The article is from A&B issue 9|23
Learn about the experience of the Matz initiative
The Mazze is a totem that heralded democracy in the 15th century in the canton of Valais, in southern Switzerland. This wooden structure resembling a tree trunk with a man's head traveled from village to village, acting as today's ballot box. Each totem symbolized a particular cause, such as opposition to the actions of local authorities or the church. If residents supported the demands, they nailed a nail to the structure. To this day, the mazze in the Valais territories is a symbol of causality and democracy.
The symbol is behind the name of Matz's initiative seeking to mobilize communities around the world to become active through interdisciplinary activities around art and architecture. The collective has no specific headquarters, its founder Séverin Guelpa is from Switzerland, and the association's recent activities have been carried out in marginalized communities in Colombia and Africa. White artists working in developing countries? Could it be the "white savior" syndrome in the art and architecture category? I say: check!
I was able to see the exhibition summarizing Matza's activities in Nairobi in February in Kenya during a research stay at the capital's Kenyatta University.
A view of Mukuru Lunga-Lunga
Photo: Barbara Nawrocka
Mukuru Lunga-Lunga and the Digital Informalities project
The main theme of the Kenyatta effort addressed security issues in both digital and physical spaces. Mukuru Lunga-Lunga is a grassroots settlement, one of many in Nairobi, where residents' security is based on mutual trust. There are no sophisticated monitoring systems here, and the local police do not patrol the area. Eight artists and creators were invited to join the project - five from Kenya, two from Switzerland and one from Venezuela. The lineup is pretty fair. In late January and early February, the team spent three weeks in the Mukuru area, where they lived, worked and co-created projects with the local community. Here we go with the review!
The Hut Joan Otieno
Photo credit: Barbara Nawrocka
Mounir Ayoub and the urbanist of grassroots settlements
The work of Mounir Ayoub - the only architect on the project - is a tribute to Daniel Njunge Karanji, the builder and also designer of most of the houses in Mukuru. Surveying the site with drone imagery, the Swiss discovered that this seemingly disorderly structure had a definite layout - clearly delineated traffic routes and spacing for passage. That's how he reached out to Daniel, who has been building houses in the Mukuru neighborhood for forty years, offering a "design and build" service. Njunge Karanja does not use a computer - designs and cost estimates for clients are done by traditional methods - sketched on pieces of paper. Thanks to his diligence and reliability, Daniel's services are very popular, which translates into his great influence on the urban planning of the district. In an interview accompanying the exhibition, the "designer" admits that he always makes sure that the houses are properly aligned with each other, creating a functional and, above all, safe structure. Daniel's work can be seen in the model created by Mounir Ayoub.
Joan Otieno and The Hut
Joan Otieno is a Kenyan visual artist. Her work explores themes of nature and feminism in support of women. In her project for Matza, she focused on the safety of female residents of Mukuru. Together with them, she created The Hut project, a freestanding pavilion with space for workshops and women's meetings. The facility is monitored and lockable, and its circular shape is meant to inspire an equal form of discussion. Much of the pavilion's furnishings are recycled materials - the walls are covered with fabric made from flour sacks, and the lamp shade is constructed from plastic cups. Guess who took care of the design and construction of the pavilion. Daniel Njunge Karanja!
Ngugi Waweru and the doors
Directly addressing the issue of security is the work of Ngugi Waweru - an artist, a member of the Wajuku art collective, but also a resident of Mukuru. In his installation, Waweru focused on a direct form of providing security in the area - namely, doors, which are usually quite massive and strong. The residents of Mukuru Lunga-Lunga can only count on themselves and their neighbors in case of attack or dangerous situations. These values are directly referenced in the artist's work, which displayed a dozen pairs of doors on one of the estate's main thoroughfares, emphasizing that without mutual help and trust, even the best and strongest doors will do them little good.
The Hut Joan Otieno
Photo: Barbara Nawrocka
Ronald Pizzoferrato and MPESA
We are moving from security in the physical zone to security in the digital zone. Ronald Pizzoferrato is an artist living in Switzerland, but originally from Venezuela. Arriving in Nairobi for a residency, he discovered a lot of similarities to his country, especially in terms of his experience with colonialism. During his stay in Mukuru, he noticed that residents often have problems accessing running water or electricity, but almost everyone has access to M-Pesa, a mobile payment app. M-Pesa is very popular in Kenya, it's often the only way to pay, and its logo can be seen almost everywhere. Pizzoferrato created an art-investigative project in which he discovered that a significant portion of M-Pesa's shares are owned by Britain's Vodafone, meaning there is a re-colonization, only in digital form.
Shabu Mwangi and the river
Shabu Mwangi is an artist and founder of the Wajuku art collective, which has been working in the Mukuru area for almost twenty years. The collective encourages the youngest residents of the estate to become active through artistic and educational activities. In the installation created as part of Matza's project, he gave voice to those who cannot defend themselves. He focused his actions on the Nairobi River, which is heavily polluted, especially in the part that cuts through Mukuru. A black ribbon created from stretch film stretches over the rooftops of Mukuru and leads to the river. This simple procedure is meant to draw the attention of residents and locals to the river, which is practically invisible because it is obscured by garbage.
A view of the river and the Shabu Mwangi installation
Photo: Barbara Nawrocka
Flurina Rothenberger and the session in Mukuru
Flurina Rothenberger is a Swiss photographer who spent a good part of her childhood in Ivory Coast. She often returns to Africa in her work, creating participatory projects with young people. In Mukuru, she invited teenage residents to create a series of photographs about their interests, giving them full artistic freedom. The photographs were displayed in a community vegetable garden that had been arranged for the project.
Matza's practices, underpinned by the involvement of local artists and communities, show how to work with marginalized groups on an equal basis. Follow their activities and get inspired! Next stop: Beirut.
Dominika Janicka
Photo: Barbara Nawrocka
