All posts filed under: Culture

Wombs and Bilums: Post-natal Care in Papua New Guinea 

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red rooms past, passed to room to room to me, this present present Wombs and pearls and stories like fleshy heirlooms to birth you- Soukeyna O. Women and Wombs: Tangible History The bilum bag is a frayed womb, a ropey stringy thing of not only dancing fibres, but legacies of strength and resilience, legacy intertwined like gentle whispers in its yarny midst. The bilum bag is a rite of passage, a story, an artefact and an heirloom carried by men and women alike throughout the course of their lives- a time capsule of their mother’s wisdom, their mother’s mother’s wisdom and of their ancestors and theirs and theirs. From the Tok Pisin language of Papua New Guinea and directly translated as ‘womb’, the bilum bag is not only the beginnings of life but also the woven bag crafted by expectant mothers in circles of womanhood whereby post birth, their sleeping babies are laid in, their bodies taking the familiar position they once held in the womb. The sack, traditionally woven from foraged natural fibres, is …

Occupied Alphabet

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I.I use google translate to convey English phrases in Arabic sometimesA client tells me she is depressedAnd her father has been having tremors since the war startedBut usually when he is doing typically stressful things like dealing with an angry customer orFixing that damn light in the bathroom that won’t stop flickering even though the bulb is for sure new I type in the word “somatic” to try and figure out how to explain the correlation between the brain and the bodyAnd my insides laugh mockinglyUsing english to explain the destruction that the they third person pronoun have caused I think we got the order wrong in grad schoolThe disease cannot also be the medicine My people do not understand healing as a clinical hourThis lexicon of pain is not a researched and deliberately punctuated abstract,it is a slangAnd its letters are clear on the back of my grandma’s hands who birthed nine babies and buried some tooand knew to sweep the floors when it got too much and knew to pet the cat when …

In Conversation: Artist Dalya Ismail on Impressionism, the Nostalgia of Sudanese Kinship and the Destiny of Names

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Dalya Ismail is the founder of creative studio D.I. Design and is an interior designer and artist of Sudanese origin residing in the UAE. Read below as we caught up with her on her formative years, lines of poetry she lives by and the sanguine years she spent in Sudan. Thanks for allowing us to interview you Dalya, at MZAB we love your art, and the culture you represent. Tell us more about your upbringing, what got you involved in artistic expression and turning points in your formative years that influenced your work  Thank you so much! My upbringing played a major role in my art and design journey having been exposed to many cultures and ways of being all my life. I was born in the US, spent my formative years in Sudan, then moved to Sultanate of Oman. I spent my late teen and adult life in different parts of Canada and currently reside in the UAE. Despite the heavy influence of my travels on my current artistic expression, it was those few …

Frontiers of a new artistry: Sarah Addouh on the changing creative scene in Morocco and architecture as a witness

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Join MZAB as we interview the visionary creative Sarah Addouh, a Moroccan photographer, architect and collage artist based in Casablanca. At MZAB we have been a fan of your work for quite a while. Tell us more about yourself, your heritage and what inspired you to embark on an artistic profession My name is Sarah Addouh, I am a Moroccan collage artist and architect based in Casablanca. Collage is a great way to unleash my creativity by combining old elements to create new ones. I have always been inspired by Moroccan popular culture which is by default very rich and unique due to its craftmanship, history, people and traditions. I first received a camera when I was in my 1st year at architecture school and it marked the beginning of my artistic journey. I was really excited about the idea of capturing moments of life in HD from an artistic point of view (moments with friends, family, in the streets, in the souk, in festivals). Additionally, I have always been inspired by my grandparents, as …

Mystics and Sages: Baiyinah Brookins on Tuareg Craftsmanship and the Ornamental Resiliency of a Nomadic People

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Join MZAB as we catch up with Baiyinah Brookins, founder of Mystics and Sages, an ethical sterling silver handcrafted jewellery brand which supports Tuareg artisans across Africa. Please tell us more about your formative years and what inspired your link to jewellery and the Tuareg. My formative years were shaped by the rich culture, history, spirituality, and entrepreneurship that surrounded me. Growing up the daughter of two entrepreneurs who founded an African Arts Boutique in the heart of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the United States, I was immersed in a world of craftsmanship, history, and culture.  The spark that ultimately ignited my journey to create the brand, Mystics and Sages, occurred when my father returned from a business trip to West Africa and gifted me a small half moon sterling silver Tuareg necklace. This necklace was a gateway to the world of the Tuareg people. I was intrigued by the beautiful geometric designs artfully etched into the silver and carefully crafted glass beads that encircled the necklace. I fell in love with the mystical lore and …

Bedouins, Bolsheviks and Babylon: What world cultures teach us in divesting from modern capitalism

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The Bolsheviks, popularising the strand of revolutionary Marxist-Leninist political thought that emerged in Russia during the early 20th believed in the complete political and economic liberation of the Russian working class and the overthrowing of the government to form a true socialist regime. Bolshevism founded and headed by Vladimir Lenin recognised the power of the working class (proletariat) in Russia and the underdevelopment of the ruling class (bourgeoise) and thus the potential for the working class to revolt and advance a classless system of political and economic egalitarianism for all people. Lenin who realised communism would not be immediately obtained in Russia, however foresaw the potential across Europe for the working class resistance and communist ideology to become successful, planning for communism to overtake Russia by degrees. The Bolshevik ideology in spite of its somewhat utopian theory had setbacks in praxis. One of them was the reality of nepotism, favouritism and corruption (also known as nomenklatura) which undermined the revolutionary communist ethos and led to the incapacitation and stagnation of socialist policy on the ground. …

In Conversation With Ahmad Ikhlas: On Dub Poetry, Faith and Travel

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“The first step is intention. Once that foundation is established then the balance will naturally follow.“ Read on as we catch up with Ahmad Ikhlas, an international dub poet, reggae and garage musician who draws on his Jamaican heritage and his British upbringing to form a unique style of music and poetry, used in praise of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). We are curious to know more about what led you to being a dub poet, reggae and garage artist? Could you tell us more about your developmental experience and the influences that shaped you to do what you do today?I grew up listening to reggae in it’s various forms Rock steady, ska, dancehall, lovers rock revival etc. I guess it’s part and parcel of growing up in a Caribbean household. This genre had a strong influence on my style and delivery as a Garage MC which came as second nature and something I unconsciously perceived. I’d perform weekly on Pirate Radio stations and in clubs. When I became serious about practising my faith I gradually …

The Politics Of Being A Chinese Jamaican: An Interview With Howard Sun

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Half of MZAB mag, Soraya met Howard whilst in a taxi in London. Read onwards to find out more about his his fascinating, life, heritage and culture Where are you from and what does your name mean? I was born in Jamaica in the year of the infamous hurricane Charlie but my ancestors are from the Pearl River Delta area in Guangdong Province of Southern China and they made their journey to the USA for a better life, during the goldrush in California in 1849.  My Surname SUN, in Chinese, means descendant. When did you move to London and what drew you to live here? I moved to London in 1978 having lived and studied Electronics in New York. Living in the USA was not for me and I returned to Jamaica after living for 7 years there. While working and doing some businesses, I met a girl from England, got married then decided to emigrate as things were getting quite dangerous. This coincided with a yearning to live in a more developed society which …

On Turkish Tea And Rumi: An interview With Döndü Kazankiran

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Where are you from and what does your name mean? I’m from the Netherlands but my family is from Turkey. My name means “Return/turn”. There is actually a funny story about it which I would like to share. In the olden days when a Mother gave birth to a lot of girls, they would name the last born girl “Döndü” so the next child will hopefully “turn” its gender and be a boy. This tradition and name is popular in the middle of Turkey called Anadolu (Anatolia).  What has brought you to London? In 2015 I came to London to do an internship. I met my husband and fell in love with him and when I finished studying in The Netherlands I moved to London so we could be together.   What do you love about your culture the most? Even though I was born and raised in the Netherlands, my big Turkish family has always taught me about the Turkish culture and manners. What I love the most is our warm hospitality. This can …

On Nature and Gardening With Sally Hallywill

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ON NATURE AND WILDLIFE  Sally Hallywill cares for the plants and wildlife at Lordship recreation ground in North London. Read on as we catch up on all things nature… I really like your theme of ‘sanctuary’, because it resonates so much with what I feel about the ‘outdoors’, and, at the moment, the specific places I choose to spend that time in. These are Lordship Rec, which I feel so fortunate to live near, and my shared house and land in France, where I started a small Orchard with a view to managing it organically both for the benefit of us humans who spend time there, but primarily for ‘nature’ to have a refuge from the extensive surrounding fields of industrial agriculture. This summer in particular I am also spending a lot more time with my sister and mother in south Norfolk, and enjoying the utter tranquility and wide open spaces around their village in the countryside. My main interest is not so much in ‘gardening’ – I sometimes describe myself as an ‘anti-gardener’, but in …