Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Kenyans Don't Appreciate Art!


I recently came across a statement I consider prejudiced towards Kenyans. And it makes me angry. Very angry.

Kenyans Don't Appreciate Art!

What nonsense?! What makes it even sadder is that nine in ten times, this allegation is made by indigenous Kenyans. Native Kenyans who earn their keep in the arts. Those whose responsibility it is to make other Kenyans appreciate art! It takes alot of balls (Oops! Sorry) ... Or naivety. Maybe both, to speak with authority, making such an ignorant statement.

Every other day, you hear art practitioners say that their biggest challenge/impediment is the lack of art appreciation by indigenous Kenyans. Bullshit! You see, on one side, we want to make art elite. Just for the rich. A cool commodity targeting the middle-class. We get them to our gigs expecting them to spend. What we forget is that the typical Kenyan middle class fella probably has a car loan & mortgage to service, a superficial lifestyle to maintain and an almost non-existent art awareness. Add to this the probability of a clande(stine lover) to maintian (pun intended). All over the world, art has never been a middle-class affair. At the end of the day, you're left with people more concerned about the car they're diving, the designer they're wearing or the drink they're sipping as opposed to the artist they're viewing. Then we put all Kenyans in this category. A society that doesn't comprehend anything artsy!

Had somebody taken time, they'd have realized that the immediate consumers of art is the artists' family - the parents, spouses, offspring, nannies, neighbors... This is because they're constantly exposed to it. As raw material from the shop/street/trash, the process, the narrative, the product... Putting up with the cliche anti-social artist behaviour and habits. But they're not cool. They most often don't have impressive titles before/after their names so they're most often never wanted in exclusive and cool spaces... These are the persons who can recite the artists statement in their sleep. Their life is one continuous art piece. Constantly interacting with other artists and artworks. Their triumphs and frustrations. Understanding the good days from the bad. When no sale translates to too broke to afford bread and a good one equals caviar & Moet at the dinner table. They can chronologically piece together the artist's timeline. They understand the value of the art, but they are not specialists.  If this is not appreciation (whether voluntary or forced is irrelevant), what is it?

These are the people we should trust with the mandate to spread the gospel. They understand it. They've experienced it. They believe in it. They can convert the non-believers. It's okay to chase the money but it's also very easy to miss it. And with it miss a whole lot of people who truly believe in the art. Those who see beyond the monetary value. The aesthetic, if at all anything like that exists!

Most Kenyan people who dabble in the arts, have this common perception than appreciation equates to direct buying. Which translates to affordability. I think all Kenyans would agree that Mercedes Benz is a great automobile yet less than 10% own one... Appreciation? I would think so.

I strongly believe Kenyans truly love art. We just lock them out when it matters then we blame them when we need artistically emotional support; Like when some middle class technocrat advise the government to kick art education out of the school curriculum. We take serious art to posh/cool places but what do we take to kawaida mtaa? Social work, incoherent murals and ridiculous art projects.

The lack of a free-entry public art spaces doesn't help much either. Most major cities - Paris (The Louvre), London (Tate), Windhoek, Lagos & Bulawayo (National Art Galleries) have public galleries/museums with sectional free entry that allow it's residents free consumption of art. For instance, anyone can walk into the great art cathedral, TATE Modern free of charge to enjoy what's on offer. It's a shame that the government owned spaces such as the Nairobi Museum or The Nairobi Gallery have no such arrangements. Imagine how many Kenyans would prefer looking at the Museum's permanent Art collection instead of sitting in the scorching Nairobi sun at Uhuru Park during the next public holiday - without the pressures of feeling that they are required to buy! Maybe during this years Kenyatta day, admission to Nyayo Stadium should be charged and entry to the Museum scrapped! Ama?

As Kenyan art practitioners, we should understand and sympathize with the Kenyan populace. Lack of (basic) art education coupled with an almost non existent physical infrastructure and energies geared towards an expatriate audience is not helping the cause.

Word has it that RaMOMA is re-opening in downtown Nairobi targeting a local audience. I wish them luck and hope that this starts the process of more Kenyans patronizing art spaces. But they need more than just luck. They need a machinery akin to political party propaganda. First to attract the Kenyan. Then to equip him/her with infomation that will gradually educate him/her that Art is more than a portrait or a beautiful landscape with the African sunset. Because, besides accessing Art, ordinary Kenyans have to understand it too. Tough but achievable.

An artist friend once quipped, "Waafrika huleta tu giza kwa exhibition/studio."  How low can prejudice and self hate get? I don't know about you but for anyone ready to open their mouth to blabber that "Kenyans don't Appreciate Art s**t", shut up, style up and take one Kenyan to an artist studio/gallery/exhibition and start them on the not-so-long journey that is art appreciation.

After all, #WeAre(SupposedToBe)One.

5 comments:

  1. Thom, this is a great read...
    First, I sincerely repent of my thinking that appreciating art equals to buying it...I am so pole. Please forgive me…?
    Second, I totally agree that it important to make people access the art and understand it .That point of free entry to the arts gallery is just so needed...I pay going to the museum and the likes…probably with such an arrangement I can consume more
    Third,I am in the class of those who appreciate art… all manner of art (well I don’t know whether I am upper, middle or lower class). I appreciate music, poetry (my fav) creative writing (another fav) fashion (especially kitenge and kanga) painting, drawing, animating and the likes
    By the way as we speak today marks the last day of my attending Toon Boom animation workshop in Dar TZ...well its computer animation but I could say the concepts of hand drawing and traditional animation are engaged.
    Now two questions for you…
    1. Can I please have a look and a lesson of the art you do?
    2. What do you suggest for artists to make a living?

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    Replies
    1. thanks for reading... and taking time to respond to it.
      contact me by email for follow up ogongathom@gmail.com
      good day

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  2. thank you...I believe this is a philosophical issue we can build on...to ensure that we the consumers understand art and its value and also give returns to the artists whether monetary or otherwise. Thanks

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  3. Hello! Good read! I am doing a story on art/ performance art in Kenya for CCTV-Africa and will be at the Kiota Festival at Kuona Trust on Saturday afternoon. Will you be there? Would love to get a soundbite. Thanks!

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  4. Greetings Sir Ogonga. This is a discusion that just came up during creatives workshop organized by the GoDown and is currently ongoing. Thank you for your opinion it has helped me to understand the query Why Kenyans dont buy Kenyan Art? The answer is clear that we need to create the awareness as visual artists and even the system to recognize the ordinary mananchi and make it easy for him or her to access public arts spaces non profitably. Thank you

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