Diary of a Travelogue: My visit to Siavonga, Zambia in 2007

A Journey to Zambia for the Insaka International Artists’ Workshop.

September 2007

Having been invited to participate in the Insaka International Artists’ Workshop in Zambia I wrote the following letter to the then Vice Chancellor of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University where I teach:

 Department of Fine and Applied Arts

 Nnamdi Azikiwe University

 Awka

 Anambra State

 Nigeria

11^TH  July, 2007.

The Vice Chancellor,

Nnamdi Azikiwe University

Awka.

Through

The Chairman,

Conference Documentation Committee

UNIZIK.

Through

The Dean,

Faculty of Arts, UNIZIK.

Through

The  Head

Department of Fine and Applied Arts, UNIZIK.

Sir,

APPLICATION FOR  PERMISSION AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO TRAVEL TO SIAVONGA, ZAMBIA FOR THE 4^TH INSAKA INTERNATIONAL ARTISTS WORKSHOP

I wish to seek  for  your permission and financial assistance to travel to Siavonga, Zambia for the 4^th Insaka International artists workshop taking place between 31^st August to 13th September 2007.

Out of all the Nigerian applicants, I was the only one selected for the workshop and the selection was based on the proposal written, professional achievements and photos  of artworks submitted.

I wish to solicit for your financial support to the tune of  one hundred and sixty thousand naira (N160,000.00)  as the Insaka committee cannot provide this for any of the participants.

The financial support will be used to settle the expenses as follows:

1.Travelling expenses to and from Lusaka, Zambia: N120,000.00

2. Overnight expenses in Siavonga for two weeks:   N40,000.00

Total…………………………………………………N160,000.00

I believe this exhibition will further elevate the status of our institution and also showcase the laudable gestures of this present administration and even initiate a working relationship between UNIZIK and the host group through which other  projects may be achieved.

Enclosed below is a copy of my letter from Insaka.

I await your kind reply.

Sincerely Yours,

Okechukwu NWAFOR (Lecturer II)

Department of Fine and Applied Arts,

Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.

The letter was approved by Prof. Ilochi Okafor, the then Vice Chancellor together with the sum of 60 thousand Naira. I went to Abuja for my Visa and after about two weeks of rigorous Visa process, I secured the Visa for Zambia. Below is a report I wrote concerning the Workshop:

The story began and ended in Butete, the serene, sleepy village south of Zambia where the artists lived and worked during the workshop. Lurked within the dry, infertile side of Zambia, Butete indeed may not be among the blessed children of  nature as artists arrived in the desolate and forlorn landscape of this land which may have lacked rainfall for as long as 12 months or more. Greeted by an indigent inhabitants and a windy but dry weather, artists settled to the little abode of a bay comprising about fifteen thatched- roofed houses built by a European known as Kennedy. The houses had short walls which created an impression of one lying in the open-thanks to our sleeping bags and blankets. For the organisers of this workshop, the choice of the venue was advisedly for a purpose: firstly, to evade comfort and uphold Chaim Potok’s view that ‘Comfort is the death of art’ and secondly to afford artists an opportunity to experience the calmness of a great lake-Lake Kariba, the largest man-made  lake in the world, which lies beside our abode. Despite the harshness of life for Butete locals, artists convened under a most calculating union and allowed the extenuating circumstances of Butete and Lake Kariba to govern their creative instincts. Eventually, all adversities were cushioned by the common interest as ideas took precedence over suffering or in philosophical parlance, ‘mind ascended over matter’.

On the workshop were: myself from Nigeria, Ruth from Scotland, Bevas from New York, Aditi from India, Maryan from Kenya, Sheila from Uganda, Clarence from Zimbabwe, Marna from South Africa and Daniel from South Africa too. We were nine invited artists and twelve artists from Zambia.

The very first day of the workshop was the day I arrived Lusaka and could not join them. I, Daniel from South Africa and Bevas from New York arrived late so we joined the rest on 3^rd September.

3^rd September 2007: Everybody had started work. Some people worked on oil, some on acrylic, some on wood and some on stone while some like me tried their hands on installation. I had collected chips from the sculptors’ wood and used them to build a base for a painting. As dusk approached artists retreated to their tents and prepared for the dinner. After dinner, the artists gathered together as Zenzele Chulu, the coordinator of Insaka in Zambia made an introduction and overview of previous workshops in slide format.

The night was now dark and sounds of drumbeats echoed from a little distance. Chulu announced that the sounds were that of the little village children who had come to interact with us. This was part of the aims of the workshop-interaction with the local community. The children formed a circle as one or two of them danced to the middle to the rhythm of the drums. They were excellent drummers and dancers. The artists watched in admiration and eventually few of us joined them. It was a fulfilling night.

4^th September 2007:  Work commenced as usual after breakfast. Most artists were trying something new. Marna from South Africa and Aditi from India were trying their hands on wood which according to them was their first time. I had finished an installation on a tree using polyethene bags. It looked interesting.  We took a walk into the village. We trekked close to the Kariba Lake and interacted with the villagers and took photos with them. In the evening immediately after dinner there was an art presentation by myself and Daniel. I spoke on War as my topic while Daniel spoke on Confinement.

5^th September 2007: Work commenced. Everybody concentrated. There was lunch and dinner after which Marna from South Africa and Aditi from India presented their works.

6^th September 2007 (Thursday): After breakfast we were told that we will be going on a  boat ride on the kariba Lake. The ride was in batches. Some went ahead of us. We drove in a truck for about 20 kilometers and came to a village where the boat was waiting. We entered and although I was afraid initially but as the boat moved, my fear was allayed. At the middle of the lake we saw 3 Hippos. The day rolled by and today’s presentation was by Alumedi from Zambia and Clarence from Zimbabwe.

7^th September 2007: Work continued. From my work position, the sound from the sculptors’ machines was strong. It reminded me of my days in University of Nigeria when we worked into the night and the sound of similar machines wafted from the sculpture studio into our own painting studio. But the difference here was that Zambian sculptors worked mainly on stone because there is availability of hard stones.

8^th September 2007 (Saturday): Today we went to Kariba Bridge. This bridge demarcates Zambia and Zimbabwe and the dam was a joint project between the two countries. This is where the major electric power of both countries was generated. From this bridge one could see Zimbabwe hidden by steep hills and lonely border. From here we went to a lake side where we swam. The journey back to the bay took 1 and half hours. Today, Tom Phiri from Zambia, Lombe Insama from Zambia and Ruth MacDougall from Scotland presented their works.

9^th September2007 (Sunday): Some Christian participants attended the local church while others worked. Today Mulenga from Zambia, Sheila from Uganda, Partrick from Zambia  and Adrain from Zambia presented their works.

10^th September2007: Work continued. Presentation was by Bevas from New York, Maryan from Kenya, Lutanda from Zambia.

11^th September 2007: Today was the final day for production. Most artists had finished while some were rounding off. Later in the day, the mounting started. The trees around Butete bay provided the base for the mounting of works. After dinner most of us gathered together in what appeared as the grand finale of all night sessions in Butete bay. There was no topic initially but Bevas introduced a topic, ‘My First Love’. It was very exciting listening to one another recount his or her first love experience. So private a topic was it that some people like Marna from South Africa, Sheila from Uganda and Aditi from India declined to join. But it was an attempt to kill the boring long hours of the night and create alternate leisure that propelled us into those private stories. The discussion continued and Marna, I and some others had provided some drinks which everybody enjoyed while the discussion lasted. The night advanced and the weather was becoming chilling cold. Clarence took us into more daring, adventurous stories of youthful lust and exuberance but because it was seen as an adult forum people’s sense of decency may not have been offended. It was a night of laughter, excitement and fraternization.

12^th September 2007: The opening ceremony of the exhibition was today. Each artist endeavoured to mount his works on the trees scattered around the bay. The invitees had started arriving. Around 3pm, Mr Bright Chimba of The National Arts Council, Zambia made a speech and the representative of the Minister of Community Development and Social Welfare Mr. Wesley Kaonga formally declared the exhibition open. Also in attendance were representative of The Kenyan High Commissioner, Helen kenani and representative of The Nigerian High Commissioner in Zambia, Nnamdi.   A bus filled with Zambian artists arrived. Most of them wore dreadlocks  and raucously formed a beehive in the once serene environs of Butete  bay. At nightfall around 10pm, most of these artists gathered around a bonfire singing, dancing and beating drums. I joined them and we beat drums until past midnight.

13^th September 2007: (Thursday). Works had been dismantled and packed in the long truck. The artists mounted the lorry and soon we set off for the four hour journey back to Lusaka. The journey was rough because it was an unusual road of snaking turns made more dangerous by the ubiquitous presence of heavy trucks and trailers. The risk was compounded by the ongoing reconstruction which was aimed at widening the narrow road, forcing motorists to use one lane. We got to Lusaka in the evening. Works were dismantled. We checked into Kuombouka backpackers, a guest house located along Makanta close, Lusaka.

14^th September 2007:  Departure.

Reflections

My interactions with Zambian artists were not restricted to the art domain. As a journalist, I had engaged some of them in discussions involving a wide range of issues. For example, I discovered that Nigerian home video is more popular in Zambia than any other film industry including that of Hollywood. Every Zambian I met seems to know much about Nigerian film actors and actresses more than myself. The most popular is Osuofia (Nkem Owoh) and Genevieve. And they seem to be fascinated by Osuofia’s music, “I Go Chop Your Dollar” more than the films. Moreso, Chinua Achebe commands more popularity than any other Nigerian writer. Most Zambians have either read or heard about “Things  Fall Apart” by  Chinua Achebe.

In a nutshell, to most Zambians, Nigeria remains a figure of fame, honour and accomplishment; a nation made more visible by her ingenious populace.

*          *             *       *           *         * 

Kariba Dam in my mind is one of the greatest human feats and the dam itself could be the largest in the world. The construction of the dam was actually by a demarcation of a tributary of the Zambezi River by a very high wall which could have gulped millions of dollars. Looking down from the bridge one could feel the towering and imposing sensation of a height stretching about 500 metres down. At the lake side in Siavonga, we stopped and I bought some oranges from some Zimbabwean women. These women were keen to know where I came from. Having told them that I am a Nigerian, they asked me if we were shooting a film. They only recognize Nigeria through home video from what I understood. The town of Siavonga where this lake side is located has electricity (unlike Butete where we lived) and development is religiously conservative as people have not got that radical vigour possessed by inhabitants of even the remotest village in  my country, Nigeria.

Arrival at Lusaka International Airport. L-R Zenzele Chuku, Okechukwu Nwafor, Jerry Miko. September 2007.






Okechukwu Nwafor with Daniel Mosako in Siavonga, Zambia, September, 2007.


Okechukwu Nwafor with Swala Lubinda (Right), a Zambian artist and her friend. Lusaka, Zambia, September 2007



A trek to the village in Siavonga, Zambia, September 2007.