An emerging art
Painting and sculpture are just beginning to be emulated in Djibouti, as the Muslim religion forbids the representation of men and animals.
Djiboutian artists are above all inspired by daily life and nomadic life: two sources of inspiration that are as immediate as they are inexhaustible. Often very colorful, the paintings of local artists are increasingly popular, especially with tourists. Among the painters, let's mention Khalil Massori, God Djama Elmi, Mouhoumed Mohamed Houssein, Nawal Awad, Fouad Daoud Youssouf, Sid Ali, Rifki, Omar Moubine, Oubah Hamod Hassan... Less numerous, the sculptors are inspired by nomadic craftsmen or villagers who make figurines, an activity reserved for men.
The country has no museum for the moment, so visitors interested in local art must approach the artists directly. The paintings are exhibited in the homes of the painters, in private homes, and are also sometimes exhibited at the French Institute in Djibouti.Djama Elmi God
The Djiboutian painter was born in 1948 in the plain of Gerissa (Somaliland) and died in 1996 in Djibouti. His father noticed his gift for sculpture at an early age. From the age of 5, he worked skilfully with clay, which earned him a place at school in Ethiopia. Later, when he moved to Mogadishu, the Somali government granted him a scholarship that allowed him to fly to Italy. He decided to study at the Academy of Fine Arts in Ravenna. Back in Somalia, he joined the Ministry of Culture and moved to Djibouti in 1977. He became a teacher in a high school in the capital, a position he held until the end of his life. After starting out as a sculptor, he preferred painting as a means of expression. In the meantime, the man who defied authority went through a difficult period politically. However, he exhibited his paintings at the UN and created the two sculpted lions that guard the entrance to the Djibouti headquarters. His graphic talents and his sense of colour led him to create logos, book illustrations, stamps and caricatures for the daily newspaper La Nation.
For years, he shared his analysis of Djiboutian society through Samireh, his recurring character, an urbanized nomad. In his paintings, he liked to depict common people caught in their daily lives like a water carrier. His artist name, God, refers to the black mamba. The first art gallery opened in Djibouti will pay tribute to him by taking his name. The God Gallery is the place to be in Djibouti's cultural life. He remains to this day the major figure of Djiboutian art, the only one to have achieved international recognition and to have lived from his art The artist with the magic brush" remains a model for the younger generation.Rifki Abdoulkader Bamakhrama
Rifki Abdoulkader Bamakhrama came to painting through politics. Born in Djibouti in 1954, he was offered the supervision of the first Ministry of Culture of Djibouti, from 1999 to 2005. During his tenure, he worked to develop art and support the status of artists. Thus, he founded the first art gallery in Djibouti: the God Gallery. Its objective is to make known the painters and to offer a favourable ground to the emergence of new talents. His desire to build a place for the art scene also led to the creation of the Djibouti Institute of Arts in 2004. Focused more on training and professionalization of the arts, the institute includes teaching of music, dramatic and visual arts. He also initiated the Djibouti Theatre Festival. Until the end of his life, Rifki Abdoulkader Bamakhrama welcomed visitors to his studio. He presented his paintings while recounting his struggle for culture. His paintings appear as an open door to his imagination. His forms and characters with warm tones flow instinctively on the canvas, while his faces are shrouded in mystery.
Women painters
Nawal Awad's career is exceptional. Professional painter, this lady is a pioneer in her country. After studying at the School of Fine Arts in Belgium, she became a teacher of plastic arts at the CFPEN in Djibouti. She invested herself in artistic education for the youngest, multiplying the projects of artistic awakening workshops.
Her first exhibition took place in 1998 at the Sheraton Hotel. She revealed a series of paintings on themes that express her artistic commitment but also her fight for women's rights. Through her paintings, she raises awareness of the setbacks of the traditional status of women with subjects such as genital mutilation. Her stance was supported from the beginning by the daily newspaper La Nation
. She then accumulated recognition. The first influential Djiboutian woman continues to teach and work on the theme of the female body. The new generation is carried by Oubah Hamod Hassan. A Djiboutian woman painter, she exercises her talent in the fields of plastic arts, decoration, drawing, tattoos and gastronomy. In 2019, she is exhibiting a series of painted portraits of great sensitivity that are not without evoking pointillism.Initiatives in favour of the arts
In line with Rifki Abdoulkader Bamakhrama, the tone is to raise awareness of artistic practices, especially in schools. In 2018, UNICEF organized a 4-day introductory photography workshop open to children of all backgrounds. The art of photography being extremely poorly represented in Djibouti, the young generation was able to discover a means of expression likely to carry its word. It is to be hoped that the initiative has aroused vocations. Last year, the French high school in Djibouti invited its students to collaborate in the project "graffiti, decoration of the high school walls". The teenagers embellished their environment by combining their skills and imagination.
