Kenya Arts and Cinematography
ART AND ARCHITECTURE
The extraordinary variety of local languages and the importance and continuity of traditions emerge in the artistic and architectural production of Kenya In architecture, the English heritage is revealed in the classical urban public buildings (government buildings, 1925-30, in Mombasa and Nairobi, by H. Baker), while a remarkable variety of styles can be found in the mosques and in the Hindu and Sikh temples; Christian churches vary from the eclecticism of the early 20th century. to the internationalism of constructions of the 1970s. A symbol of new languages but also of evocative references to tradition is the Kenyatta conference center in Nairobi (1979) by KH Nostvik, a complex characterized by imposing geometric volumes and local references.
Since the 1980s, new forms of expression follow graphics and illustration. Ethnic traditions and popular subjects characterize the production of J. Adamson, F. Oduya, E. Sukuro; more free that of J. Katirakawe, new and expressive that of S. Wadu. The work of the artists R. Anderson, T. Musoke, G. Robarts, R. Karuga is innovative. In the same period, the development of sculpture, both small, inspired by local and ethnic traditions, and intended for trade, and in monumental function, was noteworthy. Among the sculptors: E. Ongesa, P. Wanjau, F. Nnaggenda.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
According to petsinclude.com, British protectorate from 1895 and then a colony, Kenya gained independence in 1963, after a long period of uprisings, which began before the Second World War. The policy of the new state was characterized from the beginning in a moderate and centralistic sense, arousing radical and left-wing anti-government opposition, in a climate of tension aggravated by inter-ethnic conflicts. In this political context, cinema has struggled to establish itself and the first productions are due to directors from India and Uganda. The Indian Ramesh Shah has in fact conducted Mlevi (1968) and Mrembo (1969), in the style of the popular melodramas of his country of origin; while Ugandan Sao Gamba shot Immashoi old Massaï (1978), Open door to settlement (1979) and the feature film Kolormask (1986), story of a doctor who returns home with a white wife, also attributable to the genre of melodrama. Another Indian, Sharad Patel, also signed the biography of Uganda dictator Amin Dada in Rise and fall of Amin Dada (1980).
If the last decades of the twentieth century were characterized by a strong protest in the country against the corruption of the regime, combined with the request to promote a multi-party system, a certain development of cinema was possible since in the 1980s the Federal Republic of Germany supported financially the Kenyan production and made it possible to open a film school in Nairobi. The documentary genre has found fertile ground, with production and television companies willing to invest in the new sector. The most representative names are those of Albert Wandago and Anne C. Mungaï, who focused on the role of women in society. Wandago made Action (1990), a story of solidarity with women, while Mungaï has linked her filmography in particular to the character of a woman in constant struggle for emancipation: her films, mediocre and too didactic, have been Saikati (1992) and Saikati the Enkabaani (1998, Saikati the doctor). Women are also featured in Dommie Yambo-Odotte’s independent video works If women counted (1993), Science for girls (1994), Women’s agenda Kenya / Uganda (1996). Another director, Wanjiru Kinyanjui, in The battle of the sacred tree (1994) recounted a clash of ideas between tradition and modernity within a village. Women are also featured in Dommie Yambo-Odotte’s independent video works If women counted (1993), Science for girls (1994), Women’s agenda Kenya / Uganda (1996). Another director, Wanjiru Kinyanjui, in The battle of the sacred tree (1994) recounted a clash of ideas between tradition and modernity within a village. Women are also featured in Dommie Yambo-Odotte’s independent video works If women counted (1993), Science for girls (1994), Women’s agenda Kenya / Uganda (1996). Another director, Wanjiru Kinyanjui, in The battle of the sacred tree (1994) recounted a clash of ideas between tradition and modernity within a village.
