By
Margaretta wa Gacheru (posted 2 September 2019)
There is too
much to say about the creativity of Kenyan sculptors after spending the day at
One Off Gallery’s opening of its new two-acre Sculpture Garden which is accompanied
by three other venues where more ingenious artworks overflow.
Who knew that Kenyan
sculptors had gone so far, not just in their capacity to skillfully carve,
(cut, chisel and/or weld) phenomenal pieces like those at One Off?
What is equally remarkable
is their imaginative use of materials and the daring use of everything from
pangas, plastic cigarette lighters and assorted spare parts and to peacock
feathers, human flesh and five-ton granite stone.
Altogether, the sculptures
fill not only the much-anticipated Garden but both galleries inside One Off and
the spacious gallery annex at the Rosslyn Riviera Mall.
Nearly 150 works of art,
in all sizes, shapes and weights showed up at the gallery in response to Carol
Lees’s call out to artists to bring their crafted rocks, wood, glass, clay and
other sundry sculptures (or drawings of them) to the gallery. She even reached
out to painters known to have a history of creating three-dimensional works,
such as El Tayeb Dawelbait who assembled two ‘Mannequins’ out of spare parts
from cars, computers and cooking stoves.
Others better known for
being painters, printmakers and photographers whose works at One Off prove they
are definitely sculptors as well are Peterson Kamwathi, Dennis Muraguri,
Sebastian Kiarie, Tabitha wa Thuku and Sebawali Sio.
The exhibition features
both veteran artists like the late, great Samwel Wanjau Sr., Edward Njenga,
Nani Croze, Richard Onyango and Andrew McNaughton as well as newcomers like
Silvester Mwangi, Taabu Munyora and Nelson Ijakaa (who sculpture was a
multi-layered video). It also include wonderful works by the likes of Peter
Walala (who sculpted molten plastic straws), Gakunju Kaigwa, Bertiers Mbatia,
Kepha Mosoti, Maggie Otieno and Chelenge van Rampelberg among many others.
Nearly 50 artists in all
have contributed to the exhibition entitled ‘Form’. The show’s curator, Marc
van Rampelberg even enlisted a mime, Adam Chienjo who spent the opening day
standing still in statuesque flesh, donned in grey body paint and a tiny pair
of briefs. He was easily mistaken for an exquisitely shaped statue, and
recognized as a mortal man only as he gracefully walked from one corner of the
garden to another.
‘Form” being the most
inclusive exhibition ever seen at One Off since the gallery opened back in
1993, it was a thrill to see the way van Rampelberg tastefully placed so many
different sculptures in ways that complemented one another.
For instance, hanging
Cyrus Kabiru’s bicycle sculpture from the high ceiling of One Off’s Annex
couldn’t have been a better use of space. It left room on the floor for the
late Omosh Kindeh’s beautiful Lion bust as well as works like Sebastian
Kiarie’s emotionally-charged ‘Throne’ made out of pangas (like those used in
the 2007-8 post-election violence) and Bertiers Mbatia’s life-size ‘Journalist’
and larger-than-life scrap-metal Village Mama who greets you at the entrance of
the Annex.
Also at all four venues
are stone and wooden sculptures by the four Wanjau’s, including the late Samwel
Wanjau, Senior (who’s considered Kenya’s greatest sculptor), his two sons,
Jackson and Anthony, and Jackson’s son, Samuel, Junior. All three offspring of
the elder are outstanding artists in their own right. Indeed, one of the
original ideas that preceded the notion of creating the Sculpture Garden was
for Marc to curate an exhibition of just the Wanjaus since their contribution
to Kenyan sculpture is immense.
Van Rampelberg has also
enlarged that contribution by commissioning countless works from the offspring.
Nonetheless, it was he who suggested rather than focus on just one family, why
not open up the show to all Kenyan sculptors. That meant including longtime
Kenya-based artists like Nani Croze, Baldy (Paul) Osborne, Van Rampelberg
himself and Andrew McNaughton who was the first to upcycle wildlife sculpture
out of plastic sandals. In “Form” however, he mixes the flip-flop blend with
plastic lighters, all of which he picked off of the Watamu beach near his home.
To describe ‘Form’ as a
world-class exhibition is not an overstatement. What’s more, Thom Ogonga’s
‘Contemporary View of Kenyan Sculpture” essay, contextualizes the art form
beautifully and comprehensively.
The one challenge the
Kenyan sculpture scene still faces is shortage of women sculptors. There were
six in ‘Form’. We look forward to many more.
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