A slow fuse burning

In a bookcase to the left are newspapers (the Saturday Nation has the headline Ray of Hope) and books that wittily include Matthew Kneale’s short stories Small Crimes in an Age of Abundance.

Through the window, beyond the neat white picket fence, can be seen absolute mayhem. People are engulfed by fire, a car is a burnt-out wreck, the neighbourhood is ablaze.

The second picture Tea and Toast 2, was made in February this year.

Superficially, it is the same room. But a careful look reveals a number of changes (rather like those paired pictures in children’s puzzle books where you are invited to spot the differences.)

Prosperity has arrived. There is now a tablecloth, for instance, and the old battered TV has been replaced by a smart plasma Sony with Playstation controls.

The toasted sandwich on the table looks as though it could be ham instead of jam and a book has been added to the shelves: Starting Your Own Business.

The headline in the Nation states: Kenya marches to a new dawn.

Clearly it is a time of confidence, of renewed certainty in a future worth investing in. The fuse is still slowly burning — and then comes the flash.

Look through the window and all is calm. Peace reigns. The burnt-out shell of the car is still there but it is being used as a display table by a vegetable seller.

Elsewhere people quietly go about their business beneath a clear sky, unafraid.

These are important pictures and deserve to find a home in a major Kenyan collection. They are incisive and relevant to the nation and must stay together.

Whoever does end up the owner, they can be confident they have bought a piece of Kenya’s history, as well as two very fine pictures, indeed.

Frank Whalley runs Lenga Juu, a fine arts and media consultancy based in Nairobi. Email:fwhalley@gmail.com