A Picture of Africa

A warm, red sun rises over flat-topped acacias, revealing a magical landscape of elephant, buffalo, rhino, lion.  Colourful, exotic cultures – over forty different tribes and languages in Kenya alone.  Amazing wildlife, varied peoples; it’s my ideal picture of East Africa.

There is another view:  fuming gridlock, desperate hawkers, the simmering insecurity of modern Nairobi.  My friends Zia and Madeleine, lifelong residents, constantly seek moments of solitude in their hectic urban lives.

One escape is to the coast, where my latest visit begins - people and wildlife, but very different from the city and plains inland.

This is the centre of gentle Swahili culture, clean sea air and stunning white Indian Ocean beaches.  Here is yet another vision of Africa:  camels amble the pure sands of Dhiani beach, spicy masala and coconut rice aboard a wooden dhow, the call to prayer fades over Mombasa old town.

And no lack of wildlife:  mighty giraffe, buffalo, antelope, and majestic sea-eagle, heron and stork, balance the maligned mongoose and misunderstood warthog; a marvellous white kingfisher and Egyptian goose weigh against malicious snakes and crocs – even the modest Haller Park reserve boasts an astonishing balance of fauna.

Yet numerous snaps on Katja’s new Canon show the idyllic picture rather undermined by concrete and cement – fish tanks, walls, even paths.  The camera never lies:  this former limestone quarry turns out to be bankrolled by multinational mining conglomerate Lafarge, itself attempting to weigh profit with environmental impact.

In truth you do what you can with what you have – the park even showcases a life-size sperm whale crafted by local villagers from jettisoned flip-flops.  This is a dignified if futile attempt to counter-balance the tonnes of debris despoiling parts of the once-pristine coastline, as highlighted in Elspeth Murray’s playful poem Flip Flotsam and Simon Reeve’s BBC series Indian Ocean.

But sometimes balance is found: here is the setting for the heart-warming tale of Owen, a lonely, orphaned hippo, who meets a most unexpected foster-mother, a 150 year-old giant tortoise named Mzee.  Even shaky starts can end in stable, equal friendship.

We return to Nairobi for the highlight of our trip:  the honour of attending the first ever exhibition of Zia’s photography.  He speaks passionately in defence of redressing the drift from fine art, analogue values and black and white images. 

And it is inspiring to hear from the charities who benefit from this exhibition.  Kuona, who help local artists to advance themselves and the role of visual arts in Kenya, stress the importance of art as both a counterpoint to and commentary on the poverty and corruption which still undermine this country.  And for Friends of Nairobi National Park, Dr Paula Kahumbu (incidentally the co-author of Owen & Mzee) speaks with passion and equanimity of preserving Kenya’s natural heritage in face of human-wildlife conflict, the opposition of such strong, equal forces who both lay claim to this precious land.

I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Zia’s photographic talent develop over the last 20 years, but it is still nothing short of breathtaking to see his beautiful images collected in one gallery.  The restful and perfectly-balanced monochrome seascapes are such a welcome counter to the usual noisy, garish spreads of African animals and people.  The compositions are striking, and the success in capturing movement in still images quite remarkable.

Appropriately, the exhibition is simply titled Equilibrium: a moment in solitude.  Well done Zia – your fantastic debut exhibition strikes exactly the right balance.