January 22, 2022
Mbuthia Maina is a philosopher and a poet. But for far too
long he has been a man whose sensitivity made him far too susceptible to trying
out too many so-called mind-enhancing or consciousness expanding concoctions that kept
him from his true calling, which was and is to be an artist.
A graduate of .. University in Philosophy and Social Science, Mbuthia's sense of artistry led him to work and stay among the artists at Maasai Mbili in Kibera for many years. There he explored art and also education, teaching children at an innovative ‘School of Ideas’ also in Kibera that he started with the late Solo 7 of M2.
But in the past year, during COVID, Mbuthia got wise enough
to know he needed to start taking his artistry and his life a bit more
seriously. That is when his good friend Sam Njuguna Njoroge invited him to come
stay in Muthatha village with him and get to work.
That is exactly what Mbuthia did. And in the last year, he
has been developing his own style of artistry that combines painting and
printing with found objects serving in ever-more original ways.
For instance, he has a technique of using plastic car mats
as elements of design. Cardboard boxes also serve his design ideas well. And
even auto gaskets from a nearby junk yard have come in handy in Mbuthia’s artistry.
Even bubble paper, the kind used for wrapping delicate objects so they don’t
get damaged, are used to add texture to his paintings, all of which are taking
shape as ever-expansive sizes.
His inclination is toward abstract art; but then one can’t help
but wonder if there aren’t deep stories hidden in the elements of his work. It
would seem that he allows his style of printing, (which is either by hand,
foot, or heavy object that he presses over the objects he uses in place of
etchings or woodcuts) to dictate the way his painting flows.
It’s worth asking the artist to explain because his
rationales are illuminating and ingenious[ms1] .
Mbuthia’s art hasn’t been shown often enough to speak about
a steady progression of his expression. But he has shown in Manjano shows and
at Maasai Mbili. He also created numerous wall murals with friends in Kibera
all over the neighborhood.
One only hopes that Mbuthia is producing a body of current
works that will resonate with one of Nairobi’s ever-increasing gallerists and
curators.
He’s a treasure who, despite having weathered years in the
wilderness, has come into his own powers. It’s about time too!
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