Dragonfly Project

“... cultural and social traditions that provide the well-springs of a peoples' identity and collective memory are under threat owing, among other things, to globalization, cultural standardization . . . and lack of resources"
UNESCO Convention 2004

Dragonfly is all about recording the disappearing traditions of the descendants of the Khoisan, the indigenous peoples of the Western Cape region of South Africa. 350 years ago the Dutch East India Company set up a supply post for their merchant ships transporting tea, spices, porcelain and silks across the oceans from the Far East to Europe. Since that time Khoisan culture, languages and religion have all but disappeared or been absorbed or integrated.

The Dragonfly Project covers the mountainous areas in which Rooibos is grown and stretches deep into the Namaqualand Desert, where remoteness has proved a friend to these people in that it has helped to preserve what remains of a varied and rich tradition - snatches of music, dance, song and stories handed down from generation to generation.

The aim of our project is to use this body of material to restore dignity and pride in the Khoisan culture whilst at the same time providing them with a potential income resource. Working closely with the Contemporary African Music and Arts Archive (CAMA) at the University of Cape Town, the Dragonfly Project Fund has carefully documented a wide variety of cultural expressions. Click to see a clip of some of the music and dance of the few remaining descendants of the Khoi and Koranna speaking peoples of the Cedarberg area.

Passing on skills to the next generations is key to the success of the project and it’s heartening beyond words to see some of the results brought about by our efforts. Click to see a clip.

The Dragonfly Project was set up to capture and preserve the spirit, personality and sense of fun as well as the natural dignity of these people and we hope we’re succeeding - certainly as you can see from the clips, these events are about as far from formal as you can get!

A highlight of the year in the region is the "Singkop", a truly magical occasion when residents of the outlying mission stations around Wupperthal climb the mountain in procession at midnight to "sing in the Christmas". Click to see a clip. To quote John Turest-Swartz the, the Director of CAMA, "We at CAMA feel privileged to be able to play a role in assisting these communities who are in most desperate need."