Projects >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
ArtBakery's commitment to the growth of contemporary art through capacity building projects is now a well known fact.
Four directions are carefully followed in the inception and implimentation of these projects:

• A.I.R program: empowering visual artists through provision of space time and care. Here is an opportunity to foster their carreer through well thought and inovative creative endeavours in an environment that is conducive to efforts, experiment and excellence...(See Portfolio Program below)
• Training: though organised and planned is usually flexible, alternative and informal. It is provided by means of workshops, discussions, courses, studio and gallery visits... Artists, young critics and curators and the public derive enormous benefits from the numerous training sessions...
• Support: artists in need usually receive help from ArtBakery. This range from technical support to counselling and advice.Many people now come for free consultancy on art related projects.
• Interaction and networking: many outreach programs are carried out regulary and help bridge the gap between the people and art. ArtBakery has also been busy building a network with organisations and artists around the world.
• New technologies: ArtBakery is a pioneer in the use of new technologies for art production in Cameroon. The BAKERY, the production and postproduction unit has been working for a couple of years now and has been very useful for art production and workshops. In the future, it is hoped that it shall be turned into a full gear production unit for media related art works and projects.
  

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ArtBakery's projects
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Bessengue City
Prior to the opening of ArtBakery, an international project was carried out in a poor neighbourhood in Douala with artists Jesus Palomino(Spain), Hartanto(Indonesia), James Beckett(South Africa), Goddy Leye(Cameroon). Doual'art (local NGO) and the Development Committee of Bessengue (the neighbourhood) were the facilitators. The project, fully supported by the Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten, Amsterdam, lasted three weeks. Jesus Palomino and a team of youths built a beautiful shelter with found material. This "sculpture" brought light to the river shore on which it stood. James Beckett with a group of youths and famous local artists Santana and Joe Kessy, installed and managed a radio station whose range was 4km, which innuncdated Bessengue with fresh news from the hood, aired by youths from the block. The radio moved into the shelter to the delight of the artists and the public who could see live broadcasting. Hartanto created a virtual link between a womwn from Bessengue and another woman in Jakarta. The ladies exchanged on their lives regularly through email that was translated from French to English to Indonesian and the other way round.Goddy Leye made posters out of pictures of the people from Bessengue and pasted them in different areas.He co-directed a video of the project that was later on presented in the area.This was in October-November2002.
Mediatheque de Bonendale (library)
The idea was born at ArtBakery and developped rapidly into an autonomous project carried out partly by the inhabitants. The library project started in 2005 and now, a small unit with some 600 books is fully functional under close supervision by experienced librarian Mrs Christiane Ricard. Mrs Ricard trained a youth from Bonendale in the basics of librarianship and young Alexandre Epanya (see picture below, right) is now in charge of the bulk of the work. An organisation has been created in France in order to collect books for the library. :rs Catherine Gentil is the driving force behind the French branch. The queen of Bonendale is actively involved in the project as well as the headmaster of the public primary school of the village.Many children now enjoy some extra curricular quality reading thanks to the project Mediatheque de Bonendale.
Kem O Sida
Aids is still a terrible threat, especially in countries where more than half of the population is made of children. "Kem O Sida" means " No to Aids". The ongoing project started in 2005 and consists of shooting photos and videos wich are subsequently edited with the view to making a public presentation of the resulting slide show and movie. The photographed youngsters talk about Aids and reveal what they (should) know about the killer disease. At the same time they are confronted with how they present themselves and how they would like to be perceived.Video projections on large screens in the neighbourhood are one of the expected outcomes of the project. There shall be interconnections with the Bonendale TV project scheduled for July 2007. (See BTV below)
Holliday Workshops and Nursery
Since 2005 holliday workshops are organised during summer hollidays for children from Bonendale/Douala. Artists train children in drawing, painting, collage... The 2005 edition was done in collaboration with famous Ivorian painter Augustin Kassi and his Abidjan based centre "Centre Culturel et Artistique Augustin Kassi". Contacts have been made (with teachers and the Headmaster) and a program has been drawn up for the Nursery project which shall introduce visual arts in the local public primary school. ArtBakery is currently busy working on raising funds for the project.
BTV
Bonendale TV is a project wherein youths from Bonendale/Douala/Cameroon, guided by visual artists shall produce and broadcast TV content in the neighbourhood. First issue scheduled for July 2007.
Story telling workshop for kids
Held in March 2006, it taught children about the structure of fairy tales and also how to develop one owne's story from scratch. A tale dealing with environmental issues was born out of this workshop.It was directed by video artist Goddy Leye.
Art Daily
This long awaited project aims at training journalists and writers in art criticism.
Portfolio Program (A.I.R.)
Initially, the AIR program dubbed Portfolio Program was designed for young local artists in order to help them acquire basic tools for a smooth entry on the local art scene. These tools included means to develop a body of interesting works, building a professional Bio, presenting one's work to a larger audience...Graduates from art schools are familiar with these tools. But in a context where formal training, to say the least, is hardly available, this is a must. Portfolio's aims also include provision of space and support.This is vital in widening the scope of their understanding of art for young artists who usually work in their tiny rooms and store their art under the bed.
MasterClasses
The bulk of the training offered by ArtBakery is through Master Classes in which, a person is invited because of his/her expertise in a particular field, to share his/her knowledge aith less experienced a9in that field) artists. Latest MasterClasses include: MasterClass video 01 in collaboration with VideoPro, a Douala based professional video production unit, in 2004.
MasterClassPerformance 01 organised in Lome/Togo at Centre Culturel Denigba and directed by Basel-based visual artist Dunja Herzog, in 2006.
MasterClassPerformance 02 organised at ArtBakery in July-August 2006 with Dunja Herzog.
MasterClass Web01 organised in Douala in October 2006 and directed by Goddy Leye.The basics of web design were taught to visual artists.
MasterClass ArtHistory01, held at ArtBakery in March 2007 with Ruth Belinga Art Historian. This course is designed for artists with little knowledge of Art history.
Video Workshops for non professionals
A couple of outreach projects are carried out regularly, strenghtening the links with the community and at the same time gaining a wider audience for art.
Sonia Khurana gave the first video workshop to the community when she worked with the youths in early 2004. These youths were later on treated to another training in the working of the moving image. These were individual talk and discussions and analysis with Goddy leye(2005). Jean Ndoumbe (who worked as Sonia Khurana's assistant) and who is now a full TV director, trained the same youths in the basics of video shooting in November 2006. An upcoming session shall focus on video editing for dummies.It will still be directed by Jean Ndoumbe under close supervision by Goddy Leye.
Exit Tour
A tour of West African countries aimed at getting first hand contact and information on art scenes accross the continent and at strengthening ties with organisations and artists and also at buiding effective networks... http://exitour.netfirms.net

ArtBakery
Oasis de créativité since 2003

An animation workshop with children by Myriam THIES

Bessengue City project
2002






















Artist Jesus Palomino with the Chief of Bessengue, his colleagues and artist Ginette Daleu

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Bakery >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
A small production and post-production unit for audio-visual art projects.
Artists upon request, are given acces to cameras, computers, scanners... for the production of their art piece. In some cases, a technician is hired to solve technical problems that may arise in the process of art making. Conditions are stipulated by ArtBakery.


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