Raul Alves da Silva Calane

Mozambique No Comments

Mozambican writer and essayist Raul Alves da Silva Calane was born in the city of Maputo on 20th October 1945. He grew up and studied in the city. Very early in his life he began and was involved with journalism and literature. He led the Gazeta Artes e Letras da revista Tempo (Gazette of Arts and Letters of the Time Magazine) in 1985, and was appointed in 1987, head of the editorial board of the national television, then called “Televisao Experiemental de Mocambique” (Experimental Television of Mozambique). He also became a founding member and board member of the Association of Mozambican Writers.
He earned a master’s degree in Portuguese Linguistics from the University of Porto, with a dissertation on “Pedagogia do léxico : as escolhas lexicais bantus, os neologismos luso-rongas e a sua função estilística e estético-nacionalista nas obras Xigubo e Karingana wa Karingana de José Craveirinha” (The Pedagogy of the lexicon: the Bantu lexical choices, the neologisms Luso-Ronga and its stylistic and aesthetic function in the works and Xigubo Karingana wa Karingana of Jose Craveirinha).
Calane da Silva is currently a lecturer at the Language Centre of Universidade Pedagogica (Pedagogical University) and the Director of the Centro Cultural Brasil-Moçambique (Cultural Centre Brasil-Mozambique), both in Maputo. He is also the author, editor of several essays, novels and anthologies, which include: Dos meninos da Malanga. Maputo, Cadernos Tempo, 1982 (Poetry); Xicandarinha na lenha do mundo. Maputo, Associação dos Escritores Moçambicanos, 1988. Colecção Karingana (Short Stories). Gotas de Sol. Maputo, Associação dos Escritores Moçambicanos, 2006 (novel); A Pedagogia do Léxico. O Estiloso Craveirinha. As escolhas leixicais bantus, os neologismos luso-rongas e a sua função estilística e estético-nacionalista nas obras Xigubo e Karingana wa Karingama. Maputo, Imprensa Universitária, 2002 (Thesis Publication); Nyembêtu ou as Cores da Lágrima. Lisboa. Texto Editores. 2008 (Novel).

Sininho Paco

Mozambique No Comments

Sininho Paco (Licínio Paco.) He was born in Maputo, Mozambique on August 23, 1977.  He embraced music, dance, theatre and reading from an early age and found himself in poetry and uses it as a window to tweak the universe. This turned him into a devourer of words and a poet of love and sorrow who embraces the world.

In 2003, along with friends and respected Mozambican musician Stewart Sukumah, he delved into the adventure of performing poetry with music, which culminated in the creation of the arts movement “SEM CRITICA” which, with the aim of promoting culture, created space for new poets and musicians. He began performing live at concerts, workshops with university and High School students in Maputo, and other spoken word events. He has participated at all SEM CRITICA performances, from 2003 to date.

In 2005 he won a creative writing contest organised by the Bank Millennium Bim (BCP). He has participated in the Festival “The Power of Voice” organised by the British Council. In 2006, he won the Honourable Mention at biennial TDM-Telecommunications of Mozambique Creative Writing Contest. Internationally he has participated in the Poetry Africa Festival in Durban, South Africa, the 1st poetry festival in Paris and the International Poetry Festival Lusofonia in Boston, Masachusetts.

Given his passion for photography and other visual arts, he was commissioned to translate the images into poetic space for the Photography and Poetry Exhibition called “Crossroads” of the Mozambican photographer Bocarro Hunguana, held in Geneva, Switzerland and as well as photographer Mauro Pinto. He also contributed to Deidre Watson photography exhibition “Tacteando Momentos”. In the field of painting, he participated in the exhibition “Africa en el alma” by Ruth Banon, held in Spain, Alicante, and sculpture exhibitions by Gonçalo Mabunda, in Mozambique and Paris. Currently, Licinio Paco (Paco Tinkerbell) participates in various collaborations with spoken word artists in Maputo and abroad. He is also working on the last bits and pieces to edit his first collection of poems The Drip of the Soul.

Tina Mucavele

Mozambique No Comments

Tina Mucavele is a young Mozambican woman, social activist, writer and a mother of one son. She lives in Maputo, Mozambique, after living in Johannesburg for most of her adolescence and early adulthood.

Her day job is with rural civil society movements, in an attempt to raise consciousness and provide skills for political participation, monitoring of state budgets and quality of social services. In the city, she works with poets and musicians, and is part of the SEM CRITICA MOVEMENT, a performance space created for free artistic expression.

Tina’s poems and short stories are in the editing process, and she hopes to publish a collection of short stories by the end of 2011. Her travels around the African continent, Europe and South America have turned her into a strong Pan-African Citizen, and she loves and advocates for an eclectic African Identity. Tina began seriously writing her poetry in English, given the strong influence of English speaking authors such as Ama Ata Aidoo, Ben Okri, Alice Walker, Ngugi Wa Thiongo amongst other African writers.

However, coming back to Mozambique forced her to learn the Portuguese language as a tool to tell the stories that follow her around like friendly ghosts!