The Legend of the Nyami Nyami

I'm not sure if this is going to cut it for modernism but after looking through some images I decided on this route to tell the story of the Nyami Nyami. I did a lot of research on African folklore and I really liked the tale behind this river god and thought it would be perfect for a village elder to regale the story to eager listeners around the fire. Below is some details about the river god I found here: http://www.victoriafalls-guide.net/african-mythology.html

There were links to a few other stories that I may take on to paint as well, I love folklore!


African mythology of the local Tonga tribe of the Zambezi Valley states that Nyami Nyami the River God who lives in Lake Kariba is believed to be a serpent-like creature. He is said to be about three metres wide, but nobody dares to guess at his length.

Legends has it that the water stains red when he swims past. Chief Sampakaruma saw him on two occasions many years ago, but the river god has been in hiding since the white men arrived in the country.

According to African mythology he lived under a large rock close to the present day Kariba dam wall. No tribesman would venture near it those few who did were sucked down with their canoes in the whirlpools and never seen again. They called the rock Kariwa, the "trap" and hence the name of the lake, Kariba.

The rising water of lake Kariba covered the rock Kariwa and it now lies 30 metres below the surface annoying Nyami Nyami. The Tonga people also believe that Nyami Nyami is married and that the building of Kariba Dam wall would separate him from his wife, this would anger him greatly and the river god threatened the peace of the valley.
Source: http://www.victoriafalls-guide.net/african-mythology.html

I started with thumbnail sketches to get the right feel and make sure I was staying on track with my storytelling. After I found a thumbnail I liked I did a larger sketch.



I then added nice base tones.

After the bast tones dried I went in with a smaller brush and tried to be expressive with the medium and smaller shapes.



Once I was happy with everything I took the painting into photoshop and finished up the painting there.



I hope you enjoyed my take on the Legend of Nyami Nyami, thanks for looking!