Nairobi joins 800 cities in promoting art through fun

NAIROBI: Multinational art network PechaKucha 20x20 is in the country to promote art through fun.

Today, they will be at Nairobi’s Creatives Garage, after another event last Sunday in Westland’s The Yard, which houses The Bus, a creative hub.

“We want to have every PechaKucha event in a different location each time, moving around Nairobi so as to reach different groups of people,” says Amina Abdala, one of the organisers of PechaKucha Nights in Nairobi.

The shows bring together a host of artists, photographers, cinematographers as well as a community based photo project dubbed NaiLitter.

“The response from the Volume 8 event was great, people really appreciated the concept and artists were able to see their own potential,” says Ms Abdala, also a creative director and 3D artist.

The group has taken art to restaurants, bars, clubs, homes, studios, universities, churches and even a quarry.

The event takes place in over 800 cities, making it one of the largest art networks in the world. “We want to create a greater appreciation for the arts to bring credibility to the different creative fields,” she says.

Together with Bauwa Alambo and Easter Ciombaine, the trio formed the PechaKucha Nairobi team. The group relies on volunteers and sponsors.

PechaKucha 20x20 is an audiovisual presentation where an artist shows 20 images in 20 seconds, while they talk along to the images. “The presentation format is meant be fast-paced to allow more artists to show their work in one event, also so that the artists can showcase their best works,” says Abdala.

The concept was devised by architects Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham in 2003. The first PechaKucha event took place in Tokyo, Japan at the pair’s gallery-cum-lounge-cum-creative kitchen. Twelve years later they continue to support the global PechaKucha Night network.

“We have discovered that most cities have virtually no public spaces where people can show and share their work in a relaxed way. PechaKucha is the perfect platform for artists to do this.”

“Here in Nairobi, we want to give artists an opportunity to reach more people and even get discovered,” Abdala adds.

She observes that although the art scene in Nairobi is vibrant, more exposure is needed for the artists.

“The creative economy in this country is huge and needs to be explored so that artists can get more work and make a decent living,” she says.

Rapper, songwriter and Master of Ceremony, Renee Jones feels PechaKucha will enhance the creative industry in Kenya.

“I am learning a lot with PechaKucha, it is a great opportunity for artists, not just in Kenya but globally,” says Renee, a new volunteer with the organisation.

“PechaKucha is giving me and other artists an international platform, which has a global reach with an audience in over 800 cities,” notes the musician, who also has a clothing line called Renee Jones.

Although hip-hop is her strong suit, Jones’ mission as a musician is to reconcile the different genres of music through fusing them together. The beauty of PechaKucha is anyone can showcase their works, regardless of their creativity.

“We believe there is nothing social about online social networks, the live events are about real people, real communication and real creative fun; it is a real social network.”
The third edition of PechaKucha Nairobi Night will be held on April 8 in Karen.