Art suffers as traditional crafts get the China treatment

FOR many people, tourists especially, there is something enchanting about handcrafted curios.

Imagination supplies the footage of an old man sitting in the sun, painstakingly carving wood, turning logs into delightful animals; giraffe, rhinos and the like, each one a masterpiece, testament to patience and talent.

There are the women, deep in the Zululand bush, weaving baskets and mats with reeds collected from the rivers and vleis, or making jewellery, bracelets, necklaces and other finery.

Beautifully turned bowls, glistening ebony. Tablecloths, hand painted in African colours, ochre, black and mustard, evocative of African earth and baking sun.

So with these slightly romanticised images of African crafts a visit to the Centenary Centre in iMfolosi Game Reserve was anticipated with enthusiasm, and it was everything wished for. Piles of beautiful things, vivid colours, quirky designs.

But the cynic (there’s always a cynic isn’t there) points out that the much admired bowl is a little too perfectly turned, the giraffe sculpture too polished, too static, lacking the nuances of something made by hand.

That gorgeous tablecloth – the little elephants painted on it look more Asian than African. Why would someone living in iMfolozi paint Asian elephants when surrounded by our own giants?

Gullible me takes to chastising the cynic and implores an effort to be more appreciative of people’s hard work.

That is until our little travelling party arrives on the jetty for a boat ride on Lake St Lucia. There on the grass lawn adjacent to the parking lot is a man selling, yes, you guessed it, the same giraffes that had enchanted me at the tourist site in iMfolozi, the same trio of wooden women wearing doeks of Shweshwe, the same bracelets, well, the same everything.

The cynic purses his lips and looks at me. I’m feeling stung for being duped, for believing that the art of craft making has been passed down through the generations and is cherished by people who can use these skills to make a living. I should have taken note of the name of the craft pavilion at the Centenary Centre – Vulamehlo – open your eyes. Indeed.

The vast majority of these curios and souvenirs found at tourist sites along the length and breadth of our country, even on Durban beachfront, are probably not made in Africa at all, and are in all likelihood, according to a bit of research, made in China.

So where would one find a bona fide, genuine piece of African airport art? Away from the commercial tourist sites and centres, at the little makeshift stalls on the side of the road selling fruit and clay pots, where the artist would be busy creating another one-of-a-kind piece of heritage.

Or at places such as the craft shop at the Hillcrest Aids Centre Trust, where the merchandise is hand produced by the people of the Valley of 1000 Hills.

Much of the made-in-China artefacts are truly beautiful items and provide a living for the traders who sell these wares. But tourists need to understand that the treasures they are buying are not African.