The Art Pages – An Update

Work is going well, we already have two articles currently being edited as well as photos. So far contributors have been respectful of deadlines and been attending our meetings.

The key work right now is to look for funding for subsequent issues of the paper. We have managed to scrape together enough to publish our first issue but after that we need another source of funding. We are looking into some grants from embassies that have a keen interest in supporting the arts, but these grants can take some months to be approved. So we are have to be creative. We have a possible idea for raising some money but this idea is still in its early stages, stay tuned for more!

Despite these financial issues we are so heartened by the amount of support we are receiving from artists who feel this kind of newspaper is long overdue. For them and many others, we will continue the work.

We are also working on a website that will help promote The Art Pages, this is still very much under construction and we have to make allowances for our temperamental internet, but it is definitely getting there.

Insaka Artists' Open Day

The Insaka Artists' workshop in Livingstone drew to a close last week with the artists who participating showing their work at the Henry Tayali Gallery. As evidenced by the work, the workshop was a clearly a great success.

Wednesday Cartoon

Notes from the gallery - Getting 'out there'

Things are quiet at the Henry Tayali gallery at the moment. Many artists have been in Livingstone for the last two weeks taking part in the workshop and will be returning soon full of ideas and motivation.

While the cats have been away, we mice have been not really playing but using the time to think about ways to push the gallery forward as well as the art scene here in general. Despite the plethora of artists working in Lusaka, the community is sometimes fragmentary as each group gets on with the business of working and trying to sell their work. As a result, it is often a challenge for the blog team to keep up to date with events that are going on. So our first aim is to try and bring together collaborative elements that will be willing to report back to 'Lusaka Art Scene' so we can share with you all what is going on.

Using the internet for communication between artists here is a learning curve too, especially since internet access is expensive and slow. We're persevering and hope other artists will too. In a country with no art school and limited access to resources, the internet is an invaluable tool for artists to develop contacts outside of Lusaka and to find out about what is happening in the art world internationally. In order to point artists in the right direction as well as providing a platform for artists and supporters alike to network, we started our Ning network. Unfortunately this was days before the announcement that Ning is beginning to charge for this service, we hope that May 4th's anouncement of new prices will not be a shock and that we can somehow find funds to keep it going. http://lusakaartscene.ning.com/

Wednesday Cartoon

News Updates

AAW studios and Barefoot are collaborating on a project on art installations that will be seen all over Lusaka in outdoor spaces. The subject is 'The environment and climate change' and the workshop will culminate in a festival. More to come.

The Insaka workshop has started in Livingstone and is going well. We hope to get a report from the artists involved. the workshop will continue unil May 5th when there will be an open day.

The Henry Tayali Gallery is working on a proposal for funds that will be used for a merchandise workshop. Artists will be trained in screenprintng and lino printing and some principles of graphic design in order to sell their work at the gift shop that is also planned.

The New Lusaka Art Scene Network

We have started a new network on Ning in order encourage supporters, but also as an online space in which to discuss and share events, resources and ideas. Whether you are based in Lusaka or not, we still need your help and involvement. Feel free to join:



Visit Lusaka Art Scene

Wednesday Cartoon Day

We are pleased to be posting a cartoon by Nasalifya, one of Zambia's young and talented artists and writers. We hope to be showing at least one of his cartoons every Wednesday.

Missing Painting At The Henry Tayali Gallery

We are sad to report that a painting has gone missing from the Henry Tayali gallery. If anyone has information on its whereabouts please contact us: lusakaartscene@googlemail.com

Gody Leye in Interview

News and Events

Congratulations to Danny Chilyapa on a very successful exhibition at the Alliance Francaise.

We must thank British based non-profit Alive and Kicking for commissioning a sculpture for a fundraising auction back in the UK. Alive and Kicking make footballs locally in Zambia using local materials and manpower. Several artists have put forward bids and a decision on which will be auction is due in the next 3 weeks.

Welcome back to Zenzele Chulu who has been in Cameroon at the Art Bakery. Pictures and an account of his experience will be posted soon.

A piece of art has gone missing at the Henry Tayali Gallery, more on this will come on a separate posting.

The Lusaka National Museum is currently hosting an exhibition of paintings from the Lechwe Trust. The exhibition will continue until May and a review of the exhibition will be posted soon.

The Insaka Artists' residence program will be taking place from the 22nd April Livingstone and will end with an exhibition there on 6th May. The exhibition will then move to Lusaka. Our blogger Elizabeth Watkin will also attend part of the workshop to report and record.

Chilyapa Lwando

Artist Focus - Chilyapa Lwando

Chilyapa Lwando is a busy man these days. Not only does he work full time for the Henry Tayali gallery, he's an active photographer and painter. Currently he is working double time to get ready for his exhibition at Alliance Francaise next month. Lwando is prolific and has a large body of work from which draw his pieces. Consequently the exhibition will be something of a retrospect.

The themes of traditional culture and society figure most in his work, though Lwando has been focusing on traditional culture in particular. He feels it is important to preserve and promote Zambian culture as he fears it is being eroded. However his paintings are not merely to educate but to celebrate and reinforce his own sense of identity as well as a way of exploring and critiquing some of the traditional ways found in Zambia and Africa more broadly. For Lwando his art and cultural identity are very closely woven together.



Other aspects of Lwando's work address social issues such as HIV/Aids and the role of women. He draws inspiration from the everyday activities of children and women.


Lwando's paintings are vivid and he likes to use fibres or sand to give his paintings texture. If you are in the Lusaka area on March 19th, stop by Alliance Francaise to see Chilyapa Lwando's paintings 'in the flesh' so to speak, and experience their vibrancy first hand.

News Updates

Lusaka Art Scene Blog Well Recieved: Flyers for the new Lusaka Art Scene blog were given out at the recent exhibition for Black History Month at Lusaka National Arts Museum. As a result we have had great positive feedback.


Workshop for Busines Training for Artists: This week the Henry Tayali Gallery is hosting a workshop on entrepreneurship for artists, in the hope this will help them support themselves through what they create. More on this on the blog later this week.

Photography Exhibition Opens This Week: Zambian based photographer Fabrice Palacio will be showing his work from Tunisia at the Alliance Francaise in Lusaka, the exhibition opens on Friday 12th February at 6pm and will run for one week. Fabrice Palacio Site.

Art Bakery, Cameroon: Later this month, Zenzele Chulu will be travelling to take part in a workshop called 'Art Bakery'. This project was set up by Goddy Leye, the well known artist from Cameroon, in 2003. Goddy Leye Site .

New Exhibition for Danny Lwando: Lusaka based painter and photographer Danny Lwando has been given space at Alliance Francaise here in Lusaka to exhibit his paintings in March.

New Art Guide in Progress: Elizabeth Watkin and Zenzele Chulu are working together to produce a map of all artistic places of interest in Lusaka that will be published on this site. From this there is also a plan to expand it into a guide booklet for visitors to Lusaka and Zambia.

Black History Month Exhibition Opens

The opening of the Black History Month Exhibition at Lusaka National Museum was a huge success with even the esteemed Kenneth Kaunda attending.

More pictures and accounts of the exhibition are to follow, meanwhile here are a few snaps.

Black History Month and the Tiyende Pamodzi Art Project

After some discussion the proposed Black History Month exhibition has been moved from the originally planned location of COMESA to the Lusaka National Museum. The exhibition will not only honour those key people of colour from history through the arena of the visual arts, but will also act as a launch pad for the new Tiyende Pamodzi Art Project.

This project is in conjunction with several art bodies - VAC, the Lechwe Trust, Insaka Artists and Twaya Art (located in the Intercontinental hotel). These bodies will be called upon to decide on an artists or groups of artists to exhibit for free in the Lusaka National Museum, the exhibit will change quarterly.
This will be an important springboard for artists to gain more coverage and the Lusaka National Museum has been very generous in offering this space. We will keep you posted on the exhibitions that will follow. 5th February is the start date of the Black History Month exhibition.

Artist Focus - Stary Mwaba

Stary Mwaba says it was being exposed to the work of Mark Rothko that revealed to him the possibilities in straying from a realistic form of painting to something more abstract. Indeed Mwaba’s paintings seem to be a marriage of realism with the a freer more abstract style, figures, rendered meticulously with intensely expressive faces are often found surrounded with more expressionist figures and backgrounds, representing a kind of internal dialogue or inner consciousness. Or perhaps it is the other way around; Mwaba’s subjects look pensive, deep in thought while the world around them fades into an abstract mesh of colour and form.
It is this technical and contextual duality in Mwaba’s paintings that make his work so intriguing and rewarding.

The catalyst for Mwaba’s talent came while he was a peer educator more than thirteen years ago. He found it easier to express what he wanted to say through illustrations and when facing extreme difficulties at home, painting became a useful escape and outlet for his feelings and thoughts. An artist friend eventually made him aware of the Visual Arts Council of Zambia, and Mwaba found himself surrounded by artists and art that have been crucial in his somewhat informal art education. At VAC and another art collective, Rockston, Mwaba learned that once the rules of art have been learned, they can be broken and boundaries pushed. Mwaba talks of the importance of learning the ‘language or art’ and that being an artist is more than being technically skilful with a brush or pencil.

Since his beginnings when he taught art in a private school and often slept in the local gallery, he has exhibited all over the world including: Gallery Momo in South Africa, The Watermill in New York City and a German expo in Hanover. In 2004 Mwaba won the Commonwealth Arts and Crafts award and consequently worked in Trinidad and Tobago along with artists Peter Doig and Chris Ofili.

Amongst his influences, Mwaba cites Klimt and Picasso and a Mozambique artist Malangatana. The fluid and graceful figures of Klimt can be seen in some his work giving his subjects of everyday people a powerful dignity. Being Zambian has been both a help and hindrance to Mwaba’s work. There is a distinct lack of role models for young artists in Zambia and very little opportunities within the education system to study art. Zambia’s art scene is still trying to find a secure platform and is little known internationally. It is also unfortunate that works of art by local artists do not get as much interest as they could from tourism and the ex-pat community. It seems that visitors prefer the more ‘typical’ souvenirs that comfortably represents the outsiders image of sub-Saharan Africa – African masks, for example or baskets, clay pots and wooden big game animals. They are also cheaper and easier to transport in your back pack. Despite this Mwaba’s work is without bitterness and refuses to adhere to African stereotypes, while portraying everyday life in Zambia with vision and originality. The everyday life and condition of people here Mwaba feels, has attuned his sense to the small moments that are full of meaning.

New Year News

After something of a hiatus, Lusaka Art Scene is back with news of upcoming events in the fair capital.

For January things are pretty quiet at the Henry Tayali Gallery with their exhibitions startin next month. That doesn't mean you shouldn't drop by and see paintings from the previous Insaka Artists' Exhibition and works by established artists.

The Alliance Francaise frequently has cultural events from music, cinema to the visual arts. On 22nd January there is a concert featuring 'African Pride', 'Jimmy Guitar and the Spirit of Africa Band' and 'Stephan Nsofwa'.

We at Lusaka Art Scene are working hard to publicise any art events going on in Lusaka, if you know of something please get in touch. At the bottom of the page is a list of other events coming in February. Happy New Year!

Focus on the Artist: Zenlele Chulu

Zenzele Chulu is art activist in many respects , began art as a baby, scribbling on sand while crawling , grew up in an artistic family and went to Evelyn Hone College to receive his Art Teachers Diploma , four years as Head of Art Section Kabulonga High School, joined VAC Documentation Project and currently is Coordinator of Insaka International Artists Workshop, formerly Mbile, where he is transforming it into a professional art institution. He has worked and demonstrated high capacity in organizing and mobilizing numerous artistic events and art projects as a curator, consultant, adjudicator, educator , facilitator with corporate, NGOs, government and international organizations to put up art exhibitions, workshops, training and project management.

His work has been exhibited from humble exhibitions to the highest level of international art in Africa, Asia and Europe with great artists such as Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Alberto Corda, Malangatana, Sokari Douglas Camp, Uche Okeke. He continues to make in roads in the contemporary Art world with a strong conviction of self confidence to present his philosophical thoughts expressed using a multi disciplinary approach. Despite a busy art administrative schedule he uses every opportunity to execute his art expressions called flamboyantism, Contra, Schematic Tantrums all styles have a deep inclination towards ancient African allegories freely working in his own pantheon, a self taught student of Pan African Studies and African Civilisations, he continues to research, explore and learn the art world, flexible and influential to work with almost anyone local and international art connections, he is equipped with a self motivated drive to express the way he wishes, the viewpoints he believes makes his art sensible as well as accessible. With the advent of conceptual art, Zenzele is more than excited to use its unlimited source of material application without losing touch with the ancient African inspired themes.