GLOBETROTTERS AUGUST CHALLENGE

Street Art Found in the Desert

Namibia is showing off again

While all the other editors were overly excited about this month’s topic, I wasn’t even sure if I’d manage to fill one article with pictures and content. But after reading Jillian’s article on street art she captured from all around the world, I began to think that after all, I might have some pictures and stories to tell. The topic is a lot broader than I initially thought.

Reading a few lines from my diary back when I first visited Namibia, a few ideas arose and I quickly had to scroll through folders of pictures. And there we go. Over all these years living in Namibia, I did find some street art in the desert country after all. Even if it wasn’t captured with the intention of having 'art' in front of my eyes.

The first batch of pictures comes from a unique town located in the middle of the Namib desert. Solitaire is funnily famous for its apple pie, don’t ask me why but other than that, it is located where two major desert highways meet. One runs from North to South, the other one from West to East.

And if I talk about desert highways, I do not mean tarred roads. Those are two very sandy and dusty gravel roads that go straight for miles on end. During the high season, they are filled with tourists and their rental cars driving way too fast on the corrugated stretches of road but during the rest of the year, you might be as well left without help if running into a problem with the car.

Solitaire has a gas station which is the main reason people stop here (and to eat some of the infamous apple pie). There isn’t another fuel station for a few hundred kilometers to the North and also not to the East. So yeah, people do fuel up here regardless. If the prices are high or not. One must get fuel.

According to the signboard, which is created artistically, the population has been rising but I don’t know if that number includes the daily visitors as I’ve never seen the homes or places where 90 people are supposed to live.

However, there is one more thing this town alias rest stop is famous for and those are these old and aged but colorful and fascinating bodies of old vehicles.

They aren’t just left on the side of the road as they were abandoned or broken down, they are thoughtfully placed and create a beautiful street art scene.

The kind of street art one could imagine fitting into a desert town.

And so, whenever stopping at Solitaire, you will see a bunch of tourists taking pictures of or with these old cars. The scene is a photographer’s dream and I have seen some of these artworks in exhibitions around the country.

Cacti are growing behind, next and out of the vehicles and one should be careful when stepping too close to these objects. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the town's inhabitants are living inside of them.

Snakes, spiders and scorpions.

Oh and what would a graveyard of old cars be without a fuel station? This might have been the first fuel pump stationed in Solitaire.

Not even a hundred kilometers deeper into the desert and I stumbled into this very interesting road sign. I know, it’s just a signboard but with the writing below, it makes many laugh. And this sign is certainly carrying a message, so I’ll take it as some kind of street art.

Leaving the sand of the dunes behind and traveling North into Damaraland one will encounter few and far in between of these shacks. They appear to be in the middle of nowhere but usually, there is a small local village somewhere nearby.

This is where the locals are selling art such as bags, rocks and other souvenirs. One of the stalls I drove past was created using recycled Coke cans. The cans were the walls and roof of the shack. Unfortunately, while I am certain I captured it at least once, I do not find an image of it.

Leaving the desert part of the country behind, I walked across a pathway with these beautiful words. Just reading them made me smile.

And looking up from the path, I stumbled upon these two sculptures. A warthog and a giraffe feeding on the leaves of a tree. Beautiful pieces of artwork, aren't they?

And while we're at it. Sharing positive messages and encouraging words out into the world, this sign can't be ignored.

My last two pictures take us back South, almost as far South as the South African border with Namibia. In front of a roadside shop and a small farm, this beautiful sculpture together with the clock were bringing joy to my eyes.

The sun is burning down brutally in this part of the country and dust rises each time a car drives across the corrugated gravel road, and yet, if you decide to stop here, you might see zebras walking by or find an antelope hiding in the shade.

Closing with my last piece found just a few kilometers further down the road, I hope you remember to slow down and enjoy the landscape and the people.

This is what travel is about.

This is a writing prompt response to Globetrotters’ monthly challenge. Our topic for August is ‘street art’. You can read about the submission guidelines in the link below:

The editors have kicked off the challenge with a series of interesting photo essays:

Jillian Amatt with “Street Art Can Be Found No Matter Where You Look”

Adrienne Beaumont with “I Became Interested in Street Art Through My Daughter”

Michele Maize with “2020 Brought Los Angeles Street Artists Out to Spread Love Not Hate”

And here are other participants and their submissions:

Erie Astin with “Art on Wild Montana Streets”

Aaron Paulson with “Street Art Challenge: Toronto”

Scott-Ryan Abt with “The Defiance of Street Art in San Juan, Puerto Rico”

Join my email list here if you would like to read more travel essays.

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