar es Salaam.

It was at this same venue on the launch date, where I witnessed the official opening of this exhibition-Impose Expose. It was a warm sunny afternoon, after hearing short speeches from stakeholders of the event. To include Prof Audax Z. P. Mabula-the Director of the National Museum, Sarita Lydia Mamseri-one of the curators of this exhibition and Aida Mulokozi-a member of DARCH one of the organizers of this event.

Nadir Tharani's work 'Hivi ndivyo tulivyo'
at the TTCL HQ in Dar es Salaam

“Yesterday we sat with Architects, Town Planners, Investors and Construction representatives of the city. Together with various stakeholders of land and town planning development; to discuss various ways of preserving the heritage of the city of Dar es Salaam.

We debated at length...joint proposals were drawn on how to preserve specific cultural and historical sites of the city. Today on the second day we don’t have a debate like we did yesterday, rather our discussion is heralded by artists…”

Safina Kimbokota &
John Ngumba's work
'The Wind Chimes'
at the edge of NBC
gardens in Dar's city
centre

It was time to embark on the tour & witness this marriage of art to space. Indeed the main theme for this exhibition; is the relationships between people and their public space. Which in this case, is the city of Dar es Salaam & it's residents. Here the artists lead the dialogue surrounding key issues that affect space & usage whether architectural, cultural, social, ideological or metaphysical in this city.

I managed to get on board the tour with one of the curators Gadi Ramadhan. I gathered some juicy bits in chatting with him, like how he managed to convince the Managing Director of NBC bank to place one of the artworks in their garden at the city center.

“At the end I had to bluff, I told him-'if we happen to get the president of the Republic of Tanzania as the guest of honor for our launch. I’ll just have to explain the reason why in the brochure, it looks like an artwork is to be placed on this garden but incidentally is not. Is because the Managing Director of this bank flat out refused…'-let’s just say he changed his mind.”

First artist we met was Amani Abeid together with Cloud Chatanda; they’re the fine artists in this exhibition who did their works as live drawings in-situ. When we caught up with Amani at the Exim Bank office grounds, using charcoal chalk on canvas drawing what looked like ‘a before and after’.

Jan Van Esch's work '39.28 degrees & rising'
facing the Askari Monument in the
exhibition Impose/Expose

He explained “The reason I decided to illustrate two drawings of Dar es Salaam, one in the 60’s and another from 2015. Is to highlight the difference, today Dar’s public spaces are fast disappearing with emerging tall buildings at every corner, shrinking and overtaking the once spacious and tranquil city of Dar es Salaam.”

Next was an installation by Jan Van Esch, the fine artist from Netherlands & the Managing Director of 'Nafasi Artspace', his artwork made of ice titled '39.28 degrees and rising’. Adjacent to the iconic ‘Askari Monument’ roundabout in Dar’s city center, when we arrived Jan was present and he had this to say.

“When building in a city that’s 6 degrees south of the equator, is it smart to erect high rise buildings covered in glass? I live in an old building built seventy years ago, that has natural flow of wind that has no sun coming directly in the house. Uhmn the ice I’ve used as a metaphor, sadly I encountered an ironic reality check.

Cloud Chatanda overlooking his work in
progress at St Joseph's Cathedral
High School in Dar es Salaam city
center of the exhibition 'Impose Expose'

As the original idea for this artwork was to have these brick like ice boxes, represent a wall where inside would be pieces of old buildings frozen in the ice. Sadly they’re still in the water at Kigamboni in the ice maker as there has been no power there for the last three days.”

Thankfully in the consequent weekends this changed and on the closing day of the exhibition as you can see on the photo’s, Jan managed to freeze something inside his ice boxes.

His artwork raises a good point, on the high cost of cooling these buildings (with air conditioning); due not just to the usage of glass but also the heavy cement concrete blocks. It illuminates the mad quest of globalization, with a western topography that befalls many African cities on the continent. Cities like Dar es Salaam which are cited as the ‘fastest developing’ cities on the continent.

Well our next stop further questions this forward march in development, by fine artist Nadir Tharani. His artwork is an installation of wood titled ‘Hivi Ndivyo Tulivyo’ which was located at the TTCL building on Samora Avenue.

Part of the crowd in my tour at the launch of the
exhibition 'Impose Expose' in Dar city center

“Both the material, 'mirunda' (mangrove) poles and the colors of this installation. Highlight how this resource of timber is now hardly found in the built environment of the city center.

This raw material on the other hand, can be found in the working class areas of Dar es Salaam and in the rural areas. In that it now denotes the poor, so instead of celebrating our being and culture as we've done for eons past.We’d rather move on to foreign materials. Why you see the forward arrow like shape in this artwork…”-Nadir Tharani

The juxtaposition of this artwork opposite a construction site; of what will become some form of shopping mall and estate, with high rise buildings in glass. A site which previously housed old buildings dating further than the 1900’s; wasn’t lost on me.

We saw next an artwork by Dickson George Otieno from Kenya; his artwork could be seen hanging as a loose sheet from a building that has great historical value in Dar es Salaam.

Amani Abeid working on his piece '
The Rising City' in the exhbition
'Impose Expose' outside
Exim Bank offices in
Dar city center

“This is the 'Old Boma' which is likely the oldest remaining building in Dar es Salaam; it dates back to the 1860’s when this city was founded by the Sultans from Zanzibar…” Annika Seifert- a member of DARCH. Which in collaboration with the EU and the City Municipal of Dar es Salaam are renovating this building. To later house a library, showcasing the history of the city, as well a cafe & curio shops.

Before long we were at a building in town designed by the first Tanzanian Architect, to register his own company in the country namely; Mr Anthony Bosco Almeida. Building in question being St Joseph’s High School, now on its open corridor was Cloud Chatanda with a charcoal chalk in hand.

Working on his artwork which he explains highlights the disparities of incomes in the city. Showing how natives can feel alienated in their own cities. What with stringent parking fees and stiff competition between vendors and big business shop owners; resulting in a hustle that cares little for the environment making littering a norm.

A poster that would change with thought
provoking messages during the
duration of the' Impose Expose'
exhibition at TPH Bookstore
window display on
Samora Avenue in DSM

The next artwork ‘Jiji langu, Mtazamo wangu’ is by Paul Chatanda indeed his piece fits so well at the NBC gardens, the bank should consider purchasing it. This piece with a globe housing two headless human bodies, as the artist later informed me. The globe represents the buildings in our developed urban areas hence it’s usage of mirrors (representing glass), metal and timber.

The two figures inside represent the inhabitatants in these buildings, who apparently have no brains (the human figures are headless). For they neglect to see the beauty in themselves and live in the ‘modern’ buildings; which is why they’re in bold colors more pleasant than those of the globe. Also on them are signs and totems from various African tribes in East Africa. All gearing to highlight the neglect of infusing our own rich traditions in our urban infrastructure.

Dickens George Otieno's work hanging
outside one of Dar's oldest
buildings built since the 1800's

The last piece is by Safina Kimbokota in collaboration with Jackson Ngumba a simple yet bizarre wind chime titled ‘The Wind Chimes’. It was placed on the outskirts of the NBC garden, the sound it made wasn’t calming as is the case with usual wind chimes. As the clashing elements are metal saucers, representative of the ‘mama ntilie’ plates made of metal.

Safina further elaborates how her artwork represents the conglomeration of various dialogues from people of various cultures who come & live in the city. Indicating how hard, it is to retain one’s culture in the city mosaic. Like the wind chime which despite being made of metal, its bark was easily swallowed by the noise of the city.

This exhibition also had Rehema Chachage as curator, organized by Nafasi ArtSpace, DARCH and the National Museum. With sponsorship from the European Union and the Swedish Institute, with support from TTCL, KutaSaNaa, KokoTen, DTP, AIAIA, Book Stop Sanaa, Sadolin etc. Special thanks were given to Ilala Municipal Council, Central Police force of Dar es Salaam, NBC Bank, Tanzania Publishing House (TPH) Bookstop and St Joseph’s Cathedral High School.