Impenetrable Forest, Creative Solution

Art as hope: Conn teaching in Africa. Photograph by Judy Chambers.

You hear plenty these days about artists facing hard times. But former Seattle schoolteacher Marsha Conn and seven local artists are about to prove that art may be the key to prosperity for people whose poverty is hard to imagine. In January, Conn’s Volunteer Art Project flies to Uganda to help out the Batwa pygmies, who were portrayed as the bad guys in the movie Gorillas in the Mist.

From the Batwa point of view, the bad guys were the Western gorilla fans who helped make them homeless in the 1990s, hunkered down outside their ancient home in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. “The Batwa were kicked out of the forest because the government wanted to capitalize on tourists who go on gorilla treks,” says Conn. “Now the pygmies want to sell their crafts to tourists.”

“The Batwas’ skills were as hunter-gatherers,” says Conn. “Those skills became pretty useless since they got kicked out. They have no way of making a living. So there’s a lot of alcohol, AIDS, problems. They’re discriminated against – other Africans make fun of them.” They have to come up with a new livelihood fast. “We’ll be there a month, two teams of four in two settlements, with twenty-two people in each.”

The Batwa currently make the same generic baskets everybody hawks in Africa. The artists hope to help them craft something more authentic and salable – to create a Batwa brand.  “They receive bales of clothing from the U.S., so our group has discussed upcycling this fabric into wearables, containers or children’s toys,” says Lynn Di Nino, who makes wearable art. “This group is musical and loves to dance, so simple musical instruments may make sense. We might fashion gorilla-shaped souvenirs.” Conn is compiling never-published stories by elders for a possible book. “We want their creativity and interest to direct our process,” says Di Nino.

The pygmies have no electricity, hot water or English. “We can only communicate through either a translator or art,” says Conn. “I prefer art. It’s more fun. Art can change lives.” •