Elders of Maasai community

Illustration of a Maasai elder. Elder men in Maasai community act as guardians of age-old cultural practices and mediators. Knowledge also comes in diverse forms, from the wisdom of an elder who understands the cycle of life and when rain will fall, respect and responsibility, safeguarding of the lineage, transfer of powers from one age set to the next and the transmission of indigenous knowledge, such as in relation to livestock rearing, conflict mAnnagement, legends, traditions and life skills, are some of the core values embedded in the power of a village elder.

Aayushi Saini is a workaholic fashion designer who freelances as a creative consultant, graphic designer and illustrator. She finds the human brain to be absolutely fascinating and bases most of her work on psychological disorders. Saini creates to achieve clarity of expression via her art. She readily switches mediums from fabric-leather, brushes-spray cans and garage waste to an iPencil. She hopes to further her skill set by being able to carve her own furniture one day and maybe flying a plane back home. She hopes to achieve transcendent artistic satisfaction in the spheres of avant-garde fashion. Amidst a world of dubious monotony, she finds her axis in truth.

The Wise Wall Project is an initiative of Project FUEL that aims to document, design and strengthen the wisdom of rural communities and marginalised villages using art and community outreach programmes. The arts lead the way to raise support for the challenges these villages face today like migration, quality education and access to basic amenities like water and roads.

In the third edition of the Wise Wall Project, we are collaborating with the culturally rich and one of the oldest communitys in the world, the Maasai community, in Arusha, Tanzania, in partnership with Vikram Solar Ltd., Vijana Inspiring Foundation, Lions Club of Dar es Salaam and Arusha City, and Google Arts and Culture. Along with building an on-ground community centre and museum for the community, we are bringing an exclusive insight into the life, lifestyle and learnings from this inspiring community.