LIFESTYLE - The African Mirror

Jan

29

2021

The joy of Steve McQueen’s ‘Small Axe’

LITERATURE

FRANTZ Fanon observed that in white-dominated societies, reason has a nasty habit of taking flight whenever Blacks enter the room. He joined WEB Du Bois in an additional observation: in societies saturated with the malediction of white supremacy, a form of double consciousness is imposed on the people once referred to as “negroes” and then “blacks”. That perspective involved Blacks seeing themselves from the negative gaze and rationalisations of anti-Black hatred. From that point of view, what were Blacks but, in Du Bois’ words, “problems”? Yet, Du Bois later learned that the resilience of a people in whose shoes most whites wouldn’t last a…

Sep

14

2021

By The African Mirror

How Zimbabwean artist Kudzanai Chiurai has reinvented the idea of a library

LITERATURE

ZIMBABWE born artist Kudzanai Chiurai is a phenomenon. He is one of the most challenging and inventive figures in contemporary African art. From large scale photos of fictional African dictators to experimental films and protest posters, rich oil paintings and minimal sculptures, his work is housed in the world’s top galleries and collections. TINASHE MUSHAKAVANHU, Post-Doctoral Fellow, University of the Witwatersrand Chiurai, though, frequently shrugs off gallery spaces to show in warehouses, on the street or in urban locations. His latest project, The Library of Things We Forgot to Remember, is housed in a boutique shopping complex, 44 Stanley, in…

Jan

28

2021

By The African Mirror

Nomzamo Mbatha and Thuso Mbedu heralded among rising Black Hollywood stars

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

MPHO RANTAO SOUTH African actresses Nomzamo Mbatha and Thuso Mbedu have become big names to watch in the Hollywood scene, joining the cozy company of some of Hollywood’s rising talent. Mbatha and Mbedu have been included in the global “20 Black Hollywood stars to watch out in 2021”, a list compiled by American lifestyle magazine Essence that shines a light on Black entertainers who have their impression in the cutthroat entertainment industry. Actress Thuso Mbedu. Picture: Supplied On their website, Essence detailed that their list is based on how Black Hollywood has continued to stand up and make a difference…

Sep

12

2021

By The African Mirror

This entrepreneur wants to connect Africa through its creatives

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

ROYAL IBEH Olamilekan Olawale Dauda, the founder of Create Naija, at Memphis Art Gallery, one of Create Naija's partner, in Abeokuta, Ogun state, Nigeria. Photo : Create Naija. “IF you truly want to succeed in the creative business, then you should not begin with the idea that you want to make money, you should start a business because you want to make a difference, change the narrative," announces Olamilekan Olawale Dauda with all the conviction of someone who has already accomplished that goal. Dauda, who goes by the online handle of "LEKKY D" was nine years old when he started…

Jan

25

2021

By The African Mirror

Louis Vuitton’s show goes film noir for men’s fashion week

BEAUTY AND FASHION

MPHO RANTAO MEN’S fashion week has begun across Paris, New York, London and Milan; in a format that is odd to the fashion industry but has quickly become a casual sight due to the covid pandemic. The now-mostly virtual shows by fashion week organisations have allowed creative directors free reign on how they wish to display their upcoming collections for the autumn/winter campaign. Virgil Abloh’s anticipated collection for Louis Vuitton’s (LV) autumn/winter ready-to-wear collection took artistic inspiration from the vintage age of noir films, creating heavily-tailored looks with exaggerated fedora hats, oxford shoes and tailored suits in subdued earth tones…

Sep

09

2021

By The African Mirror

The Mayhem that is Drake’s CLB and Kanye West’s Donda

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

MPHO RANTAO Donda, Donda, Donda. I love you, i love you, i love you, until I — Two very different introductions belonging to two of hip-hop's biggest names; setting the tone for two very different moods. If you haven’t noticed by now, I’m talking about the week-apart releases of Kanye West’s DONDA, and Drake’s Certified Lover Boy. If there were artists akin to a holy grail, these two would come extremely close and with good reasons. They are the wordsmiths part of a generation that has continued to shift cultural views on music, fashion and art. The Donda album (left)…

Sep

09

2021

By The African Mirror

Taking jewellery up-market

BEAUTY AND FASHION

MANDY KANYEMBA AN MBA is not needed to become a jeweller. But it may prove useful. When Bridget Mudota left her office job in 2019 to venture into jewellery design, the reaction was considerable. Here was a highly qualified individual with a Masters in Business Administration, "giving it all up" to venture into a trade that in many parts of Africa is associated with handicrafts and roadside stalls. However, Mudota was determined. She wanted something else from life. “The beauty of this art is that it is therapeutic as it takes one’s mind away from the worries of life and…

Sep

09

2021

By The African Mirror

The library club: taking African storytelling mainstream

LITERATURE

LERATO MOGOATLHE, BIRD NUMBER 4 Portuphy Street in West Legon, Accra, Ghana may look like an ordinary house in the suburb - until you step inside. Crossing the threshold, the one-storey building morphs into a living, breathing vault of stories alive with the potential to transcend the very boundaries of history, geography, and time. This is the embodiment of one woman's passion and a dream so big, it spans the whole world. Welcome to Syliva Arthur's Library of Africa and the African Diaspora (LOATAD), where even the walls offer a history lesson. Pictures of authors like Kwame Nkrumah, Toni Morrison,…

Jan

25

2021

By The African Mirror

Jonas Gwangwa embodied South Africa’s struggle for a national culture

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

MUSIC is not a zero-sum game with only one ‘best’. But if you seek to name one musician whose life embodies the South African people’s struggle for a national culture, it must be trombonist, composer and cultural activist Jonas Mosa Gwangwa, who was born on 19 October 1937 in Orlando East, Johannesburg, and died on 23 January 2021 in Johannesburg aged 83. GWEN ANSELL, Associate of the Gordon Institute for Business Science, University of Pretoria Through 65 years on stage, Gwangwa’s playing contributed to every genre of South African jazz. Overseas, he was hailed as player, producer and composer. Yet…

Sep

09

2021

By The African Mirror

S.African animator fuses cartoon with reality in satellite debut

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

SELF-TAUGHT South African 3D animator Lwazi Msipha wanted to create something for both grown-ups and kids, along the lines of The Simpsons, when he dreamed up the character that won him a coveted slot on satellite TV. So he hit on an idea: what if his children's cartoon character were to accidentally get stuck in the adult real world? That notion forms the premise of 'My Cartoon Friend', which debuted on Cartoon Network in South Africa last month - the first of his compatriots to get a full 13-episode series. In the new show, Msipha plays himself as a young…