By BRUCE DENNILL
The 2014 Kalahari Desert Festival was held from 21-23 March at Witdraai near Askham (essentially, head north out of Upington and look for the signs on the left; if you hit Namibia, you’ve gone too far).
The festival is designed to showcase and foster an understanding of the art, culture and heritage of the Kalahari’s indigenous people groups. In that regard, it still has some distance to go (this was only the second year the even has been held), as it is, for the moment, a focal point around which the locals gather to enjoy large and partly subsidised party. That’s not a bad thing, though, as any excuse to strengthen community ties in a place in which only a few thousand people occupy an area the size of Japan is a good one.
From a photographic point of view, the Kalahari light and the irregular outline of the central marquee at the festival site created a striking microcosm amid the bustle.
