When we were back in the states, Marc found a TV show on Netflix called "Tinga Tinga Tales". They are short, 12ish minute cartoons which tell traditional folk tales from Tanzania, like "Why the Giraffe has a long neck". Our kids fell in love with this show, and quite honestly, it's a kids show I can watch repeatedly without getting sick of. The cartoon animals are based off a type of art here in Tanzania, called Tinga Tinga.
This type of art is named after Edward Tingatinga, who it originated with. He trained 6 students to paint as he did, but was killed in 1972. Now, the six have grown to an estimated 500 Tinga Tinga artists in East Africa - many of whom are related to the tingatinga family, but not all. There is a cooporative in Dar where some of Tingatinga's relatives still paint, and where the best & most original paintings can be found. We love to visit and watch the artists at work. They use industrial paints, not typical artist paints, and they have to wait for each layer to dry before moving to the next part. You can walk outside & see paintings in various stages drying in the sun.
Beyond Tinga Tinga, there are other types of paintings at the markets, as well as hand carved sculptures out of ebony, called Makonde, hand made beaded necklaces, wall hangings made out of banana leaves, beautiful textiles - so much beauty and color!
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| This is Tingatinga - the Medina family (in who's home we're currently living) had these made & were on the kids door when we got here! So sweet! You can get Tingatinga in many sizes! |
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| This is NOT tingatinga, but another type of art we found in a shop. We got these three paintings for less than $20. |
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| I love Elephants!! |
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| hand carved nativity out of ebony |
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| baby Jesus from the nativity set |
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| walls & walls of art! |
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