Central African Republic is yet another colonial-era country that came to independence followed by turmoil and civil war. The unrest continues to this day. I borrowed a book from the library, it was one of the few available on this country. The book is an excellent graphic novel written in French, by Didier Kassai and Marc Ellison, called a House without Windows. It tells the story of the children who lost their parents and live off the land, mostly in the brutal mining industry. Many are former child soldiers who are being reintroduced into society by world organizations who work in the country to help restore peace. When I google search Central African Republic, one particular type of image kept coming up, it was an elephant watering hole surrounded by enormous, seemingly impossibly tall trees. It was a tiny section of jungle preserved for tourists who could visit there and take pictures of the wildlife from a safe distance. The rest of the country seemed an arid desert interspersed with lush forests and rivers. The composition of the painting juxtaposes a jungle oasis, a hiding place of sorts, against a desolate and unwelcoming background. It sums up a county of paradoxes, a country of potential.
World Inspired Landscapes: Central African Republic, watercolour 6.5 x 7.5" rough press, January 2022 (No. 2967)
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