How would our cities look like if they were designed by women? “Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time” Thomas Merton. Every other day, I come across art work by different people. This particular weekend I stepped out of my normal exposure to experience artwork specifically created by very young women, Women who used a little bit of paint, a little bit of fabric, and a little bit of recycled materials (just to name a few ) to define their inner strength, their inner thinking and their inner genius work to the world.

It all started with an invite to an event shared on Facebook, well by now you understand my sentiments about subsisting online the proper way, if you missed the article, read it here. The grand opening of the exhibition was organized by Hope Raisers Initiative and Arkitekter Utan Gränser,  A collaboration between women artists and architects trying new arenas to communicate and highlight issues in society hence the phrase “Through the eyes of a woman”

#BegaKwaBega exhibition in Baba Dogo was my destination. Wanna know how it all went? well… walk with me. 😉 Bega Kwa Bega is one place full of life, color, and positive vibes. I walked through the beautiful music, people, and snacks to satisfy my urge to experience what these beautiful women had to offer. The stories shared from every art displayed, had two things in common, their love for culture and their city while still advocating for their equal piece of the cake in society.

My favorite piece was one by a Nairobi-based artist Joan Otieno, influenced by her environment and the beauty of African motherhood and ancient societies.

With Pia Jonsson < Exhibition Coordinator> and Joan Otieno < Mentor Art Program> beside Joan’s favorite piece, did I also mention the story behind this piece was the highlight of my visit? well…

Joan travels widely and interacts with different people of different colors. While creating her masterpiece, she did share her desire for togetherness as a people. What if people would just come together and be one? The piece has many heads with multiple colors, every head shares its forehead, eyes, and nose…  My Take – A city filled with all these people is a culturally rich and diverse city. Joan Otieno is just one, Antonette Apondi, Wambui Njoroge, Esther Mumbua, Risper Omongo, and Lourine Ochieng are other phenomenal women exhibiting whose work and stories I related with.

After my evening walk, I had a light conversation with one Pascal Chuma CEO & Founder of Bobea Arts Centre his take on what our cities would look like  “This automatically reflects the beauty of the world we live in enhanced by women. Those doing art tend to restore our Art and Cultural practices in our communities. Women express themselves well through Art. Thus, the transformation of painting a new world that is beautiful and peaceful. My very dream was to see women designing cities…Women love colors. Women love clean beautiful environments… state-of-the-art colorful buildings furnished with beautiful paintings and sculptures ….These will bring more life and beauty to our cities and homes. Art does heal and it’s therapeutic. We could have art in hospitals not noisy TV in wards. Well, Women love to see well-lit cities. No traffic jams… footpaths and parks in every estate and play fields (green area). sports grounds. Community Halls to nurture talents. As for women, everyone is entitled to Clean water !” Do I need to add more? I don’t think so.

Would our cities be different? Would they look the same? share your thoughts.

Tupatane online #EveningWalkWithEuniceAyuma

Photo Credits: @Mashaa_john & @ellyojiambo