Pamela Enyonu’s Edna. Photo | Bamuturaki Musinguzi
By Bamuturaki Musinguzi
A Ugandan is among five young African artists exhibiting at the Ca’ Pesaro International Gallery of Modern Art in Venice, Italy.
Pamela Enyonu’s installation is part of the four-month large site-specific exhibition that opened on May 20, and will close on October 1. The “Africa 1:1” exhibition is the result of a ground-breaking collaborative project championed by AKKA Project, Africa First, and Ca’ Pesaro.
Following the 18th Architecture Biennale, they not only created Africa 1:1 Lab but also the Artists Residency Programme. The artist residency project brought together Anyone and four other young African artists to experience the vibrant Venetian artistic environment. It also, at the same time, sets out to tap into the young artists’ personal creative contribution to the city, which is preparing for the 18th Architecture Biennale’s “Laboratory of the Future” curated by Lesley Lokko.
The residency programme was held at the AKKA Project premises in Venice from March 15 to May 18.
Enyonu was joined in the residency by Ngugi Waweru (Kenya), Option Dzikamai Nyahunzvi (Zimbabwe), Alexandre Kyungu Mwilambwe (DR Congo), and Boniface Maina (Kenya).
Enyonu’s painting Edna shows a woman with her right hand holding her chin while the left hand rests on her chest. The work depicts a woman in total control of her body and self.
A play on the words pray and play, the series begins with a poem titled A Daughter’s Prayer. In the fashion of how the Christian Lord’s Prayer is recited, Enyonu writes her own that beseeches a Divine Mother.
“The visual manifestation of the series works with a playful but mature palette,” she says, adding, “The figures interact with orb-like shapes as one would with a ball. It’s a nostalgic throwback to a time when we believed anything was possible.”
Through the study of the gallery’s history, of the original documents and artists’ works in the permanent collection, the five artists-in-residence constructed new dialogues with the city’s visual tradition and with the history of the Palazzo on the Grand Canal. Each artist managed to bring their unique perspective and creative vision to this remarkable collaboration.
“We believe their work is sure to captivate and inspire,” Lidija Kostic Khachatourian, the AKKA Project co-founder, says.
Nyahunzvi’s painting titled Tormented Soul depicts one human figure facing down while the other, who seems to be meditating, is facing up. Nyahunzvi’s artistic practice is deeply rooted in the spiritual beliefs of his Shona culture. His works often focus on the relationship between ancestral spirits and the living, exploring themes of community, tradition, and identity.
Nyahunzvi was born in Harare, Zimbabwe, in 1992, and grew up in Rusape, Zimbabwe. He graduated from Visual Arts and Design studies at the Harare Polytechnic College in 2015. That year, he won First prize at Gallery Delta in Harare and had his first solo exhibition—Civilized Debauchery—at the KooVha Creative Hub.
“I look at the exploration of the impact of technology on urban youth in townships, as well as the illusions, attractions and trappings of contemporary township life thematically to unite my work,” Nyahunzvi says.
Born in 1992, the Congolese visual artist Kyungu’s project Scars of the Earth combines painting, drawing, sculpture and installation. The artist uses rubber as a medium for his work to link the theme of cartography and body scarification.
“I attempt to question the cartographic policy of Africa and the rest of the world in contemporary society,” Kyungu says of his work.
Maina’s drawing Social Zombification—with zombie-like human figures and done in acrylic paint and inks—represents the effects of social media and the Internet on contemporary society.
Born in 1987 in Nanyuki Town in Kenya, Maina’s art investigates and questions societal existence within places and activities that inform everyday decisions and the effects that follow.
“I tend not to make it a conclusion, but a conversation whereby the viewer is open to interpretation. This is more so aimed at getting feedback from the viewer, positive or negative,” Maina says.
Born in Mukuru in 1987, Waweru says he learnt from observation and experience working mostly in woodcut prints and mixed medium painting on canvas.
“My influences are first and foremost anything I see and feel, and life encounters…..When I am working on the rough texture on my canvas it reminds me of the struggle we all go through and our inner strength and knowledge that we use to overcome our challenges,” Ngugi says.
About Pamela Enyonu
Enyonu was born in 1985 in Kampala, where she currently lives and works. She studied Art and Design at the Kyambogo University in Kampala. Her artistic career started in 2017 with a three-month residency at 32 Degrees East. Here, she navigated the politics of identity, trauma, and healing. After the residency, she was invited to host a solo exhibition in June 2017 and ever since, she has been exhibiting in solo and group shows at home and abroad.
“I often go back to artisanal practices of weaving, plaiting, braiding, printing, among others, to fill any gaps. This reinforces the relationships I share with my subjects, embedding a bit of my history in each piece,” Enyonu says.
