For decades, African urban spaces have been characterized by rapid expansion, great transformation, vast economic growth, and experimentation with new material and spatial formats, developments famously inspiring The Economist to adorn its front page in 2011 with an 'Africa Rising' cover. Yet, we know that such developments have been very uneven - not just between cities and countries but also within urban orders.
The dire inequalities that characterize African cities are often described in terms of structural or neoliberal violence, and anthropological analyses typically depict disparate patterns of exclusion, dehumanization and violence - including urban patterns of 'enclaving'. Even though such analyses are crucial, we argue that studies of Africa should also identify urban practices of relationality, mutuality and collectivity; we approach these practices as key forms of negotiating intimacy and detachment. Here, we explore such urban practices in Maputo in the guise of texts adorning both crowded minibuses and privately owned cars, as well as specific works of street art. While often leading to laughter, comments or discussions among passengers as well as passers-by, ambulating texts and pieces of art also communicate aspirations for novel forms of sociality, attack people's separation and lack of empathy, and, finally, speculate about new futures. By mapping art, texts and the ambulatory in Maputo, we make two arguments: first, we underline the usefulness of generating understandings of African urban spaces that avoid emphasizing the ever increasing dynamics of atomization or that project necropolitics as the most important element of African cities. Second, we show how temporality, including what we describe as 'futureless-ness', is actively and critically engaged by this type of textual, artistic and interpretative practice. Les profondes in & eacute;galit & eacute;s qui caract & eacute;risent les villes africaines sont souvent d & eacute;crites en termes de violence structurelle ou n & eacute;olib & eacute;rale, et les analyses anthropologiques d & eacute;crivent g & eacute;n & eacute;ralement des sch & eacute;mas disparates d'exclusion, de d & eacute;shumanisation et de violence, notamment des formes urbaines d'& laquo; enclavement & raquo;. Bien que ces analyses soient cruciales, les auteurs soutiennent que les & eacute;tudes de l'Afrique devraient & eacute;galement identifier les pratiques urbaines de relationnalit & eacute;, de mutualit & eacute; et de collectivit & eacute; ; ils envisagent ces derni & egrave;res comme des formes essentielles de n & eacute;gociation de l'intimit & eacute; et de la distance. Ils explorent ici ces pratiques urbaines & agrave; Maputo & agrave; travers des textes ornant les minibus bond & eacute;s comme les voitures particuli & egrave;res, ainsi que des oeuvres d'art urbain. Suscitant souvent rires, commentaires ou discussions parmi les passagers et les passants, ces textes et oeuvres d'art ambulants communiquent & eacute;galement des aspirations & agrave; de nouvelles formes de socialit & eacute;, d & eacute;noncent le d & eacute;tachement et le manque d'empathie, et, enfin, sp & eacute;culent sur d'autres avenirs. En cartographiant l'art, les textes et l'ambulatoire & agrave; Maputo, les auteurs avancent deux arguments : premi & egrave;rement, ils soulignent l'utilit & eacute; de d & eacute;velopper des compr & eacute;hensions des espaces urbains africains qui & eacute;vitent de mettre l'accent sur la dynamique croissante d'atomisation ou qui pr & eacute;sentent la n & eacute;cropolitique comme l'& eacute;l & eacute;ment le plus important des villes africaines. Deuxi & egrave;mement, ils montrent comment la temporalit & eacute;, y compris ce qu'ils qualifient d'& laquo; absence de futur & raquo;, est activement et critiquement appr & eacute;hend & eacute;e par ce type de pratique textuelle, artistique et interpr & eacute;tative. As graves desigualdades que caracterizam as cidades africanas s & atilde;o frequentemente descritas em termos de viol & ecirc;ncia estrutural ou neoliberal, e as an & aacute;lises antropol & oacute;gicas retratam normalmente padr & otilde;es d & iacute;spares de exclus & atilde;o, desumaniza & ccedil;& atilde;o e viol & ecirc;ncia - incluindo padr & otilde;es urbanos de 'enclave'. Embora essas an & aacute;lises sejam cruciais, defendemos que os estudos sobre & Aacute;frica devem tamb & eacute;m identificar pr & aacute;ticas urbanas de relacionalidade, mutualidade e coletividade; abordamos essas pr & aacute;ticas como formas fundamentais de negociar a intimidade e o distanciamento. Aqui, exploramos essas pr & aacute;ticas urbanas em Maputo atrav & eacute;s de textos que adornam tanto os miniautocarros lotados como os carros particulares, bem como obras espec & iacute;ficas de arte urbana. Embora muitas vezes suscitem risos, coment & aacute;rios ou discuss & otilde;es entre passageiros e transeuntes, esses textos e obras de arte itinerantes tamb & eacute;m comunicam aspira & ccedil;& otilde;es a novas formas de sociabilidade, criticam a aliena & ccedil;& atilde;o e a falta de empatia das pessoas e, por fim, especulam sobre novos futuros. Ao mapear a arte, os textos e o percurso em Maputo, defendemos duas teses: em primeiro lugar, sublinhamos a utilidade de desenvolver compreens & otilde;es dos espa & ccedil;os urbanos africanos que evitem enfatizar as din & acirc;micas cada vez mais acentuadas de atomiza & ccedil;& atilde;o ou que apresentem a necropol & iacute;tica como o elemento mais importante das cidades africanas. Em segundo lugar, mostramos como a temporalidade, incluindo aquilo a que chamamos de 'aus & ecirc;ncia de futuro', & eacute; abordada de forma ativa e cr & iacute;tica por este tipo de pr & aacute;tica textual, art & iacute;stica e interpretativa.
