A Deep Personal Experience of Community in Africa

American art teacher, artist and Global Sojourns Giving Circle (GSGC) supporter Russell Ford touched down in Africa for the first time following his retirement. During his five-week stay, he became the first artist-in-residence at WayiWayi Gallery in Livingstone, Zambia. The Gallery was founded by GSGC Mentor, visual artist and art teacher Agness Buya Yombwe, together with her husband Lawrence Yombwe, himself a highly regarded Zambian painter.

Russell Ford with WayiWayi Gallery Co-Founder and GSGC Mentor, Agness Buya Yombwe

While there, Russell experienced first-hand the deep meaning of “community” within this African context. Travellers who share Russell’s attitude towards an African host country  ̶  “I simply am. You simply are. We are connected,” are themselves able to enjoy the same rich experience that he did. Others continue to evaluate those they meet along with their cultures using standards they are familiar with at home. Unlike them, Russell was able to experience, honor and fully participate in the community life around him.

“My relationship with GSGC is directly connected to the organization’s focus on the arts as a catalyst for changing those cultural norms in particular that do not respect gender equality.

Retired art teacher Russell Ford with students at WayiWayi Gallery in Livingstone, Zambia

“Having just ended a 25-year career in arts education, I know the value that exposure to the arts can have on expanding young minds to embrace and respect the old ways while reinventing and rethinking things anew. The arts give the mind a place to explore, invent and imagine. They also invite the experience of joy, power and enlightenment, rewards associated with ongoing engagement in the creative process.

“What I hoped for but did not necessarily expect was a window into the culture of Agness’s GSGC girls’ club, the Livingstone community and the family life which is the true fibre of African society. My acceptance by the Yombwe family and members of the Livingstone art community turned out to be Africa’s greatest gift to me.

“Every day I was working at the school, I experienced another form of connectedness. Whatever feelings I had that I was “the other”, the outsider, went away as the work became the thing that joined each of us together. I learned that in a community of great need, everything is shared, every resource used, every decision considered by all, every talent encouraged and appreciated. It was so different from the life I had known back home in America.

“GSGC has the overall vision to work to uplift women, and in so doing, lift all. Their approach is to provide girls with access to local mentors who begin by guiding them towards self-respect, and ultimately empower them.

“Reaching students by working through the arts makes perfect sense to me, as it opens the mind to think in new ways, accept new insights, and express core beliefs. The arts speak across cultural divides. They challenge outmoded thinking and provide a model for moving forward.

“This is the heart of my experience teaching in Africa. To be welcomed as part of a community without being born to it was the gift I received, the gift that is still with me, and the gift that I am tasked to share.”