Emily Nkanga, Unyọñ Ufọk
What must happen to turn Africa’s strong population growth into prosperity for all? On the World Population in July, the United Nations’ Population Division released the 28th edition of official World Population Prospects (WPP) and forecast. It is a rich repository of population estimates from 1950 to the present for 192 countries or areas of analyses of historical demographic trends and of projections to the year 2100 that reflect a range of plausible outcomes at the global, regional and national...
What must happen to turn Africa’s strong population growth into prosperity for all? On the World Population in July, the United Nations’ Population Division released the 28th edition of official World Population Prospects (WPP) and forecast. It is a rich repository of population...
“The struggle of man against power is the struggle of memory against forgetting.” Milan Kundera Not forgetting is living, and living is not forgetting. The world's attention was focused on 9/11 when the ruler of Eritrea, President Isaias Afwerki — in power for 33 years without elections — struck hard against critics and independent media. On September 18, 2001, and in the weeks that followed, he arrested all critical members of parliament, ministers, and generals. They had asked the president to...
“The struggle of man against power is the struggle of memory against forgetting.” Milan Kundera Not forgetting is living, and living is not forgetting. The world's attention was focused on 9/11 when the ruler of Eritrea, President Isaias Afwerki — in power for 33 years without...
African artists from the continent and the diaspora imagine utopian dreams of abundance and well-being beyond geographical hierarchies. According to the curators, the works on display show a fusion of specific features of African culture with other cultures and other geographical spaces, revealing the “original energy of the itinerant fate of exile and settlement, demanded by the context of slavery, or of voluntary or forced migration. ”Many of these phenomena result from the current global...
African artists from the continent and the diaspora imagine utopian dreams of abundance and well-being beyond geographical hierarchies. According to the curators, the works on display show a fusion of specific features of African culture with other cultures and other geographical...
“Collecting goes beyond the artist – it is building a universal archive of culture”. With this mission in mind, Musoke Nalwoga (Uganda, 1994) who founded MOTORMOND in 2021 aims to create an impactful Black Queer community within the African Diaspora, operating from Amsterdam. At Unseen, MOTORMOND will showcase the latest portrait series featuring Errant Black Girlhoods by Burundi born and Amsterdam based photographer Nella Ngingo (1992). Nalwoga: “At Unseen we want to shed light on the idea of...
“Collecting goes beyond the artist – it is building a universal archive of culture”. With this mission in mind, Musoke Nalwoga (Uganda, 1994) who founded MOTORMOND in 2021 aims to create an impactful Black Queer community within the African Diaspora, operating from Amsterdam. At...
The distortion of African realities in 33+ images In this 256 pages book, a new ZAM publication, photographer Pieter van der Houwen shows in an appealing and accessible way, how his work often fell victim to “framing” – made to fit within a biased European “understanding” of Africa. Exuberant photography, deeply honest personal reflections and an essay by Dutch Liberian novelist Vamba Sherif. Read Pieter van der Houwen preface here . Design Erik Kessels. Release date 25 September 2024. € 24,50...
The distortion of African realities in 33+ images In this 256 pages book, a new ZAM publication, photographer Pieter van der Houwen shows in an appealing and accessible way, how his work often fell victim to “framing” – made to fit within a biased European “understanding” of Africa....
World renowned South African poet James Matthews has died at 95. His was the last great voice of an era of writers who worked against South Africa’s repressive and racist system of apartheid, which resulted in him being relentlessly harassed, detained by police and his work banned. In February, 2020, a special video with James Matthews reading his poem Freedom Child was screened at the ZAM Nelson Mandela Lecture at the International Theatre Amsterdam. South African singer Melanie Scholtz sang the...
World renowned South African poet James Matthews has died at 95. His was the last great voice of an era of writers who worked against South Africa’s repressive and racist system of apartheid, which resulted in him being relentlessly harassed, detained by police and his work banned....
NEWS UPDATE On Thursday 12 September, hours after the story was published, the Portuguese public broadcaster RTP dedicated a news slot to it. Portuguese speakers can listen here (from 8.55). The day after publication, Mozambique's National Criminal Investigation Service (Sernic) announced the arrest, in the country's port city of Beira, of a 43-year old "citizen of Chinese nationality" on accusations of money laundering, illegal exploitation of forest resources, and tax fraud. The destruction of...
NEWS UPDATE On Thursday 12 September, hours after the story was published, the Portuguese public broadcaster RTP dedicated a news slot to it. Portuguese speakers can listen here (from 8.55). The day after publication, Mozambique's National Criminal Investigation Service (Sernic)...
South Africa has a strange tendency to put total opposites in the international spotlight. Bad boy Paul Kruger, a Boer hero who fought both the imperialist British and the country's original inhabitants, thrilled thousands of Dutch supporters in the early 1900s. Freedom fighters like Nelson and Winnie Mandela, Archbishop Tutu, or white human rights lawyer Bram Fischer inspired international solidarity movements decades later with their principled struggle against racism and oppression. Athlete...
South Africa has a strange tendency to put total opposites in the international spotlight. Bad boy Paul Kruger, a Boer hero who fought both the imperialist British and the country's original inhabitants, thrilled thousands of Dutch supporters in the early 1900s. Freedom fighters...
Read the Dutch version below [We] begin to expand that archive with the aim of ensuring that it will no longer be what it was,” says artist/photographer Andrea Stultiens about the impressive exhibition and publication in which, in collaboration with numerous African creatives, the work of colonial photographer and anthropologist Paul Julien is re-viewed. It began with the discovery of one of Paul Julien's books at a second-hand market. Images of a trip through an African country. One of the...
Read the Dutch version below [We] begin to expand that archive with the aim of ensuring that it will no longer be what it was,” says artist/photographer Andrea Stultiens about the impressive exhibition and publication in which, in collaboration with numerous African creatives, the...
The internet is awash with descriptions of the space that South African documentary photographer and journalist Gopolang Ledwaba set up at 9737 Cemetery Road, Braamfischerville, Soweto, earlier this year. The Mandebele Photo Gallery, we read, is a space for education, “incubatorship”, and upliftment; a resource centre; a project space; a cultural hub; and a café. Ultimately, the space, not much bigger than a garage, is a community centre . Multi-purpose spaces are not unique; you find them in...
The internet is awash with descriptions of the space that South African documentary photographer and journalist Gopolang Ledwaba set up at 9737 Cemetery Road, Braamfischerville, Soweto, earlier this year. The Mandebele Photo Gallery, we read, is a space for education,...
The highly anticipated second volume in the widely acclaimed and celebrated self-portrait series, Somnyama Ngonyama, Hail the Dark Lioness by Zanele Muholi, which it's first book won the Kraszna-Krausz Foundation award as the best photography book award and the second edition is here. In Somnyama Ngonyama, Hail the Dark Lioness, Volume II, Zanele Muholi explores and expands upon new personas and poetic interpretations of personhood, queerness, blackness, and the possibilities of self. Since the...
The highly anticipated second volume in the widely acclaimed and celebrated self-portrait series, Somnyama Ngonyama, Hail the Dark Lioness by Zanele Muholi, which it's first book won the Kraszna-Krausz Foundation award as the best photography book award and the second edition is...
While recent years have seen Israel exporting advanced surveillance technologies to countries across the continent, there’s a parallel trend of supplying traditional crowd control equipment such as tear gas canisters. In June and July 2024, East Africa experienced waves of protests, notably in Kenya, where large-scale youth-led demonstrations erupted in response to the contentious Finance Bill 2024. The demonstrations were part of a broader effort to pressure President William Ruto, with activist...
While recent years have seen Israel exporting advanced surveillance technologies to countries across the continent, there’s a parallel trend of supplying traditional crowd control equipment such as tear gas canisters. In June and July 2024, East Africa experienced waves of protests,...
In August and September, Nigerian photographer Stephen Tayo will be staying at the BijlmAIR studio in Heesterveld at the invitation of the Amsterdam Buro Stedelijk. Tayo is a self-taught fashion, art and cultural photographer who uses his work as a platform for social commentary on wealth, class, race, gender and identity. The artist occupies his surroundings as his photo studio, a method he will also use in the Bijlmer. BijlmAIR (Bijlmer Artist-in-Residence) is the residency program of CBK...
In August and September, Nigerian photographer Stephen Tayo will be staying at the BijlmAIR studio in Heesterveld at the invitation of the Amsterdam Buro Stedelijk. Tayo is a self-taught fashion, art and cultural photographer who uses his work as a platform for social commentary on...
Nurturing Ghana's Creative Future. In this interview, Chantal Akworkor Thomson speaks about the launch of the Young Artists Series by La Foundation of the Arts in Accra. La Foundation for the Arts has launched an exciting initiative called the Young Artists Series, designed to uplift and empower young artists in Ghana. Spearheaded by Chantel Akworkor Thompson, this program aims to provide a platform for emerging talents to showcase their work and gain the recognition they deserve. Chantel was...
Nurturing Ghana's Creative Future. In this interview, Chantal Akworkor Thomson speaks about the launch of the Young Artists Series by La Foundation of the Arts in Accra. La Foundation for the Arts has launched an exciting initiative called the Young Artists Series, designed to...
The Swahili film industry is undergoing a makeover and stands to gain significantly if an Idris Elba mega studio comes to fruition. The project recently received a major boost with the allocation of an 80-hectare site in Zanzibar. The allocation of an 80-hectare parcel of land in Zanzibar to Hollywood star Idris Elba to build a film studio marks a new milestone in efforts to develop a regional film industry - efforts that are being supported by local government. "Idris Elba will be building a...
The Swahili film industry is undergoing a makeover and stands to gain significantly if an Idris Elba mega studio comes to fruition. The project recently received a major boost with the allocation of an 80-hectare site in Zanzibar. The allocation of an 80-hectare parcel of land in...
Inspired by a tapestry of Bantu folk stories, the video game 'Tales of Kenzera: Zau' is rich with mythology that many Africans know as our heritage. Since playing it, Tales of Kenzera: Zau has never left me. Grief is life’s inevitable tragedy, and until this game, I’ve never felt it adequately explored in the medium. It’s odd because death is everywhere in video games. It’s an incentive or an insignificant punishment without consequence: numbered hearts, a health bar, a kill streak, or a Dark...
Inspired by a tapestry of Bantu folk stories, the video game 'Tales of Kenzera: Zau' is rich with mythology that many Africans know as our heritage. Since playing it, Tales of Kenzera: Zau has never left me. Grief is life’s inevitable tragedy, and until this game, I’ve never felt it...
Removed from the facts, the firestorm around Algerian boxer Imane Khelif is the latest attempt by the right-wing in the West to find fodder for its culture war. Imane Khelif must be feeling awfully confused. Out of nowhere, a woman who was raised in a poor, conservative family in Biban Mesbah—an agricultural village in central Algeria that even most Algerians aren’t familiar with—has been quickly plunged into a toxic culture war online, where she’s the target of global abuse and harassment. If...
Removed from the facts, the firestorm around Algerian boxer Imane Khelif is the latest attempt by the right-wing in the West to find fodder for its culture war. Imane Khelif must be feeling awfully confused. Out of nowhere, a woman who was raised in a poor, conservative family in...
The crux of the struggle lies in reclaiming the soul of Kenya from a generation that became malevolent during public duty. The recent protests, sparked by a youth movement rejecting the Finance Bill 2024, have grown into widespread demonstrations confronting deep-seated issues within Kenya. What started as peaceful gatherings in Nairobi, with the prominent presence of young women denouncing the proposed Finance Bill, deteriorated into a storming of parliament and violent confrontations with police,...
The crux of the struggle lies in reclaiming the soul of Kenya from a generation that became malevolent during public duty. The recent protests, sparked by a youth movement rejecting the Finance Bill 2024, have grown into widespread demonstrations confronting deep-seated issues...
Anti-government protests have spread to Uganda, where ordinary people are tired of passively accepting elite misrule. “(We) are called bazukulu , meaning ‘grandchildren.’ (…) We are certainly beyond the days of being an infantilized citizenry.” Kenya is the talk of the East African neighborhood because a cross-section of its citizenry continues to demand accountability and speak up against vile egocentric economic policies. Kenya is a prime example of a people who have rejected spectator...
Anti-government protests have spread to Uganda, where ordinary people are tired of passively accepting elite misrule. “(We) are called bazukulu , meaning ‘grandchildren.’ (…) We are certainly beyond the days of being an infantilized citizenry.” Kenya is the talk of the East African...
Welcome Paul Mbikayi, Dineo Nhlapo, Joseph Seh and Milton van Wyk. They will be taking over the reins from outgoing board members Annelies Verdoolaege, Gerard Wieffer, Jan Meijer, Randall Maarman, Margriet van der Waal and Randall Maarman. ZAM is immensely grateful for their contribution to the work of the organization. Thank you for being willing to share insights and experiences and, often, contributing in practical ways to ZAM’s many activities! The new board members bring a wealth of knowledge...
Welcome Paul Mbikayi, Dineo Nhlapo, Joseph Seh and Milton van Wyk. They will be taking over the reins from outgoing board members Annelies Verdoolaege, Gerard Wieffer, Jan Meijer, Randall Maarman, Margriet van der Waal and Randall Maarman. ZAM is immensely grateful for their...
In 2001, when Lindokuhle Sobekwa was 6, his sister disappeared. Ziyanda, 12, witnessed her little brother being hit by a car in Khumalo Street, Thokoza, a township east of Johannesburg. In Lindokuhle's blurred memories, a young woman was standing over him after the hit – but he is not sure if that was Ziyanda. With a broken spine, he was carted off to the hospital, where his recovery took three months. Once back home, Ziyanda was nowhere to be found. It was 11 years before Lindokuhle was able to...
In 2001, when Lindokuhle Sobekwa was 6, his sister disappeared. Ziyanda, 12, witnessed her little brother being hit by a car in Khumalo Street, Thokoza, a township east of Johannesburg. In Lindokuhle's blurred memories, a young woman was standing over him after the hit – but he is...
