Recently at Umoja

Below is a photo update of the paper installation above Fatma's desk in the front room. Soon I will take it down and we will begin again with a new piece. 

In the Saturday class we have been exploring proportion and scale. We began with careful looking in the banana grove, considering our perception of scale and how it changes as we move our bodies through space. It was really satisfying to see each student's understanding evolve over the course of an hour. 

These two students are working with wire to measure and construct small scale versions of themselves. Tomorrow we will build a village for these figures. Beyond discussion of technical objectives, I aim to touch on what it is that each of us needs and wants in a home, and how these ideals are manifested in our lives personally and as members of a village or community.  

Check out those smocks!

This is the Thursday class. Some of the students pictured are actually from northeastern Ohio! It was surreal to sit in the front room of Umoja and look down to see a pair of OSU Buckeye branded sandals on a new student.

Yesterday, this group finished clay projects that will be fired in a village 20 minutes away on Tuesday.

(finished student work drying)

Shanna (another art teacher) and I found ourselves lost on a clay hunt a couple of weeks ago. We were driving to an area called Usa, and had almost lost hope of finding our destination when along the side of the road, a woman stood with a splay of fired pots. It seemed like a good sign, and we stopped to ask her where we could find clay like hers. She told us we would have to drive 40 more minutes to get clay if we wanted it, because the area we were in had "run out" of its clay reserves. Shanna then asked her about a mama who used to operate a women's pottery group, and the woman directed us just a little further down the road to the left. We took off driving again, and found the turn-off she had mentioned. Quickly we transitioned from highway, to driving on a mud road surrounded by corn and school kids in gray uniforms. We drove for another five minutes, and came across a group of women carrying wood. Again, we asked for directions. According to the women,we were on the right track, we just needed to go a little further...

We eventually found ourselves at a school with a large kiln in the backyard. That seemed like a sure-fire sign, so we pulled off and asked around. We finally found our way to Mama Anna, who filled us in on the status of the women's pottery operation. Apparently there was a dispute, and the whole thing had disbanded. She hadn't had any reason to make clay or fire anything for some time, but she offered her own small clay reserve as well as her assistance in firing finished pieces from Umoja. Wow.

After a little more discussion, she took us to her house further up the mountain. The road was again narrow, crowded with more corn, banana trees and the occasional person. We arrived, and were taken to the side of the goat stable, beneath which Mama Anna keeps her bags of clay. She grabbed one, pulled out a clump of prepared clay, and was quickly on her way to demonstrating how she makes a cooking pot. It turns out a lot of people make their pots on the ground, but from a standing position. As she demonstrated, Mama Anna was bent at the waist, arms elongated, and walking slowly around the clay ring adding coils. Meanwhile, the whole family had gathered and formed something of an assembly. In the end, everyone was looking at each other smiling and nodding.

To get the clay, Mama Anna has to hike a long ways, dig it out of the ground and carry it on her hike back. Beyond that, she has to sift it, add a fine sand and then water before it is a proper wet mix. Knowing the person who has gone to such lengths for a material we are using in class causes me to be more conservative, making sure we recycle each scrap, and to encourage students to put their best efforts in their work. We have used two batches of Mama Anna's mix for this project, and I am really looking forward to returning to Usa to work with her Tuesday!

To the Crater!

Last Sunday, I found myself on an impromptu safari. It was amazing to see herds of gisele, zebra, and clusters of ostrich, giraffes, flamingos, and flies! On our way across the grass, some of the animals ran alongside and ahead of our vehicle.
Our destination was Oltukai.To get there, nine of us squeezed into a seven person vehicle, drove across some grassy turf, avoided patches of tire trapping mud, and found our way to an open wooden lodge that overlooks lake Manyara.
From the platform of the lodge we could make out bands of rippling pink created by an enormous flock of flamingos on the lake in the distance. Two friends, a Maasai tribesman and I made our way to the edge of the lake. As we drew closer, we could smell salt and the defecation of the beautiful birds.The ground was cracked, and where the water lapped at the land, there lived a bright green algae!

When we returned from the walk, we happened upon a humorous scene. The Maasai men had descended upon a giant open box of donated summer hats and shoes. Some of the clothing items were pretty flashy and effeminate. In about five minutes, I found myself an observer of a kind of dress up/play time. Evidence of this event can be seen above...
Five of the Maasai men hopped in the car to join us on our return trip to the main road. In order to fit the extra passengers, we raised the roof about 3 feet and everyone stood. I was squeezed between two people, and a car seat. As we drove over bumpy terrain, my hand was repeatedly pinched between the chair and a Maasai man's machete.
By early evening, we returned to the bustling and chaotic city of Arusha. The smell of diesel and garbage filled my nose once again. Some part of me was glad to be back, though I immediately missed the wild and wide open sights of our excursion at Oltukai...What a treat!

The start of the collaborative project...

The art program at umoja has been somewhat dormant for the last six months. Being one of two new teachers in the department, I thought it would be appropriate to announce our presence and enthusiasm for working with students and making art. Last week I discovered a bundle of rolled up sketches from a few terms ago that have been damaged and thrown to the side. Since materials are hard to come by here, I set out to re-use the sketch paper, paint it, and initiate an informal collaboration amongst visitors and current students at the school.

This is my friend Marieke. She's been helping out at Umoja while awaiting the news of her acceptance to a UN internship position for the next month. Above, she adds a coat of white to the craft paper I scavenged for our latest project.

I laid the painted paper across  the floor in the common area where students accumulate before lessons, and invited them to join me in drawing and cutting patterns and designs.

A few days later we ended up with this decorative netting that now hangs above the front desk for all to see.

Stage two of this project will involve the crafting of hundreds of paper birds that will explode from the corner behind the paper netting, travel across the ceiling and out the front door into the trees.
Arusha is a very international community, so the discussion of traditional paper folding techniques from Japanese, Korean and Moorish culture should be an interesting addition to the mixing pot of information that naturally exists here.

Outside over there...

Classes at Umoja are taking off this week.  My classes are slow to start, but apparently that's what it's like being the new teacher on the block. To start, we are working on some collaborative projects cutting and folding paper.

I'll post some pictures to update you on that process as we go. 

In other news, I finally went to the central market to buy some produce. It's an overwhelming place that feels more like a stock market than a farmers market. Regardless, I managed to talk the cost of a head of cabbage down from 1,700 shillings to 1,000 - still a bit expensive, but I think adequate for the first try. I've also discovered that the best time to eat mango is around 3pm. I cut it and split it with Fatma, my oldest new friend at Umoja. We scarf it down in a matter of minutes and find our strength and mental prowess renewed.

After making some purchases at the hardware stores in town, the art room seems comfortably stocked. 

the work table in the art room

my washing from last sunday!

view from the performance space

Sustenance, hygiene and recuperation at Umoja

I hope to get a little more ambitious with my cooking, but it's been enough of a task just to land these fresh fruits and veggies. Everything is so flavorful! I'm especially enjoying the mango and avocado. It turns out we have banana and mango trees in our garden at Umoja. In fact, the bananas are ready for picking now.

 Not to worry, my sense of adventure with fallen and rotting foods does not transfer to a situation such as this one. I boiled the brush the next day.

Shower-toilet combo. My experience so far has yielded about two minutes of hot water each session. Some is better than none. I'll count my blessings.

The mosquito net looks fancy. I slept the first two nights without one, but bites on eyelids are worth avoiding.

Istanbul to Arusha

Liza and I flew from NYC to Istanbul overnight on the 5th, had a 10 hour layover there, then took off for Nairobi for an overnight flight on the 6th. We finally arrived in Nairobi on the 7th at 3:30AM...I think.
As soon as we collected our luggage, we bathed in the bathroom, stacked our luggage, and camped out until about 6:30AM. Are you following all of that?
The sun came up in Kenya as we took in some caffeine, and immediately I was struck by how much brighter it shines.
We hopped on a bus that took us across bits of violently bumpy terrain. We had to stop at the Kenya/Tanzania border to obtain visas, which was a little sticky for me. There was confusion between the visa office and the bank across the road, so I found myself running back and forth, with a worry of being left behind.
It all worked out soon enough and we were back on the road to Arusha.
The closer we got to our destination, the more beautiful the landscape became. About 15 minutes outside of Arusha, we passed through vivid green, rolling hills. The Maasai villages came close to the road, where I also saw herds of goats, cows, and a cluster of camels.
I hadn't eaten anything for the day except a cheese roll that was given to me on the plane, so when I finally got off the bus, I felt terrible. Lupo, a friend of Liza's swept us away to Liza's house, where I promptly ate some peanut M&Ms, and then a well rounded meal of beans, rice and cabbage.
Much has happened since my arrival, but that news is soon to come...

For now, here are some photos:

This one is for David.

This is an entryway to the Blue Mosque. We were scammed shortly after we entered, as a younger gentleman forced a mediocre tour on us and then demanded money. It was an awkward ordeal that is sure to be avoided in the future!

Inside

Thinking through the installation...

This will be installed in the library at Burroughs Elementary. Now that I am in Arusha, David has kindly taken charge of final installation work. I am so excited to see how it turns out!