after
5
magazine
the
URBAN ISSUE
issue 3
ISSUE 03
APRIL 2012
founder & Editor - in - chief christina engell andersen editor bukonola ngobi EDITORIAL CO-ORDINATOR fawzia jamal PHOTOGRAPHERS anastasia nas, barbara minishi, ed&fray photography, gagan ubhi, jacob solomon, jim chuchu, melissa de blok, neha ghai, roy wachira, stephen ikeda, tristan johan stocker, wilson mwaniki cover photographer: jim chuchu location: sarakasi dome, staircase WEBSITE www.after5.co.ke
this online magazine features the work of submissions received by the after5 magazine team. after5’s contributors retain sole copyright to their featured work. If you would like to see your work featured in this publication, find out more on our website.
ANAstasia KRUMKACHEVA photographer / photo editor Blonde Gloss
THE URBAN ISSUE Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (the author of Purple Hibiscus) once said that; ‘the single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story.’ Nairobi is a city that is easy to take for granted, it is easy to put it in a box and write it off as ‘Nairobbery’, or to whinge and moan about its flaws and forget to celebrate the many patterns of existence that come together and make the city what it is. The danger of the dominance of the single story is the alternative realities that the story masks over and the perpetuation of misrepresentations that it promotes. The single story does not take into account the complexities and contradictions that make life interesting and confusing. The only way to stop the circulation of these stories is to present the multiple narratives that exist within the city. By communicating the palimpsest of lived and imagined experiences, by engaging with the city in new and exciting ways the city can be seen as the source of inspiration and vitality that it is. Nairobi is complex, intriguing and hybrid. It is difficult to define, and it is challenging to draw reductive and absolute conclusions of what type of city it is. As a result of this there is much to be explored and much to be discovered, many stories still to be told, but first one must choose to see the city through a kaleidoscope.
TRISTAN STOCKER software engineer / photographer / illustrator/ geek Untitled
GAGAN UBHI student Beauty Sweat
ed&Fray Photography photographers Nairobi
BARBARA MINISHI photographer POISA Urban Warrior
JACOB SOLOMON student / illustrator Goof Much
Mwan Tofau
ngalio uti
JIM CHUCHU
Sarakasi Dome
Holy Family Basilica Bell Tower
Sarakasi Dome Staircase
Posta Sacco Plaza
JI M CHUCHU Parliament Clock Tower
INTERVIEW please tell us a bit about jim chuchu? um. he looks very nerdy? what are you passionate about and how have your passions affected your photography ? i love all kinds of human expression. i think it’s wonderful that human beings have the (usually untapped) capacity to express themselves intensely and exuberantly about their failures and successes, their regrets and their loves. i like it most when my work lies somewhere in between concrete ideas and abstraction - i like making mood pieces that aren’t literal. a lot of your photography has an urban feel to it; how do you select your subject matter? i don’t think i select my subject matter - i go into most projects with only the barest sketches in mind. the actual work comes out very different. please tell us about your featured work? this was a series created for an exhibition called Mwangalio Tofauti (A Different Perspective?) - curated by the GoetheInsitut Nairobi and the National Museums of Kenya. The exhibition featured so many awesome photographers, and they asked me to make something that wasn’t too literal - this was the result: images of fragmented pieces of Nairobi City landmarks. in this series it is as if you are looking at the different buildings in the city through a kaleidoscope and this exercise has presented these buildings in a new light that in many ways reveals the hidden beauty of their form and shape. Is the city a major source of inspiration for you and how do you engage with it in a way that allows you to represent it in new and unexpected ways? yes, the city is a major source of inspiration. Nairobi is a complicated city, and everyone has their little pocket which they guard fiercely. All these pockets
Jim Chuchu Q&A somehow have to share the same space it’s all very chaotic, but it’s a great place to work with, because it’s very easy to create entirely new representations of it. the problem with living in a city for so long is that you cease to really look at it - so, I enjoyed finding hidden patterns and details in these buildings, and it’s always fun to ask people if they can identify the buildings. you are a member of Just A Band, how was the group formed? there’s two versions of the story - i prefer the version that’s on our website (http://www. just-a-band.com) - because it involves exotic locales and people. the dry version is that we met in university and were so bored that we thought forming a band would be the only way we’d stay alive. the music industry is also a visual industry, music and image go hand in hand; how has being a part of the band affected your point of view as a photographer? i think the combination of music and visuals is the most malleable tool for creating fabulous mood pieces. i really enjoy creating music videos because the sum is always greater than the parts - and there’s something about the process that i still don’t understand. i was part of the band before I became a photographer, so I don’t know what it feels like to not have music in the picture (dry pun somewhat intended). if you had to choose between a world without pictures or a world without music what would you choose and why? i’d rather have a world with no pictures, because music creates very vivid pictures in my head anyway. what can we expect to see from you in the near future? I’ve been in hibernation for about a year now, and I’m feeling excited about creating once more. expect light and sounds. what do you do “after 5” (after 5pm?) i wonder where the day went.
want to be a part of an after5 / russian standard photoshoot ? visit the after5 website for more details
excessive alcohol consumption is harmful to your health. not for sale to persons under the age of 18 years.
after
5
magazine
Tristan Johan Stocker software engineer / photographer / illustrator/ geek Untitled
WILSON MWANIKI photographer / director Untitled
ROY WACHIRA creative marketing consultant Rock Star !
BARBARA MINISHI photographer POISA Urban Warrior
stephen ikeda photographer Urban Pregnancy
TRISTAN STOCKER software engineer / photographer / illustrator/ geek Untitled
NEHA GHAI illustartor/ artist Sunny In October
MELISSA DE BLOK photographer Self Portrait
CONTRIBUTORS ANAstasia KRUMKACHEVA photographer / photo editor http://www.flickr.com/photos/seventh_dimension
WILSON MWANIKI photographer / director www.mwaniki.biz
BARBARA MINISHI photographer barbara@thebarbaraminishi.com ED&FRAY PHOTOGRAPHY photographers http://www.facebook.com/Ed.Fray GAGAN UBHI student gagan.ubhi@hotmail.com JACOB SOLOMON student soloisageek@gmail.com JIM CHUCHU photographer / member of just a band http://www.jimchuchu.com mELISSA DE BLOK photographer http://www.imagined-photography.com neHA GHAI illustrator / artist http://www.nehaghai.com ROY WACHIRA creative marketing consultant http://www.royking.me STEPHEN IKEDA photographer ikedas411@gmail.com TRISTAN JOHAN STOCKER software engineer / photographer / illustrator/ geek http://www.artrebelvision.com
ED FRAY photographer
ABOUT after5 is an online magazine for photographers, illustrators and graphic designers who reside in kenya. this publication focuses on giving space to creative people to share their point of view and promote their work. it features different artists with a diverse range of interests and perspectives within the visual arts. after5 hopes to create a space that inspires people to contribute their work and engage with others’ work. we live in a world plagued with troubles and challenges, a world where many are lost in the monotony of their nine-to-fives, this place in cyberspace is about escapism and reclamation. It’s about what you do when the day is over. it’s about the time you give to the passions you bury under a pile of chores and the dreams you are getting around to but never cross off your to-do-list. so the question is this; what is your after5 and do you want to share it with the rest of the world? the time is now and the space is here!
after
5
www.after5.co.ke
digital@ytpr.co.ke
magazine