WHAT'S GOING @N?: Jazz Cafe Festival

VENUE: BURGESS PARK, LONDON, SUNDAY 15TH SEPTEMBER

Admission Tickets

For 35 years, Jazz Cafe has sat at the heart of London’s vibrant music scene and for the first time ever, they venture from their Camden home for a debut festival at the sun-drenched fields of Burgess Park.

There will be four unique stage experiences to discover, all carrying the renowned Jazz Cafe energy. With a lineup of Jazz Cafe’s most cherished artists, a full day of music, a range of food trucks, local favourites and a selection of crafted cocktails and refreshments served at specially curated bars.

For those seeking an elevated experience, VIP tickets are available offering exclusive queue jump and VIP lounge where you can access the premium bar with bespoke drink selections, a designated chill out space, private viewing area of the stage close to the artists and luxury toilet access.

More info: Jazz Cafe

?UESTIONS: Yeabtsega Getachew - Digital Gold

Tribal Futurist, creating imagery that is rich in digital gold.

Please share with us your practice, passions and ambitions...

I love creating art. It hasn't been half of a decade since I started out as a digital artist and have been lucky to be part of some exciting projects. Learning to practice every day has sparked an interest and the passion I needed to create.

The most daunting aspect was to find myself doing work with no one around who could give me an opinion. I hadn’t realized that being an illustrator could be such a lonely job.

Although I consider myself very lucky, in that, by the time I left college, I had already a mentor that encouraged and helped me to navigate through my journey. I am very passionate about the work I do, art gives me a space to express and simply tell a story in a digital format making it easier for me to be part of the global conversation.

It challenges me to see far out into the future and do my bit to increase the visibility of African art especially in the digital space.

What is your philosophy and personal feelings behind your work?

Life appears complex yet is very simple. I have developed a style that is very detailed and looks complicated to make, but a second look at it, might give you the impression that perhaps it's a very simple process after all.

Creating art daily and working with others has increased my insight. As a result, it has made my process of creating easier and more efficient. I believe that once you gain more experience and use what you know, life gets a little bit easier every day.

What story does your Art wish to tell?

I want to convey the cultures I was brought in, I was raised in Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia where many of the nation’s and the continent’s cultures converge.

The colour pallets, patterns and textures you find in the whole continent of Africa is what inspires me to create. Showing these cultures in the form of portraiture and illustrations is my goal whenever I create a piece.

Representation is powerful in your work, what does this mean to you?

Having the skills and using that to depict something you love is very rewarding and self-fulfilling. I think that regardless of whether you are an artist or not, you have the responsibility to use your knowledge to represent and reflect your family, nation and continent and the life around you in any way you can.

All images courtesy of Yeabtsega Getachew

Instagram: @yabi_7

Facebook: yeabtsega

?UESTIONS: Langz Raphael - Ancestral Home

Artist, filmmaker and activist - Langz Raphael inherits her superpowers from the ancestors.

A beautiful mix of spiritual heritage, customs and culture. Langz's art provides an ancestral home for the lessons and beauty of those before us.

Can you share with us your ambitions?

Creating to me is like breathing, I need it to survive. I always create with the goal in mind that I just want to share a piece of my heart through my art.

Whatever it may be I literally just create because I have a story to share, or my frustrations as an artist. At the end of the day my art is my voice so I create what I feel.

How important is ancestry to you and its influence in your work?

As a Black creative I feel obligated to share my beliefs, traditions and culture through my art. If we don't know where we come from or who we are, then we don't know where we are going.

I believe I am my ancestors wildest dream, I am on earth for a purpose and my art is my gift that I can use as a form of communication. It is very important to me that I carry those who came before me, as well as those who are like me.

What messages do you wish to express?

I have a lot of things to say, but my message is and always will be "if we do not know where we are coming from, than we do not know where we are going." It is very important to be deeply rooted in who you are and also understand your gift and purpose. We are placed on earth for a reason, to love and to unite.

Is there a tradition that has influenced your journey?

I am influenced mostly by the life that my ancestors lived from their values to their traditions to their ancestral powers. I am influenced by what's going on in, and around Africa.

I myself am not so much of a fan of modernization. I like to think of myself as an old soul. I like to think that my work comes from the past, lives in the presence and will forever be a representation of an African.

All images courtesy of Langz Raphael

Instagram: @langz_raphael