ArtBakery
Encyclopedia
ArtBakery is an art centre based in the village of Bonendale a few kilometers from Douala
and founded by Goddy Leye
. The centre offers trainings for emerging artists (Master Class), journalists (Art Daily) and residency programs for young artists (Portfolio). ArtBakery is specifically designed to technically support the production of multimedia artworks, video and digital art.
moves back to Cameroon
from the Netherlands. The centre is part of the Rijksakademie
International Network (RAIN), a network of artists who support contemporary cultural practices in their countries of origin. RAIN supports ArtBakery and its first project Bessengue City.
and organised in Bessengue Douala
in October 2002. The project involved the artists James Beckett
, Goddy Leye
, Hartanto, Jesus Palomino and the local community and it was produced with the support of Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten
of Amsterdam
and by the programme R.A.I.N. Rain Artists’ Initiative Network. James Beckett produces in the neighbourhood of Bessengue an experimental radio, with a range of one kilometre and the collaboration of a group of young people which made interviews and recordings. The radio was called Radio Bessengue City, or Dikalo la Bessengue (the messenger of Bessengue) becomes, as one listener said, “the radio of the people by the people”. Jesus Palomino creates a shelter using locally available materials. Goddy Leye takes pictures of twenty smiling people from the neighbourhood and makes some digital manipulation. The portraits are printed and arranged in random groups and positioned as posters in the estate. Produced from the same footage, the 6-minute video called Bouquet de Sourires (Bouquet of Smiles), is shown in the neighbourhood.
Hartanto builds the website of the project and he connects one person from Bessengue with another from Bandung
. The messages, written in French (Bessengue) and Indonesian (Bandung), are scanned and sent with their translation in both directions. News on everyday life and the local environment are exchanged on a daily basis.
, Cotonou
, Lomé
, Accra
, Ouagadougou
, Bamako
, Dakar
is a collaborative artistic project organised in 2006. In occasion of Dak'art 2006, seven artists (Ginette Daleu, Justine Gaga, Dunja Herzog, Lucfosther Diop, Achillekà Komguem, Alioum Moussa and Goddy Leye
) departed from Douala and reached Dakar using only public transportation. During the three-months journey, the artists visited galleries, artists and participated to workshops in Cotonou
, Lomé
, Accra
, Ouagadougou
, Bamako
, Dakar
.
Douala
Douala is the largest city in Cameroon and the capital of Cameroon's Littoral Province. Home to Cameroon's largest port and its major international airport, Douala International Airport, it is the commercial capital of the country...
and founded by Goddy Leye
Goddy Leye
Goddy Leye was a Cameroonian artist and intellectual.His work is focused on videos, installations, conceptual art and theoretical contributions. He is the founder of the art centre ArtBakery in Bonendale and he is the curator and promoter of site-specific art and international projects...
. The centre offers trainings for emerging artists (Master Class), journalists (Art Daily) and residency programs for young artists (Portfolio). ArtBakery is specifically designed to technically support the production of multimedia artworks, video and digital art.
History
ArtBakery is founded in 2002 after the artist Goddy LeyeGoddy Leye
Goddy Leye was a Cameroonian artist and intellectual.His work is focused on videos, installations, conceptual art and theoretical contributions. He is the founder of the art centre ArtBakery in Bonendale and he is the curator and promoter of site-specific art and international projects...
moves back to Cameroon
Cameroon
Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
from the Netherlands. The centre is part of the Rijksakademie
Rijksakademie
The Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten is a two-year residency for visual artists, based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.Funded by the Dutch government, residents are granted a stipend and are allotted a personal studio in the former military barracks building in which the Rijksakademie is housed...
International Network (RAIN), a network of artists who support contemporary cultural practices in their countries of origin. RAIN supports ArtBakery and its first project Bessengue City.
Bessengue City
Bessengue City is a project designed and coordinated by Goddy LeyeGoddy Leye
Goddy Leye was a Cameroonian artist and intellectual.His work is focused on videos, installations, conceptual art and theoretical contributions. He is the founder of the art centre ArtBakery in Bonendale and he is the curator and promoter of site-specific art and international projects...
and organised in Bessengue Douala
Douala
Douala is the largest city in Cameroon and the capital of Cameroon's Littoral Province. Home to Cameroon's largest port and its major international airport, Douala International Airport, it is the commercial capital of the country...
in October 2002. The project involved the artists James Beckett
James Beckett
James Beckett is a statistician, author, editor, and publisher. His publications are well known in the hobby of sports card collecting.Beckett earned a Ph.D. degree in statistics at Southern Methodist University in 1975 and then joined the faculty of Bowling Green State University as an Associate...
, Goddy Leye
Goddy Leye
Goddy Leye was a Cameroonian artist and intellectual.His work is focused on videos, installations, conceptual art and theoretical contributions. He is the founder of the art centre ArtBakery in Bonendale and he is the curator and promoter of site-specific art and international projects...
, Hartanto, Jesus Palomino and the local community and it was produced with the support of Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten
Rijksakademie
The Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten is a two-year residency for visual artists, based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.Funded by the Dutch government, residents are granted a stipend and are allotted a personal studio in the former military barracks building in which the Rijksakademie is housed...
of Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
and by the programme R.A.I.N. Rain Artists’ Initiative Network. James Beckett produces in the neighbourhood of Bessengue an experimental radio, with a range of one kilometre and the collaboration of a group of young people which made interviews and recordings. The radio was called Radio Bessengue City, or Dikalo la Bessengue (the messenger of Bessengue) becomes, as one listener said, “the radio of the people by the people”. Jesus Palomino creates a shelter using locally available materials. Goddy Leye takes pictures of twenty smiling people from the neighbourhood and makes some digital manipulation. The portraits are printed and arranged in random groups and positioned as posters in the estate. Produced from the same footage, the 6-minute video called Bouquet de Sourires (Bouquet of Smiles), is shown in the neighbourhood.
Hartanto builds the website of the project and he connects one person from Bessengue with another from Bandung
Bandung
Bandung is the capital of West Java province in Indonesia, and the country's third largest city, and 2nd largest metropolitan area in Indonesia, with a population of 7.4 million in 2007. Located 768 metres above sea level, approximately 140 km southeast of Jakarta, Bandung has cooler...
. The messages, written in French (Bessengue) and Indonesian (Bandung), are scanned and sent with their translation in both directions. News on everyday life and the local environment are exchanged on a daily basis.
Exit Tour
Exit Tour - DoualaDouala
Douala is the largest city in Cameroon and the capital of Cameroon's Littoral Province. Home to Cameroon's largest port and its major international airport, Douala International Airport, it is the commercial capital of the country...
, Cotonou
Cotonou
-Demographics:*1979: 320,348 *1992: 536,827 *2002: 665,100 *2005: 690,584 The main languages spoken in Cotonou include the Fon language, Aja language, Yoruba language and French.-Transport:...
, Lomé
Lomé
Lomé, with an estimated population of 737,751, is the capital and largest city of Togo. Located on the Gulf of Guinea, Lomé is the country's administrative and industrial center and its chief port. The city exports coffee, cocoa, copra, and palm kernels...
, Accra
Accra
Accra is the capital and largest city of Ghana, with an urban population of 1,658,937 according to the 2000 census. Accra is also the capital of the Greater Accra Region and of the Accra Metropolitan District, with which it is coterminous...
, Ouagadougou
Ouagadougou
Ouagadougou is the capital of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural and economic center of the nation. It is also the country's largest city, with a population of 1,475,223 . The city's name is often shortened to Ouaga. The inhabitants are called ouagalais...
, Bamako
Bamako
Bamako is the capital of Mali and its largest city with a population of 1.8 million . Currently, it is estimated to be the fastest growing city in Africa and sixth fastest in the world...
, Dakar
Dakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
is a collaborative artistic project organised in 2006. In occasion of Dak'art 2006, seven artists (Ginette Daleu, Justine Gaga, Dunja Herzog, Lucfosther Diop, Achillekà Komguem, Alioum Moussa and Goddy Leye
Goddy Leye
Goddy Leye was a Cameroonian artist and intellectual.His work is focused on videos, installations, conceptual art and theoretical contributions. He is the founder of the art centre ArtBakery in Bonendale and he is the curator and promoter of site-specific art and international projects...
) departed from Douala and reached Dakar using only public transportation. During the three-months journey, the artists visited galleries, artists and participated to workshops in Cotonou
Cotonou
-Demographics:*1979: 320,348 *1992: 536,827 *2002: 665,100 *2005: 690,584 The main languages spoken in Cotonou include the Fon language, Aja language, Yoruba language and French.-Transport:...
, Lomé
Lomé
Lomé, with an estimated population of 737,751, is the capital and largest city of Togo. Located on the Gulf of Guinea, Lomé is the country's administrative and industrial center and its chief port. The city exports coffee, cocoa, copra, and palm kernels...
, Accra
Accra
Accra is the capital and largest city of Ghana, with an urban population of 1,658,937 according to the 2000 census. Accra is also the capital of the Greater Accra Region and of the Accra Metropolitan District, with which it is coterminous...
, Ouagadougou
Ouagadougou
Ouagadougou is the capital of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural and economic center of the nation. It is also the country's largest city, with a population of 1,475,223 . The city's name is often shortened to Ouaga. The inhabitants are called ouagalais...
, Bamako
Bamako
Bamako is the capital of Mali and its largest city with a population of 1.8 million . Currently, it is estimated to be the fastest growing city in Africa and sixth fastest in the world...
, Dakar
Dakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
.
Further reading
- Douala in Translation. A view of the city and its creative transformative potentials, edited by doual'artDoual'artdoual'art is a no profit cultural organisation and art centre founded in 1991 in Douala, Cameroon and focussed on new urban practices of African cities....
and iStrike Foundation, Episode Publishers, Rotterdam, 2007. - Ars&Urbis, Dossier Ars&Urbis, "Africa e Mediterraneo", n. 50, 2005.