CHARLES WATSON
NEW PERSPECTIVES
An exhibition of new paintings by landscape artist Charles Watson with all proceeds going to Ripple Africa, a charity working in Malawi. The aim of Ripple Africa has always been to inspire local communities to become the change and the solution to the issues facing these communities.
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Charles Watson fondly recalls his childhood in Malawi, describing it as a wonderful time marked by the freedom to explore, vibrant market colours, diverse wildlife, and the warmth of the people. The memories include carefree holidays by Lake Malawi, appreciating its unique Cichlids, and enjoying Chambo fish.
After travelling and working globally, Charles now lives and paints by the River Exe estuary in Devon. Despite the location change, he remains connected to Malawi and is aware of the environmental challenges the country faces, including population growth, pollution, and overfishing, affecting Lake Malawi's eco-balance. Notably, the decline in mature Chambo is a concern.
Charles supports Ripple Africa's efforts to restore sustainable fishing practices. The charity focuses on changing regulations, like minimum net grill sizes, to gradually recover fish stocks, benefiting biodiversity, local economies, and community health. Charles has committed his artistic pursuits to raise awareness and funds for Ripple Africa's mission.
In a broader artistic context, Charles's recent works, including 'Arcadia' and 'Help!,' delve into the symbolic representation of Baobabs in Southern Africa, particularly in Malawi, and Olive trees in Greece. These trees serve as powerful metaphors for the broader environmental crisis, illustrating the interconnectedness of ecosystems across diverse regions. The choice of these symbols in his artwork reflects Charles's commitment to raising environmental awareness and promoting sustainability, creating a thematic link between the specific cause of conserving fish stocks and the larger challenges faced by ecosystems globally.
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Founded in 2003 by Geoff and Liz Furber who both share a passion for Africa, especially northern Malawi. During one fateful trip (and some very questionable map reading!) to Malawi, they found their way to the village of Mwaya and fell in love with the area. They decided to buy a property there and, with the combination of their skills and a strong passion for Africa, Ripple Africa was born.
Ripple Africa’s Education and Healthcare projects are based around the rural village of Mwaya in the Nkhata Bay District of Malawi, and our large-scale Environment projects now span six Districts. The charity’s overriding aim is to empower communities so they themselves can achieve a sustainable future – we strongly believe that it is the local people who are the solution to many of the challenges they face. We do many things, as many different issues are closely linked. Everything Ripple Africa does is in response to the local communities’ needs. By enabling the local communities, great things can happen and they are all life-changing. Ripple Africa’s belief is “Providing a hand UP and not a handout,” and that philosophy has been central to the charity’s ideology for nearly two decades.
Although the charity began with humble roots, employing just a handful of Malawian staff and welcoming a few overseas volunteers to help, it wasn’t long before the needs of the community meant that Ripple Africa began to expand, growing one project at a time into the charity it is now.
Today, the charity has over 13,000 people working on Ripple Africa projects on the ground and has a tremendous impact on the local communities. However, despite the charity’s significant achievements and ambitious scope, Ripple Africa is still small enough that the charity remains home-grown and grassroots-based, and we intend to keep it that way.
Ripple Africa is very different in its approach to the local community. Ripple Africa believes in empowering local people to manage the projects which affect their community, and the charity only employs Malawian nationals in Malawi (no paid Westerners who could take a local job). The charity is big enough that it is making a huge difference in Malawi, but small enough that it remains effective, efficient, and fun. Above all, Ripple Africa is different because everyone involved is so passionate about what the charity is doing, and it is this great enjoyment and enthusiasm which makes Ripple Africa the charity that it is.
Ripple Africa is committed to all projects in the long term; everything we do is led by the local people, operating at a grassroots level, involving the community in all aspects of its activity, and helping to ensure that the local communities have a positive, more prosperous and happy future in an amazing country.
