Swazi artists feed the mind, the soul, and their local community

16 August 2010 [MediaGlobal]: Four men are changing the global image of Swaziland, one artwork at a time. Jiggs Thorne, Noah Mdluli, Phuzu Mtshali, and Shadruck Masuku are determined to turn their nation, one of the smallest in Africa, into the most happening place on the continent. MediaGlobal talked to the House on Fire artists’ founder and spokesman about sculpture, music, patriotism, and artfully fighting poverty.

House on Fire is the brain-child of Jiggs Thorne, a formally-trained Swazi artist. Where others saw tourist craft markets Thorne saw undiscovered artists, untapped potential, and partners for his new venture. Concerned about how many talented young people in his country struggled to make a living and had no vehicle to display their work, Thorne took action.

“I started to work with road-side carvers that had a lot of humour and it played to my senses. At some point I realized that we needed to come together under the same roof. We needed to build a platform to inspire the arts in Swaziland and that was really the inspiration for designing the space,” Thorne explained. “Our history is really from roadside to gallery”.

Their gallery, an art-filled castle of impressive proportions, is what resident artists call their ‘fantasy-scape’ and has steadily become a national point of reference. The space was literally carved out of local materials in all kinds of shapes, figures and towers. It is a castle where colourful mosaics line the walls, impressive sculptures hang from the ceiling and sprout from the ground, and detail is infused in every inch. A magical marriage between Gaudi’s architecture, Picasso’s distorted shapes, and Southern African carving; surreal and comfortable, it also includes a stage and garden.

A far cry from traditional development projects, House on Fire is a local artist’s alliance. “We are a collaborative team in a real relationship because we need each other to succeed. We absolutely could not make it without each other,” the House on Fire group explained to MediaGlobal. In an anecdotal tone, Thorne recalled art buyers being confused by their inability to attribute a single author to their pieces. “But we cannot, because we work in synergy.”

The group’s work expands beyond running their fantasy gallery. Aside from creating sculpture, carving, and installation art, the group promote events, music performances, and are involved in community action. House on Fire is open day and night to both locals and visitors. “A really exiting part of this is the idea of a cultural meeting point. We call that the juncture of hum.” said Thorne.

Part of what the space does, by virtue of its location in rural Swazi, is challenge stereotypes. “You can be an artist in Swaziland, and artists can share their stories and create a new language that has relevance ” expanded Thorne.

The Swazi landscape is dominated by sugarcane plantations, plain fields, natural reserves, and small towns. Driving past the capital, Mbabane, it is hard to imagine that a gallery and cultural space of spectacular proportions hides at the next roadside exit.

The national economy is supported by tourism and agriculture, but poverty remains calamitous. Swaziland is one of the poorest countries in the world and faces increased challenges due to the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The country has the highest HIV prevalence rate worldwide and the United Nations estimates life expectancy to be 32.5 years of age, the lowest on the planet.

Not discouraged by the statistics and challenges, House on Fire and its artists became involved in artfully fighting poverty. “We already had House on Fire and the idea was to let that Fire spread though the walls and into a wider space. We set our sites high,” said Thorne.

“Our work is about accepting that you have a story to tell and a mandate to carry on your own message. House on Fire is a conscious platform, we recognize the need to develop the local arts, but we also act on the concerns that affect us all as Swazis.”

With this in mind, House on Fire created Bushfire, a music festival that brings musicians from all over Africa to Swaziland and raises funds to fight local poverty. This year’s Bushfire Festival had more than 19,000 visitors over three days of concerts. Profits benefit ‘Young Heroes’ of Swaziland, an independent organization that supports local AIDS orphans. The issue is pressing in a country of 1.5 million where an estimated 80,000 children have been left parentless due to the pandemic.

For critics who have difficulty imagining art as important in developing Swaziland, Thorne has a reply, “The idea of creation for creation’s sake is not very well understood here. But we have made this conscious decision to start specializing and cultivating a special language and sense of identity through our work.”

The numbers back up Thorne and the House on Fire group. The conservative estimate is that this year’s Bushfire Festival injected 6 million Rand into the Swazi economy.

The next Bushfire Festival is planned for 27-29 May, 2011. In the meantime, the House on Fire foursome have an upcoming art project. It involves carving whimsical armours and dressing their bodies as a league of Swazi Knights. Nothing could seem more appropriate.