I have bougth a painting by Tanzanian artist Sky Issa made in 1975, which i like very much. I tried to find out more about him. Not easy - but I managed to find one image online apart from my own:
http://www.tingatinga-berlin.de/image_details.php?image=V+07+Issa&story .
Sky Issa was Mwera by tribe. He has learned to paint by watching E.S.Tingatinga. He died around 1989. He lived in Msasani in Dar es Salaam but later he moved to Kawe, north of the city. He had struggled as a painter though he was very skilled. So he stopped to paint even though his fellow painters tried to convince him to continue.
His wife and one child left him too. It is said they moved to south Tanzania, village of Nachingwea.
He was introduced to Tinga Tinga art by Simon Mpata whom he met at a restaurant, probably in Msasani. At that time Sky Issa was a gardener.
Sky Issa was born in Nachingwea. He came to Dar es Salaam to follow his sister.
Some people doubted that Sky Issa was a painter. The reason is that he was always clean. He never spilled a color and even when painting he was dressed in a very decent way. He was often painting at home. It fueled the suspicion that he was not painting.
Probably Sky Issa´s wife and a child still lives in Nachingwea in south Tanzania.
Source: www.afrum.com
I would very much like to see more of his pictures and possibly a portrait of him. Also i would like to know if Tanzania as a state is making any effort to preserve this wonderfull part of their history.
( i have been told that they have very little interest in it! )
UPDATE 4/10-2015: Since i first published this ( four years ago) i have learned of one more person who take an interest in Sky Issa so much that he now owns 3 of his paintings. that i will show here without permission, hoping it will be obtained later.
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