Dave Kobrenski in Artwork
Jul 24 2016 …
In the Malinké tradition of West Africa, the Dununba is the “dance of the strong men”. In a grueling and exuberant festival that can often last throughout the day, the Dununba dancers display their physical prowess while accompanied by the traditional djembe and dunun drums.
Here is the latest drawing from my series depicting Mandinka culture in West Africa: a dununba dancer hailing from the Kouroussa region of Guinea gets airborne!
This artwork is included in my book Drawing on Culture: An Artist’s West Africa Travelogue, which is available to purchase here.
Dununba Dancer in Flight
19x24” pencil on bristol by Dave Kobrenski
Detailed Views:
The Process:
Here’s a little bit of the drawing process!
Click any image to view larger, and use your right/left arrow keys to scroll through ‘em.
Drawing on Culture
An Artist’s West Africa Travelogue
An artistic journey of cultural discovery into the heart of West Africa.
“Dave Kobrenski is a gifted artist and musician, and a better anthropologist than many of the PhDs I know. Here is a fine text that depicts people as they are, illustrates their essence, and demonstrates the importance of appreciating, without appropriating, their lives and ways of being.”
— Katherine Donahue, Ph.D, Professor Emerita, Anthropology