Understand bôgôlan patterns
Look at work by a Malian maker using bôgôlan textiles and discuss how material, colour and technique combine to form a pattern.
Africa / 4 ideas
A date with a touch of Mali.
Mali offers inspiration for a date at home with textiles, music, cooking or stories from creators, without assuming any travel plans.
Browse the ideas4 plans you can actually try.
Use the country as inspiration. Check local opening hours and make a plan together.
Listen closely to the m'bolon
Find a documented recording of the Malian m'bolon and listen to the instrument's rhythmic role.
A meal with fonio
Choose a recipe with fonio and make a small vegetable dish. Each choose one herb or spice and compare the results.
Questions about an artist's work
Watch a profile of or interview with a Malian artist and come up with questions together about the work and the setting in which it's created.
Things to do together anywhere
Try these too.
You can also try these ideas in Mali. Choose a place that suits you and check what's available locally.
ALSO FUN HERE Cookbook rouletteOpen a cookbook at random and adapt the recipe you find to your tastes.View the idea ALSO FUN HERE Design a game for twoDraw a game board together with three rules and try it out straight away.View the idea ALSO FUN HERE Street name storiesFind three striking street names and discover where they come from.View the idea ALSO FUN HERE A conversation on a benchFind a bench with a view and take turns asking each other one new question.View the idea ALSO FUN HERE Mini food tourTry three small bites along the way at three places close to one another.View the idea ALSO FUN HERE A sculpture trailFind three public sculptures and imagine what they could mean without reading their plaques.View the idea
View all date ideas