Wednesday, April 14, 2010
TALENTED EXPO CRAFTER
If you live abroad, essentially outside of South Africa and have just stumbled onto my blog and intend to visit Cape Town during the Soccer World Cup, please do read further. When you reach South Africa, turn immediately left, continue for a hundred meters and you will find EXPO WP on your right hand side. EXPO WP is a tourist and traders market and has more than 300 Art and Craft stalls to tickle your fancy, with curios you have never ever seen before and neither dreamt about. This is my friend Blessing from Nematombo Stone Gallery who fashions soap stone into craft.
He can make anything from a bust to a animal and specializes in the "BIG FIVE". Why not commission him to make your bust? Here's a sample of his work.
Blessing is talented beyond compare and really deserves your admiration but even more so, your patronage, I stand in awe of him since he does all his carvings from memory which I'm almost certain you cant do. As for me I wont even try because I will certainly fail miserably. My big question is ... "Why does a man so talented have to struggle to make a living and live on the bread line?" Certainly there are curio shops owners world wide who would give their back teeth to even meet Blessing, so if you want me to hook you up, do your thing. Right now, I dont want to get into a controversy about exploitation and black empowerment, for that you can go here.
Blessing is just one of many talented sculptors, I have another friends Micheal who does exactly what Blessing can do and Neville but in exotic woods. He has dozens of finished Giraffes just waiting to be snapped up by you for a few measly dollars, pounds or euros. So, when you go South, pop in at 131 Bofors Circle Epping for a Art & Craft experience of your life. Earmark which one you going to take home with you amongst this selection.
EXPO PHOTO SHOOT
EXPO WP situated in Bofors Circle Epping in Cape Town South Africa has geared up to provide foreign tourists an amaizing treat. The Arts and Craft Market is huge, and indoor soccer is on the cards and various vendors has some really unique offerings, just one of which is photography. Photojani Photographic Studio is "The Photography Studio" at the EXPO WP, some people even call it the Photojenic Studio, which I'm sure is also OK by Jani. Photojani will have life-size cutouts of soccer star, next to whom you can stand and have a photo taken of yourself embrassing your favotite soccer star. This will certainly be a hit during the Soccer World Cup and Jani will be the Photographer in attendance.
Altus of the soapie "Sevende Laan" standing with the satff of EXPO WP.
She provides Professional service using both Professional Digital Photographic equipmment and Film based equipmment along with softboxes, umbrella flashes and Photoshop for masks and composites. She specialized in Wedding Photography and is also the Official Photographer to the Greek Embasy in Cape Town with Greeks coming from as far as Outdshoorn and Knysna to have their pics take by her for their passports.
Jani is one of the few female wedding photographer in a male dominated profession and has more than 25 years of photographic experience. This experience is protrayed by the fact that she is the official photographer at EXPO WP, having taken 100's of photos of shoppers pozeing with celibrities who have recently visited the EXPO WP. She was also commissioned to photograph all three SA presidents since the demise of apartheid, several portraits of "Madiba" Nelson Kolithlathla Mandela, Thabo Mbeki, Khalema Motlantle and Jacob Zuma along with various other politicians far too numerous to mention.
For these new borns, bring them along and capture the moment for prosterity or have enlargments made and framed by her Proffessional Framing Service. Mom's you owe it to yourself to visit Jani's Photographic Studio if just to browes through the albums of other babies in the lime light. On display to view are numerous Wedding Albums for those who intend to get married along with a video mmonitor playing highlights of some weddings. For those wanting to get into Movies and or Television commercials, Jani does portfolios and supplies you with the contact details of casting agencies who require your services.
Photojani stocks a full range of official paraphanalia amongst which are, Drivers Licence Application forms, Identity Documents applications forms and Passport application forms, for those persons too busy to get to the official offices to get them. Essentially she provides a "One Stop Photographic Shop." She also shoots 21st parties, kids birthday parties, company events and even private lingere cover girl shoots for the sexy ladies by appointment, so don't forget to bring bring your sexy Lingere - Thongs, Camisoles, Bras and Basques.
Monday, April 12, 2010
THE LADIES OF EXPO WP
Starting your own business is not easy, or rather it certainly isn't as easy as most people think it is. So, herewith, I pay homage and I salute as well as take my hat off to a few women whom I've recently met at EXPO WP who each run their own businesses. A short collectively description of them would be, go-getters, entrepeneurs, sole providers, mothers, wives, girlfriends and business women all of whom are doing it for themselves. They are extremely creative, very determined, highly motivated, filed with commitment, all wanting to make a difference in their lives and those of their loved ones.
Amongst them are Sumaya and Elizabeth both talented fashion clothing designers each sporting their own label with highly fashionable clothing for that exclusive lady shopper wanting to look different or unique. Sumaya isn't just a fashion designer but also a maths genius who provide maths classes to school kids in the boardroom of EXPO WP by appointment
Then there is Najma, Siyaam, Nancy and Shima all four of them excellent cooks, each having their own food store, each with delectable menus appealing to different tastes, and together they feed the EXPO WP's rainbow nation. Fatima, Antionette, and Mrs Langevelt each have their own stalls as well, a hairdresser, a bookshop and a biltong stand respectively, each one of them a vibrant business woman on the move, each with an attitude that will make a difference. Micarla, Claudia, Rhazia, Kay, Sadia, Belinda and Ruwadi are all therapists, some in beauty, some practicing alternative healing therapies and holistic healing, each with their own parlor providing a service to those who are ailed and in want of beauty, relaxation and calm. They provide services from head to toe -Indian head massage to Reflexology and other treatments far too numerous to mention. Treatments are not exclusively for women.
Ghalema and Jani are relatively unique, Ghalema is an artist and Jani is a photographer, she is one of the few female wedding photographer in a male dominated profession. She has more than 25 years of photographic experience and has her own studio at EXPO WP. Essentially she is the official photographer at EXPO WP, having taken 100's of photos of shoppers poseing with celebrities who have recently visited the EXPO WP. She was commissioned to photograph all three SA presidents since the demise of apartheid and on show in her studio, there are several portraits of "Madiba" Nelson Golithlathla Mandela, Thabo Mbeki, Kalima Motlantle and Jacob Zuma. She has also photographed numerous other politicians whose names I can't even remember neither pronounce. I have also watched Ghalema work, all original creations within record time using both water based or oil paints. You can commissions your own original painting from her, alternatively take art classes with her right at the EXPO WP.
Then there is Carla, Venice, Joy, Edwina, Farida, Sara, Armiena, Ina, Nadia, Viola, Cynthia, Sarah, Gawa, Nadia, Zubeida, Tsitsi, Dudu, Shaheeda, Muneeba, Nandiepah, Mariam, Wisaal, Sharon, Ruwayda, Luccille, Lyne, Shagoofa, Cine, Desre, Laeekah and Grace all of them business women. Their names may not mean much to you but they are amongst the "Ladies that makes EXPO WP tick". They are all set to provide each tourists with a pleasant shopping experience during the Soccer World Cup, from curios to souvenirs to food, shoes and clothing, artifacts, paintings and craft and many many items far too numerous to mention. They are responsible for the buzz, the atmosphere, the deals, they ply their trade especially for you, so it's within your interest to come meet with them, commission them, trade with them, do business with them, buy their wares, interact with them, eat from them, get to know them and perhaps you will develop the mindset to start your own business. Your first step to starting your own business is to come to the EXPO, the ladies are awaiting! After all, starting your own business may just be as easy as you thought it is.
EXPO WP OFFICIAL OPENING
The buildup to the Official Opening of EXPO WP was so cool and the hosted events attracted hoards of people like no other. There were celebrities the likes of Altus and Mandla -actors in a popular SA soap opera. The celebs were there on different days resulting in two separate photo shoots with loads of loyal fans lining up to have their photo taken by the official EXPO WP photographer Jani, owner of PhotoJani Photographic Studios whilst some came just to grab an autograph. Hundreds of people now have an official EXPO WP logo on their photographs as a momento and a reminder of the great time they had at EXPO WP.
Photographs courtesy of PhotoJani Photographic Studios at the EXPO stall C49
The Easter Weekend has come and has gone but the events and the fun we had at EXPO WP will last forever. Easter is all about Easter eggs and there was a Easter egg hunt inside the main hall for kids, it was awesome, with prizes for the best at solving the riddle to find the hidden Easter Eggs. There was also a kids colouring competition and face painting with an opportunity to have their painted faces imaged onto a ceramic mug or a sweater by Blush Media.
On stage, there were a number of music groups and the one that grabbed my fancy was a group playing Flamenco Music whilst the MC was giving away prizes galore. It is absolutely certain that all the kids where blown away by their prizes which ranged from a bicycle to a weekend getaway for 2, as well as dozens of meal vouchers from Burger World, Ming's Halal Foods, Moparks, Miller's Corn, Waffle Mania, Food Palace, Hassan's Fisheries and Fancy Nancy Restaurant.
The opening specials on meals, were very appropriate and really inexpensive. I treated myself to a platter of Crayfish Curry from Food Palace and 2 Lattes from Craving Coffee, all for under R50.00. Talking about coffee, Shaun from Craving Coffee makes a really mean cup of coffee and his white chocolate is to die for. On Monday Radio 796 was in attendance and the crowd that they pulled was huge, all the vendors were really busy attending to them, but at the food court they could hardly cope with the masses.
Photographs courtesy of PhotoJani Photographic Studios at the EXPO stall C49
This is really the ultimate Tourist stop and no tourist should leave Cape Town without at least visiting the craft stalls. At Kreations I witnessed some amaizing beadwork -a VOLVO logo made of beads. Shaheeda of Kreations can replicated a photo of yourself with beads and frame it. But the best to me was an elderly gentleman who owns Nematombo Stone Gallery who carved a giraffe from soapstone along with all its patches completely freehand. All I could say was WOW! to his shear raw talent. seriously, don't take my word for it, come view their creativity for yourself.
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