The Adventures of Mamma Gogo
Mamma Gogo is the name of the Series III landrover that came to me by chance … or was it providence ?
It is a story of love and adventure, art and creativity. It is the discovery of heritage and the expression of culture. It is a story of chance, pulling back the curtain to reveal the wonderment of life itself. It is a story of dreams and authentic foolishness. It is the story of a very special landrover, the story of Mamma Gogo.
The very first time I met Mamma Gogo was on the dusty plains of Afrika Burn, Tankwa Town. It was a meeting of chance in the early hours of the desert morning, magically lit by a setting moon. I was on my way back to my tent, time to pack it in or so I thought, in a few hours I would need to start the journey back home.
Then out of the darkness, a few steps behind me, came a soft voice with a Scottish accent, “where are ye off to then ?”
I’ve often referred to Rainy (Lorraine Ishak) as my desert angel. My encounter with her changed my life, through her authentic spirit I was once again introduced to my adventurous self.
This first photo is one I took of Rainy together with Mamma Gogo at Afrika Burn 2010. Little did I know at the time that this landrover would occupy my driveway for many months after Rainy returned to Scotland.
“Mama Gogo was a name that came to her in Lesotho. Gogo is a word used for grandmother in Xhosa. Her name before that was lady Reginald but its so English it just didn’t work anymore and she became Mamma Gogo. The all woman matriarch.
The bit of the story that people most like is me buying it on the internet after a few whiskies with the email – “enough armchair adventure: consider her sold.” I had two jobs, a boyfriend and an apartment in Glasgow. I rented the apartment and left it all behind. From there the rest is history as they say.
I did some unnecessary training with the SAS on hostile environments together with some very useful landrover driving and vehicle recovery training; then jumped a plane to the Cape to collect her from the Sholtz family. That was November 2009. They had used her for occasional travels but had sadly let her slip. I had clearly bitten off more than I could chew. I spent half my budget on the getting the roadworthy. The first trial was venturing into the Cederberg for New Years. She broke down on New Years Eve, on a back road off a back road. I saw in 2010 under a canopy of stars. With the kindness of strangers, which became the hallmark of the journey. I got her to Wellington for repair. Her journey from there was moderate compared with my grand plans: the Western Cape, Transkei, Midlands, Lesotho up the Sani pass out the other side. I loved Lesotho and went back many times. Down the middle to the burn. In 2011 I made a similar journey but pregnant with my daughter.”
Rainy resides with her partner Uula and her two beautiful children in Scotland. They occupy http://web.facebook.com/
The objectives of the Mamma Gogo Initiative have always been:
1.Explore the creative potential of communities across South Africa and ultimately Africa through practical outreach programmes.
2.Document the diverse heritage of her people and the expression of her culture by means of a photo journal.
3.Engage communities (including those on social media) to the collective story of this creative adventure.
Currently the landrover remains idle, requiring some much needed repair and TLC. I look forward to the days that she will ride again.
Please browse through the galleries of some of the projects that originated under the of the Mamma Gogo Initiative.