Because few countries know sacrifice and suffering as intimately as Somalia, its people have learned to survive against overwhelming odds. Technically, the country is still in a state of civil war, and making a living there is no easy feat. Local artists have found an unusual niche: unable to sell their works outright, they offer their talents to shops of all kinds. From general stores to dental clinics, their fronts explode with broad, exaggerated designs that make the most of every available square centimeter.
The use of art on storefronts also addresses another serious problem in Somalia: the high illiteracy rate. UNICEF does not have updated data, but the CIA Factbook estimates that literacy averages 37.8 percent, and would not exceed 26 percent among women. In other words, potential customers need to "see" what they are going to buy, even when it comes to basic items, and merchants must adapt to that.
One of the most emblematic cases is that of Muawiye Hussein Sidow, a muralist from Mogadishu who has been painting shops in the city since 1998. The art helps him support his wife, his three children, and his father, who was also a local artist. Sidow has more than a hundred works in shops and supermarkets in Mogadishu, and hopes to have the chance to take his work beyond the border. Would you like to see more? Check out what artists dedicated to cinema in Ghana do.
(Editor's note: All images belong to Feisal Omar, for Reuters)
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Source: Amusing Planet.
