Report of our last voyage to Benin

     First of all, pictures of and Cotonou : Congestion with motor bikes taxis (the zémi djans). Saleswomen of peppers and vegetables at the international market of Cotonou (Dantokpa). Sea movements: consequences: destruction of houses (nature takes again its rights). See the pictures on the french version: http://assosenami.over-blog.com/

     Our last voyage in Cotonou (economic capital of ), we worked on various projects that we presented to you: We signed an agreement contract with the local partner (a company of pieces of furniture) who engaged himself in a partnership to place at our disposal buildings and machines adequate with our project for the training ground project. This company of furniture exists since 1960 and then you will understand that buildings require some restorations. We consequently started by making an inventory of fixtures of the buildings and materials to draw up an exact estimatation. We make a point of putting the structure at the safety requirements, in order to allow the young people to work in the best conditions. Some pictures of this company and workshops......

 

     In this Beninese tour, we also met young artists with whom we were in contact who hoped that we set up this project in order them to be able to work under good conditions.

     I was impressed by their research of techniques for their realizations with few funding and materials they got. In particular mixture of sawdust with adhesive for the realization of art pictures in relief, which has a final metal aspect. Technique used by Eric Mètonou.

Realization on canvas from charcoal and gouache of the young Ladis painter. See the pictures on the french version: http://assosenami.over-blog.com/

     In august 2006, we met Louis, a young artist. He was a welder who recovered all types of metals from a dump in order to give them a heart, a life...

This year, this young man died because of cholera that he contracted following an unhappy badly wound he got when he was working on his art. He left then a child and a widow who's awaiting a second child.

Mask carried out from a mixture of wood resin, laterite and paper. This mixture finally gives a solid matter which looks like wood: artist Louis.

This young person Louis, for who I had a serious friendship feeling, had a ecological direction. He recovered carapaces of dead tortoises and transformed them into object of art. He was able to give a heart to object he found.

     Speaking about all these artists without evoking Justino de Medeiros(an collector impassioned by Arts...),  would be a lack of sympathy and respect for this character who work closed to young people and talented artists by lodging their works in his stores of Arts. We exceptionally visited his private collection of objects of art in the kingdom of Oyo and of Benin City : Splendid bronze statuettes, characters representatives of scenes slavery also made with bronze. All these objects are the vestiges of the history. BRONZES STATUETTES AND CHARACTERS. ORIGIN: KINGDOM OF OYO AND BENIN CITY . Owner: a Beninese collector. See the pictures on the french version: http://assosenami.over-blog.com/

     Some photographs of this famous collector, the front of its gallery of art.See the pictures on the french version: http://assosenami.over-blog.com/