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Nubiart Diary |
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“NUBIART - A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE ON THE AFRIKAN WORLD” FORTHCOMING NUBIART PROFILES NUBIART: Focus on arts, business, education, health, political developments and the media. FEB PROMO ~ ‘DEBADEMBA’ - Debademba [Chapa Blues - Out Now] In the Bambara language of West Afrika, Debademba means big family and this album reflects the musical family that spans across the Sahel and into the diaspora in Europe. In 2008 Burkinabé guitarist Abdoulaye Traoré started playing with Mohamed Diaby, the son of Ivoirian griot Koumba Kouyaté, and the result is a blend of griot styles, Afro-Rock, jazz-funk and desert blues. ‘Agnakamina’ is a song against the civil war that had been wracking Ivory Coast for the last decade and was only resolved with the swearing in of Alassane Ouattara as President and the transfer of Laurent Gbagbo to the ICC at The Hague. Fatoumata Diawara, highly-acclaimed for her records and gigs last year, appears on ‘Tribu Sissoko’ and the Wassoulou-style ’Miridjougou’. Another powerful collaboration is with the gravel-voiced Awa, who sounds as old as time itself on ‘Africa Blues’ which is dedicated to musical greats such as Ali Farka Toure, Fode Kouyate and Bembeya Jazz’s Aboubakar Demba. ‘Ma’ is an homage to Abdoulaye’s mother and then there is the desert blues of ‘Loundotemena’. The Ethiopian-tinged ‘Takama (aventure) Pts 1&2’ is about the joys of meeting people. The flute-led instrumental ‘Ma Cherie’ invokes the love of a man for a woman, their people and humanity. ‘Kiefali (Guerrier)’, is in praise of warriors for justice and those who take the migrant’s journey across and out of Afrika, many never to return. The album ends with ‘Thomas Sankara’, a poignant tribute to the former President of Burkina Faso who was executed in a coup which brought the current leader Blaise Compaore to power. It features a rousing pan-Afrikan speech that makes you realise just how much we have lost in our thinkers and activists over the past three decades. NUBIART LIBRARY – FEB MEDIA We will only review books we have read and DVDs we have seen and that are available at reasonable prices online or in shops or libraries. However, given the nature and current state of Afrikan publishing and production there may be books and films on this list that are worth the extra effort to track down. ~ ‘THE BLACK POWER MIXTAPE’. Dir: Göran Olsson [SODA Pictures] Produced by actor-director Danny Glover from powerful documentary footage recorded between 1967 and 1975 ‘The Black Power Mixtape’, chronicles the story of the Afrikan-American community with a slightly different eye by Swedish journalists as oppose to the usual American slant. It features rare interviews and archive footage only recently discovered, with activists such as Angela Davis, Bobby Seale and kicks off with Stokely Carmichael revealingly interviewing his own mother about their racist experiences in America after she and her husband came from Trinidad. There is an up-to-date interview with Angela Davis. Music comes from The Roots, Michael Jackson and Erykah Badu. The extra, ‘This Film Is Meant To Be About Stokely Carmichael’, tells of the search by the London-based daughter of Stokely Carmichael’s cousin to find her Afrikan identity as she has been acting more-European than many Europeans. We found it cringe-worthy in places but it does truly reflect some of the issues facing the increasing number of Afrikans across Europe who identify themselves with the majority population or as ‘urban’. NUBIART DIARY ~ ‘THE STORY OF LOVERS ROCK’. Dir: Menelik Shabazz. Dur: 96 mins. Lovers Rock, often dubbed 'romantic reggae' is a uniquely Afrikan British sound that developed in the late 70s and 80s against a backdrop of riots, racial tension and sound systems. Live performance, comedy sketches, dance, interviews and archive shed light on the music and the generation that embraced it. Lovers Rock allowed young people to experience intimacy and healing through dance at parties and clubs. It developed into a successful sound with national UK hits and was influential to British bands. These influences underline the impact the music was making in bridging the multi-cultural gap that polarized the times. The film sheds light on a forgotten period of British music, social and political history. For venues across Britain check: http://www.loversrockthefilm.com ~ SMOKING DOGS FILMS AND NEW WAVE FILMS presents the British theatrical release of ‘The Nine Muses’. Shot in the UK and the Arctic this new film by John Akomfrah explores themes of migration and memory. Akomfrah was inspired by the Greek myth of Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory, who gave birth to the nine Muses. His film interweaves archive of migrants in 1950s Britain with abstract sequences of a figure wandering through a snowy landscape to raise questions about journeys, homelands and identity. PR: Marlon Palmer – 07961 977 749. E-mail: palmer.marlon@gmail.com Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjoHVcYnnME&NR=1&feature=endscreen ~ INTRODUCTION TO STORYTELLING COURSE. A 3-session course that will give you an opportunity to learn and have fun with the storytelling discipline. On Mon 6, 13 & 20 Feb at Centreprise Bookshop, 136-138 Kingsland High Street, London, E8 2NS. Tel: 020 7254 9632 or 020 7923 7745. E-mail: courses@vttacademy.co.uk with "I2S-Feb 2012" in the subject heading. Web: http://www.eakan.co.uk/eAkan/Storytelling_VTTA_courses_2011.html ~ ‘THE FAMILY LEGACY’. The Sickle Cell Society and NHS Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Screening Programme in collaboration with the Africa Centre and 100 Black Men of London present a special screening of ‘The Family Legacy’ an educational and entertaining British-Nigerian DVD drama which raises awareness of sickle cell disease, testing and associated beliefs. The NHS will launch its new leaflet ‘Tests for Dads’ and some discussion will focus on men’s engagement with screening, their awareness of sickle cell disease and communication barriers that might exist. Like its predecessor this event promises to be every bit as interesting, so don’t miss it! On Tues 7 Feb at 6pm at the Africa Centre, 38 King St, London, WC2E 8JT. Tel: 07841 558 611. Adm: Free. RSVP: Melanie Abrahams or Iyamide Thomas - events@africacentre.org.uk or iyamide.thomas@sicklecellsociety.org ~ THE ROYAL AFRICAN SOCIETY - ‘Getting Somalia Wrong? Faith, War and Hope in a Shattered State’. Book launch with author Mary Harper and journalists Mohammed Adow and Rageh Omaar responding. Chair: Professor Ioan Lewis. In ‘Getting Somalia Wrong?’ Mary Harper presents the first comprehensive account of the chaos into which the country has descended and the United States renewed involvement there. In doing so, Harper argues that viewing Somalia through the prism of al-Qaeda risks further destabilising the country and the entire Horn of Africa. The author argues that although the country may be a failed state, it is far from being a failed society. In reality, alternative forms of business, justice, education and local politics have survived and even flourished. On Tues 7 Feb at 6-8pm at Brunei Suite, SOAS, Thornhaugh St, London, WC2E. - Kenya: Between Hope and Despair Panel discussion with authors Daniel Branch (‘Kenya: Between Hope and Despair 1963-2011’) and Charles Honrsby (‘Kenya: A History since Independence’); Eusebio Waweru, Philosophy PhD Student at the University of Edinburgh; and freelance journalist Charlotte Njeru. Chair: Professor John Lonsdale, Trinity College, Cambridge University (TBC). On Thurs 9 Feb at 7-9pm at Room G2, SOAS, Thornhaugh St, London, WC2E. RSVP RAS e-mail: RSVP@royalafricansociety.org ~ THE CENTRE OF AFRICAN STUDIES - What do we know about urbanization in Sub-Saharan Africa and why does it matter? The first of a series of seminar on the African City with Dr Deborah Potts (Cities Research Group, Geography Department, King's College London) will challenge many of the usual myths about how fast Afrika is urbanizing and discuss how these myths can mislead policy. Discussant: Dr Michael Walls (DPU, UCL) On Thurs 9 Feb at 5-7pm at Rm B102, Brunei Gallery, SOAS, Thornhaugh St, London, WC2E - Urban governance and participation. Dr Barbara Lipietz (UCL) has worked extensively on issues of urban governance and participation in relation Africa, and in particular South Africa. On Thurs 23 Feb at 5-7pm at Rm B102, Brunei Gallery, SOAS, Thornhaugh St, London, WC2E. For more details e-mail: cas@soas.ac.uk Web: www.soas.ac.uk/cas/events ~ CARDBOARD CITIZENS PRESENT ‘A FEW MAN FRIDAYS’. Written and directed by Adrian Jackson, designed by Fred Meller, music and soundtrack by David Baird. ‘A Few Man Fridays’ is about the expulsion of the entire population of the Chagos Archipelago. It is seen through the eyes of Prosper in Crawley, Stu in the US State Department, Conservationist Teddy, and the recently deceased Chagossian Madame Lisette Talate. The play reveals the shocking chronicle of who lied, who believed them, who colluded and who suffered in the expulsion from their homes of a people described by the Foreign Office in 1966 as ‘a few Tarzans and Man Fridays’. From 10 Feb-10 Mar at the Riverside Studios, Crisp Road, Hammersmith, London, SW6. Booking: 020 8237 1000. Web: www.riversidestudios.co.uk/ ~ LASCELLES JAMES AND VALENTINE WATSON present ‘Interrupted Journey: The Afrikan Family From Ancient to the Present Time Part Two’ with Dr Kimani Nehusi. Edutainment by Crusoe, Tahira Jumah, Kwest and Lascelles James. On Sat 11 Feb at 7-11pm at Willesden Library, 95 High Road Willesden, London, NW2 2SF. Adm: £5. Tel: 07944 038 297 / 07939 026 275. ~ URBAN MIGRATION FILM FESTIVAL. Experts from architecture, anthropology, film studies, planning, psychiatry and art will be joined by several film-makers to consider: ‘Journeys’ on how do migrants negotiate their environment whilst on the move?; ‘Transition’ on how do migrants adapt to new systems, shape their communities and create temporary environments?; ‘Negotiation and Accommodation’ with films on establishing roots, acculturation and myths of return. Speakers: Sonia Arbaci, Lecturer in Spatial Planning at the UCL, Bartlett School of Planning; Victor Buchli, Reader in Material Culture, UCL Anthropology; Tamar Garb, Durning-Lawrence Professor, UCL History of Art; Yohai Hakak, Senior Lecturer, School of Health Sciences and Social Work, University of Portsmouth; Leslie Hakim-Dowek, Photographer and Senior Lecturer in Photography, School of Art, Design and Media, University of Portsmouth; Marc Isaacs, Film maker; Sushrut Jadhav, Senior Lecturer in Cross-cultural, Psychiatry, UCL and Founding Editor Anthropology & Medicine Journal; Christy Johnson, Associate Dean, University for the Creative Arts; Anne Kershen, Senior Research Fellow in the History of Migration, QMUL and Founder of the Centre for the Study of Migration; Searle Kochberg, Principal Lecturer in Creative Technologies, University of Portsmouth; Rastko Novakovic, moving image artist and film curator; Eva Palacios, Senior Lecturer in Creative Technologies, University of Portsmouth; and Laura Vaughan, Professor of Urban Form and Society at the UCL Bartlett School and Co-director on Migration and Settlement at the UCL Environment Institute. On Wed 15 Feb at 9.30am-5pm at Archaeology Lecture Theatre, University College London, Gordon Square, London, WC1H 0PY. Adm: Free. Web: http://urban-migration-filmfestival.eventbrite.co.uk/ ~ DAVID NEITA, INVISIBILITY: THE ART OF BEING BLACK. How do ‘established’ art historians see the Black figures in British paintings? Is there an alternative interpretation? Neita will be looking mainly at 18th century paintings, including the works of Hogarth. On Mon 20 Feb in Rm S261, Senate House 2nd Floor, Malet St, London, WC2E. ~ PECKHAM SPACE PRESENTS THE SOUTH LONDON BLACK MUSIC ARCHIVE. An exhibition by Barby Asante that aims to celebrate and preserve South Londoners’ personal relationships with seminal moments in music history. Peckham Space will be transformed into an ‘open archive’ and will include books, magazines, concert tickets, posters, stories, records and CDs gathered and displayed with the reverence of museum pieces. One of the founding items of the South London Black Music Archive will be a ‘limited edition’ vinyl specially produced for the project as a result of the artist’s collaboration with young people from the Leaders of Tomorrow (LOT) mentoring programme with an exclusive record sleeve by graphic design collective Åbäke. Copies will be available from record shops across South London and at Peckham Space for the duration of the exhibition. Until March 24 at Peckham Space, Peckham High Street, London, SE15. Visit www.peckhamspace.com. ~ ‘THIN BLACK LINE(S): THE LEGACY OF BLACK WOMEN ARTISTS’ Put together by Tate curator Paul Goodwin and artist Lubaina Himid, MBE, ‘Thin Black Line(s)’ presents a selection of pieces drawn from three major exhibitions of Afrikan and Asian women artists curated by Himid in the early 1980s: ‘Five Black Women’ at the Africa Centre (1983); ‘Black Women Time Now’ at the Battersea Arts Centre (1983-84); and ‘The Thin Black Line’ at the Institute for Contemporary Art (1985). The display includes works by Sutapa Biswas, Sonia Boyce, Lubaina Himid, Claudette Johnson, Ingrid Pollard, Veronica Ryan and Maud Sulter. Drawings, paintings, sculptures and photographs are showcased alongside a video documentary on the ‘Black Art’ scene and archival documents comprising of exhibition posters, invitations, letters, etc. In Britain, the Caribbean Artists Movement (1966-72) and the Black Art (1980s) have enabled Afrikan artists and intellectuals to retain ownership of the discourse on their arts and cultures. Until 18 Mar 2012 at Tate Britain, Millbank, London, SW1P 4RG. Adm: Free. Tel: 020 7887 8888. ~ REEL TRINI fortnightly screenings. The new rendezvous for local film aficionados on Sundays at 5pm at Trevor’s Edge in St Augustine, Trinidad. Tel: 744-4956. E-mail: caribbeinginc@gmail.com Contact: Kubara Zamani, Afrikan Quest International, PO Box 35165, London, SE5 8WU. Tel: 07811 494 969. E-mail: afrikanquest@hotmail.com Web: www.southwark.tv/quest/aqhome.asp NB: Nubiart Diary can also be read at www.ligali.org and on the Afrikan Quest website. For security reasons Nubiart Diary and Afrikan Quest do not join or promote Facebook-related sites. |