LIFESTYLE - The African Mirror

May

16

2023

Fear and loathing in South Africa: book examines how anxiety plays out in everyday life

LITERATURE

SOCIAL scientists have shown how freedom in South Africa has lost its meaning for many in the country. Despondency about democracy is on the rise as the promise of prosperity under a caring government continues to ring hollow for many, thanks to poor governance, corruption and incompetence. Nicky Falkof is a media studies professor who researches race and anxiety. The Conversation Africa’s Thabo Leshilo spoke to her about her book, Worrier State, which shows how narratives of fear manifest in mainstream and digital media, and the role that ‘race’, class, gender, space and identity play in these in the country.…

May

16

2023

By The African Mirror

Souleymane Cissé is honoured as one of Africa’s boldest and most pioneering film-makers

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

SOULEYMANE Cissé is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest African filmmakers of all time – and the world’s most prestigious film festival, Cannes, agrees. The Mali-born director has been announced as this year’s recipient of the Carrosse d’Or (the Golden Coach) award. David Murphy, a critic and scholar of African cinema and Cissé’s work, told us more about why his films are so important – and particularly his classic Yeelen. Author DAVID MURPHY, Professor of French and Postcolonial Studies, University of Strathclyde Who is Souleymane Cissé? Cissé is a celebrated Malian film director who has been making movies since…

May

12

2023

By PHENDU KUTA, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Bringing African creativity under one roof

LIFESTYLE

AFRICAN and diaspora artists, collectives and galleries will be hosted by Latitudes, one of the largest online markets for African art, at the RMB Latitudes art fair, a pioneering, artist-forward exhibition celebrating contemporary African art and creativity, according to the event's curator, Nkhensani Mkhari. The exhibition includes a dynamic roster of artists, from recent graduates to emerging artists and mid-career artists. The indoor-outdoor art experience's second instalment will be held at the baroque-style three-acre Shepstone Gardens in Johannesburg from the 26th to the 28th of May. "The art fair's overarching theme is co-emergence," says Mkhari, referring to artistic concepts developed…

May

10

2023

By PATRICK NELLE, BIRD STORY AGENCY

From food pilgrimages to gastronomy festivals, Africa is betting on its rich cuisines to boost tourism

LIFESTYLE

IN March, Cameroon hosted the 'Diaspora Kitchen' on the banks of the Sanaga River in the small coastal town of Mouanko. The two-day culinary event featured 20 chefs and hundreds of visitors from both local and international backgrounds. The event focused on cultural exchange, with a special emphasis on the gastronomic traditions of Cameroon. Attendees were treated to dishes that showcased the diverse flavours of the country's cuisine, with discussions, training sessions, workshops and demonstrations revolved around only one topic: Food. "Seeing these ingredients being used in their indigenous context as opposed to just being sprinkled for curiosity's sake is…

May

07

2023

By The African Mirror

Pretty Yende wows King Charles and Queen Camilla

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

FROM a small rural town of eMkhonto, in Mpumalanga, South Africa to Westminister Abbey, singing at the coronation of an English, an event beamed to millions around the world. This is the incredible and inspirational story of Pretty Yende, the supremely talented South African opera singer who made history by becoming the first soloist to perform at the coronation of an English monarch. Yende, dressed in a stunning yellow Stéphane Rolland gown and Graff jewellery, wowed the global A-listers who made it to the front row to witness the coronation of King Charles III. Yende sang "Sacred Fire," a piece…

May

09

2023

By JANE DRAYCOTT

Queen Cleopatra: experts save this poorly scripted Netflix docuseries

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

THE trailer for Netflix’s new four-part documentary series, Queen Cleopatra, was deliberately provocative. Promoting the show as executive produced by actress Jada Pinkett-Smith, it prominently featured historian Professor Shelley Haley declaring that: “Cleopatra was black.” https://www.youtube.com/embed/IktHcPyNlv4 The controversy-inciting trailer for Netflix’s Queen Cleopatra. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the trailer is pure clickbait. The show itself is a much more complex piece of work. There are two ways to watch Queen Cleopatra. The first – and easiest – is by paying more attention to the dramatisation of Cleopatra’s life and times than to the academic talking heads. The second is to do the…

May

09

2023

By ANNA ADIMA

Children’s book revolution: how East African women took on colonialism after independence

LITERATURE

AS independence from British colonial rule swept across East Africa in the early 1960s and freedom was won in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, parents and teachers worried about what their children were reading. Most children’s books on the market were dominated by European writers like Enid Blyton. One of Kenyan writer Ngugi wa Thiongo’s most stringent criticisms of colonialism was the explosive effect of this “cultural bomb” in the classroom, as missionaries taught African students Western cultures and foreign histories. This, according to Kenyan publisher Henry Chakava, was producing a new breed of black Europeans, who began to despise their…

May

05

2023

By The African Mirror

Accra: the Ga people’s annual ban on noise restores a spiritual connection with the sea

LIFESTYLE

ACCRA, Ghana’s capital, is a noisy cosmopolitan city of almost three million people. Its active nightlife, commercial markets and factories create a deafening mix of sound trails day and night. These synthetic sounds have practically drowned out the natural everyday sounds of Accra. And the most important of these is the steady drone sound of the sea, now usually subdued to a mere background hush. Author LARYEA AKWETTEH, Assistant lecturer, University of Ghana As the local Ga people say, Ga efee hoo (“Accra has become noisy”). The Ga, who are made up of Ga Mashie, Osu, La, Teshie, Nungua, Tema,…

May

02

2023

By The African Mirror

Ethiopians savour first night of annual ‘Addis Jazz Festival’

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

YOUNG Ethiopians packed into the compound of the Swedish embassy in Addis Ababa to savour an "Ethio Jazz" performance, an annual festival that celebrates Ethiopia's love for the musical genre. On a neon-lit stage in the country's capital, artists played various Ethiopian jazz music pieces as hundreds of revellers danced, mimed and quaffed beer to celebrate the second edition of the so-called Addis Jazz Festival (AJF). AJF debuted in 2019 and was conceived as a platform to promote Ethiopian jazz as well as to bring international jazz to Ethiopia. The event is the brainchild of Muzikawi, an Ethiopian music and…

Apr

30

2023

By SETH ONYANGO, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Billionaire collectors set their sights on Africa’s art

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

AFRICA'S fine art market is emerging from obscurity, fueled by a surge of demand from international and, increasingly, local collectors. According to the Africa Wealth Report 2023, published by Henley & Partners with New World Wealth, the continent's fine art market is valued at just over US$1.8 billion as of December 2022. The figure indicates the annual combined value of artworks traded at auction, highlighting art as a symbol of social status and luxury and a promising investment opportunity. Works by African artists such as Irma Stern, El Anatsui and Ben Enwonwu are especially popular among art collectors worldwide. "Irma…