SETH GLOBEPAINTER is traveling to Kenya with Martha Cooper and STADT.WAND.KUNST (2024)

In the spring of 2024, French street artist SETH GLOBEPAINTER traveled to Kenya to visit a charity project organized by the Mannheim-based association “Nyota,” together with Martha Cooper and the Stadt.Wand.Kunst curators Sören Gerhold and Alexander Krziwanie. During his stay in Lwala, western Kenya, SETH GLOBEPAINTER painted murals at the Nyota daycare center and the nearby Lwala Primary School. He was photographed by New York photography icon Martha Cooper, who became world-renowned primarily for her photographic documentation of American graffiti culture in the 1970s.

“Reconstruction,” SETH GLOBEPAINTER, 2024, Nyota Daycare Center, Lwala, Kenya; Photo © Alexander Krziwanie

Back in 2020, SETH GLOBEPAINTER was invited to Mannheim by the Alte Feuerwache as part of the Stadt.Wand.Kunst initiative, where he created the mural “L’École Buissonnière” at the Mozartschule in M6. While working on the project, Julien Malland, alias SETH, learned about the Mannheim-based organization Nyota e.V., which, among other things, runs a daycare center in West Kenya. 

“L’École Buissonnière”, SETH, 2020, M6, 12, 68161 Mannheim, Photo © Alexander Krziwanie

Even after his project in Mannheim, SETH remained in regular contact with the organizers of Stadt.Wand.Kunst and, through their connections, was invited to the Baladk Street Art Festival in Jordan. In the winter of 2023, SETH’s works from around the world were featured in a photo exhibition at the “Carrousel du Louvre” in Paris. The mural from Mannheim was also on display there. The group met again in Paris for the occasion, and the idea arose to launch a collaborative project in Kenya.

“Carrousel du Louvre,” Paris, 2023, Photos © Muath Isied, Sören Gerhold

The collaboration with SETH GLOBEPAINTER and Martha Cooper

There was great excitement when Martha Cooper agreed to accompany the project and document it through photography. Cooper, an American photojournalist, worked as a photographer for the New York Post and National Geographic during the 1970s and is particularly known for her documentation of the New York City graffiti scene of the 1970s and 1980s. In 1984, she and Henry Chalfant published their photographs of New York graffiti in the book “Subway Art,” which is still referred to as the graffiti bible today and had sold half a million copies by 2009. Martha Cooper and SETH had already worked together successfully in Haiti and Tahiti and were now accompanied by Sören Gerhold and Alexander Krziwanie to Lwala, where they were warmly welcomed by the Kenyan Nyota Team and the staff of the elementary school.

Lwala Primary School, Kenya; Photos © Martha Cooper

Street Art in Lwala, in western Kenya

Malland had already spent a great deal of time studying Luo culture and history in the run-up to the project in order to identify common themes and incorporate them into his murals, which he created in collaboration with Kenyan students. On the grounds of the Nyota Daycare Center, he created a mural titled “Reconstruction.” 

Lwala, Nyota Day Care Centre, Kenya; Photos © Martha Cooper

Lwala, Nyota Day Care Centre, Kenya; Photo © Martha Cooper

 During her stay in Kenya, Martha Cooper celebrated her 81st birthday together with SETH GLOBEPAINTER and the Nyota Team!

This was followed by several large and small-scale projects on the walls of the nearby Lwala Primary School. As part of a group effort, several classes were involved in the project and helped design the largest mural across from the school’s sports field. The students had previously drawn their dreams and hopes in the form of portrait silhouettes during class.

SETH GLOBEPAINTER “Naruka” (I Fly), first painting at Lwala Elementary School, Kenya; Photo © Alexander Krziwanie

Mural with SETH GLOBEPAINTER, Lwala Elementary School, Kenya; Photos © Valentine Otieno, Alexander Krziwanie

The students at Lwala have creatively expressed their dreams and hopes by drawing silhouette portraits that represent their visions for the future. Shelly Ann dreams of becoming a doctor, while Sarah hopes to become a teacher. Sindy Gloria wants to become a police officer, and Vivian aspires to a career as a soccer player.

Lwala Elementary School, Kenya; Photos © Valentine Otieno, Alexander Krziwanie

During their visit to Kenya, SETH GLOBEPAINTER and Martha Cooper continued their international collaboration. The French artist’s murals reflect the daily lives and dreams of the children in Lwala, and Cooper documented the creative process. The experienced photographer also took the opportunity to document the children playing with their homemade toys. Brooklyn Street Art has published an initial article on the subject. These images are reminiscent of the photos from her earlier publication “Street Play,” which captured images of children playing in 1970s New York.

Homemade "motorbikes". Martha Cooper. Kenya. from Brooklyn StreetArt on Vimeo.

Community Empowerment Through the Power of Art

The art event will be followed by a fundraising campaign to support the Mannheim-based organization Nyota e.V. in its work with local children and youth. For over 20 years, the organization has been dedicated to helping children and youth in the community become self-reliant. The Nyota daycare center was built by the organization and opened in 2008; it primarily takes in orphans and provides them with loving care. All members of the association are volunteers. The idea of combining and promoting Nyota’s social engagement with an art event and fostering further intercultural exchange has been around for several years. For example, the KUNSTKRAFT art exhibition took place at the Alte Feuerwache as early as 2010, with all proceeds going directly to the project in Kenya.

Now, SETH GLOBEPAINTER’s figurative children’s motifs are also enriching the lives of local preschoolers and schoolchildren

SETH GLOBEPAINTER “Valentine in the Wind” Lwala Elementary School, Kenya; Photo © Sören Gerhold

SETH GLOBEPAINTER “Colibri / Hummingbird” Lwala Elementary School, Kenya; Photo © Sören Gerhold

SETH GLOBEPAINTER, Lwala Elementary School, Kenya; Photo © Sören Gerhold

SETH GLOBEPAINTER 2024, Lwala Elementary School, Nyota Daycare Center, Kenya; Photos © Sören Gerhold, Alexander Krziwanie

For more information on the Nyota Project in Mannheim, the French artist Seth Globepainter, and the photographer Martha Cooper, please visit the following links:

The event was supported by MontanaCans, a partner of the Stadt.Wand.Kunst network.
Photos: Martha Cooper, Sören Gerhold, Valentine Otieno, Alexander Krziwanie