By Pinehas Nakaziko
WINDHOEK-Namibian acclaimed Visual artist and Musician; Ndasuunye “Papa” Shikongeni is re-opening Acoustic Friday for this year as well as his new exhibition at the Franco Namibian Cultural Centre (FNCC) on January 23.
The exhibition portrays unity of love, peace and transformation. According to the Communication Officer at FNCC Isabel Katjavivi, transformation is what Papa is looking at in this New Year, for this new generation. She adds that Papa will be exhibiting 28 artworks including cardboard prints, collage prints, zip fabrics, and 1 sculpture. The exhibition will be opened first by the Acoustic Friday Concert where by Papa and his band will be performing. “Opening our Acoustic Fridays for this year was Papa’s idea. He wants to show people that one person can be a musician and a visual artist simultaneously, that is why this night is combined. It is to show the society that music and visual arts (and all kinds of arts) are part of humanity, it cannot be divided from us,” says Katjavivi.
The exhibition and Acoustic Friday evening is intended to show young people in the arts market and industry that they can do it all and that they can become one. Papa explains that if you have a gift, you can do it all! Like the six strings of an acoustic guitar, there are many options and many possibilities. “The reason why this is being done in the beginning of the year, which is usually a time when finances are tough due to overspending or motivation is low and people are moving slowly, is to show that you can have it all in the beginning of the year. This is a welcoming to you all for the New Year. This is a reminder that there is no need to worry in the beginning of the year,” says Katjavivi.
Papa is an internationally and nationally recognised artist, as well as a storyteller, spiritual believer and leader in Namibia’s post-independence arts education and culture. He is a mutli-talented Namibian, promoting Namibian arts and culture through his prints, mixed media, and music. His works resonate ritual order and spirituality. Within Papa’s visual art and music one can see his technique of layering in printmaking and in his music. His layering speaks to the layers of culture , traditional, tribal, urban and contemporary.
His visual arts and music have been known for including a variety of materials and subjects – objects of everyday life, issues of post-colonialism, land distribution, poverty, corruption, and traditional rituals. At the same time his powerful and yet sensitive work deals with the ‘other world’ of spirituality and social responsibility. “To me as an artist, the job of the artist is to stir all the senses and thus provide new vision and new powers of adjusting to and relating to new situations in society. The artist must connect with his/her inner self and find that spirit of being and belonging; this will make you part of the world and the Universe at large,” says Papa.
“My signature is symbolic and spiritual; my art that I am going to showcase is work that is created and produced during 2014. My point is to encourage Namibian artists to keep on working and focus on innovativeness and creativity. The visual artists and musicians have to create a culture of working hard and produce quality products,” Papa adds. The exhibition closes on February 27.