THIS GENERATIONER

Monday March 31, 2014 The solutions offered by the Google Africa Connected success stories competition finalists are viable in all developing societies. Adopt them. (Part 2) In the next five years, 7 out of the world’s 10 fastest growing economies are predicted to be in Africa, and the internet is playing an important part in this. The internet is connecting virtually everything and everyone that needs another part to be complete and functional.  The solutions provided by these ten finalists needed the internet to come to full life. They needed to be shared: African Connected Competition finalist Steve Kyenze. He runs Uwezo Slum Gallery in Kibera where he nurtures and sells children's art for their school fees and upkeep. In the sprawling slums of Kibera where almost every kid is unsure of having the next meal, one bright artist has found a way of helping these children sustain themselves. Steve Kyenze runs the Uwezo Slum Gallery in Kibera, Nairobi where

Thursday , March 27, 2014 The solutions offered by the Google Africa Connected success stories competition finalists are viable in all developing societies. Adopt them. (Part 1)  The web is changing lives every day. If you visit You Tube  quite frequently then you have most probably seen an advert with that tag from the team at Google. As at the time I am beginning to write this article, it is exactly 4 days 14 hours to the time when five winners from the ten finalists in the Africa Connected Competition will be announced. In organizing the competition, Google called on entrepreneurs, creators, innovators and web-lovers across Africa to share their stories of how the web has transformed their lives and work.  Each winner will receive a $25,000 Africa Connected prize, as well as, expert assistance from Google to help make their success even greater. What is of more importance to me is that with the competition, more solutions to everyday African problems were shared. I have

Thursday 20, 2014 INTERVIEW WITH DJ PSCRATCH ABOUT HIS JOURNEY SO FAR AND HIS HOPES FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY IN KISUMU. One Saturday night during a campus gig while he was still there, the young campus revelers at Maseno University’s Graduation Square grounds were facing the music literally instead of dancing to it because the DJ wasn’t reading their mood right. There wasn’t a synergy between the crowd and the DJ to complete the vibe around. One young man stepped up and pleaded with the organizing Director of  Entertainment to give him just five minutes at the deejay booth and to point him the way down the stage if he could not manage to deliver the crowd’s demands. That brave young man who ended up holding down the deejay booth for far more than five minutes is this guy .  And the rest as he says is still history in the making. He is ambitious, hardworking, disciplined and aims at being one of the most learned DJs in Africa. His name is Pscratch. His message is simple -

March 19,2014.  Even Mzee Elimo Njau agrees In my blog post yesterday where I was relating art and freedom and how everyone generally is artistic in some way, I mentioned how the placement of things in someone's house can be looked at from an artistic point of view. To some point, I felt that I had not gone as far as I should have to explain that comparison. I felt that that particular part of the post was inadequately explained.  I stumbled on this while wandering around the streets of tumblr and I thought why not bring it home and share it?  It's from Mikemelrinho' s   account and was titled "Psychedelic art"  What I did not appreciate up to yesterday was that someone else (with a better general understanding of life and art than me) would say the same about how art brings itself out in the simple way we create order in things and people around us. Just this afternoon I was going through one of my favorite arts and culture blogs and I stumble

Tuesday March 18, 2014 The New Freedom Art is the new freedom. Freedom is the new art. Art and freedom. Freedom and art. Art through freedom. Freedom through art. Art by freedom. Freedom by art. Art with freedom. Freedom with art.  You get it? Art is the new synonym for freedom. It is creativity that propels the world forward. Freedom in thought is linked to art. Creativity is art. It is art that propels the world forward. Young people, let’s not lie to ourselves. It is only us who can create jobs for us.  Job creation is our task to carry out. This can only be done by being creative, free and artistic. Art in this sense does not refer to the mainstream interpretation of the word art but any form of ingenuity, skill and thought process that will generate a new service, commodity or process that will make life easier, better and more comfortable. The beauty of art in this world right now, is that no one has the grounds to tell you that what you think or do as ar

Wednesday March 12, 2014 MEET BRIAN MANASEH, THE YOUNG FASHION DESIGNER AT CRYSTAL PALACE FASHION HOUSE IN KISUMU So after I decided to go into this artist profiling initiative, the first two people I have been able to sit down and talk to at length have been fashion practitioners. The first as you know by now was the talented Taib Nyamenya who shared his experience with us at length. Brian Manaseh is another equally promising upcoming fashion designer.  His works bring out the elegance of the African fabric widely known as Ankara in both casual and semi-official wear. His influences as you will find out below are West African, Nigerian specifically. Having been present at events where he has showcased his works in the past, I have witnessed the popularity he has gained among fellow students as a result of his works at Maseno University where he is currently in the second year of his Interior design course. Brian with one of her models at a past fashion event.