oh, and another reason to smile in traffic… daladala slogans…
i am working on a collection of my favourites – please send yours to me! (kiswahili and english). who knows they may even feature in a creative publication sometime this century…
Archive for March, 2010
you are next!
Posted in drawing, tagged art, daladala, tanzania, traffic on March 26, 2010 | 2 Comments »
shopping in traffic
Posted in drawing, tagged art, shopping, street vendors, sunglasses, tanzania on March 25, 2010 | 1 Comment »
One of the only redeeming features of Dar traffic, as far as i can tell, is the chance to peruse and haggle over all sort of wares… sunglasses, bandannas, stickers, towels, phone chargers, perfume, electric fans, maps, newspapers, cashew nuts, car polish, car jacks, wheel spanners, bags of apples and my all time favourite – nodding dogs… though i havn’t seen those for a while alas.
A Tale from Innocent’s Chair
Posted in writing, tagged art, chair, creative writing, tanzania on March 13, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
“Maybe you heard,” he says, ripping a rainbow of long strips from plastic shopping bags and lacing them through the seat of his folding chair, “about the woman who disappeared on Selander Bridge yesterday.” He pauses to wipe sweat from his deeply wrinkled brow with his shirtsleeve. He tears and knots the strips that will temporarily transform his perch, fade and disintegrate again around its rusted metal frame, the only vestige of the chair’s original form. His gnarled fingers work the chair like a loom. “When her arm grew hair like a dog’s—she vanished.”
An excerpt from the short story by Debbie Ventimiglia... love it – thanks Debbie!
karibu kiti
Posted in drawing, tagged art, askari, karibu, kiti, tanzania on March 11, 2010 | 1 Comment »
and while we are busy paying homage, lets not forget the askaris of dar and the recycled furniture wonders they create…
homage to the signwriters of dar part 2
Posted in drawing, tagged art, dar es salaam, hairdressing, signwriting on March 4, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Maybe its because i am an artist, and on occasion accused of being old fashioned, but i lament the increase in glitzy printed signs at the expense of the hand crafted.
Here’s to the art of signwriting – may its wonders, quirks and skill be encouraged and preserved…
