Featured in NKA Journal of Contemporary African Art Issue No.56

My work was featured in NKA- Journal of Contemporary African Art. Issue No. 56. A journal that focuses on publishing critical work that examines contemporary African and African Diaspora art within the modernist and postmodernist experience and therefore contributes significantly to the intellectual dialogue on world art and the discourse on internationalism and multiculturalism in the arts. Chika Okeke-Agulu writes in his article:

 

Fig. 1 Cannon Fodder 

I first encountered Wanjiku's work in the impressive 2015 "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" group exhibition curated by Ugochukwu-Smooth Nzewi for the Richard Taittinger Gallery, New York. For more than two decades, she has made paintings, often with the human body and figure as the basis of her exploration of what it means to be human in a time of extreme, precarious, terrifying, sociopolitical and ecological transformation and crisis. Wanjiku has shown, with exacting formal eloquence, how the body as flesh and bone and as symbolic space can serve as as the text and context for what Stuart Hall once described as "the brute facts of human history, which after all have disfigured the lives, and crippled and constrained the potentialities of literally millions of the world's dispossessed". With themes and subjects drawn from her own observations or from media, literary, and historical sources, Wanjiku's expressive brushwork, her dark and ominous palette, and her often searing view of, and allusions to, the body or its parts results in paintings of remarkable visual power. 

Hope

Currently on view at the One-off gallery till 21 September

For what is our civilised world but a big masquerade?…….only masks, and, as a rule, behind the masks you will find moneymakers. One man, I suppose, puts on the mask of law, which he has borrowed for the purpose from a barrister, only in order to be able to give another man a sound drubbing; a second has chosen the mask of patriotism and the public welfare with a similar intent; a third takes religion or purity of doctrine. For all sorts of purposes men have often put on the mask of philosophy, and even of philanthropy,…

Then there are general masks, without any particular character attached to them like dominoes. They may be met with everywhere; and of this sort is the strict rectitude, the courtesy, the sincere sympathy, the smiling friendship, that people profess. The whole of these masks as a rule are merely, a disguise for some industry, commerce, or speculation. 

-An excerpt on human nature by Arthur Schopenhauer 

fig.1 The substance of things

The paintings I’ve presented in this exhibition, oscillate between how reality is imagined and how it actually manifests. The reference of stripped flesh, is a recurring motif which I often use as an identifier that informs stereotypes, the forms used here in multiple iterations explores our internal identities and territories as a mental frame of reference. 

The work seeks to expose broken systems of governance, a precarious awareness now challenging the values that have, in different forms and times steered societal structures and how our humanity is coming face to face with the fall out resulting from fragmented systems. This is happening on all fronts of the global Social agitation. While this is one of the ways of confronting the dysfunctionality rooted in our social structures, the intensity of these times is also giving rise to a climate of over-legislation, militarisation and intolerance. When we consciously consider our interconnectedness, we become heightened to our own existence. Therefore my intention is for these paintings to encapsulate the prevailing realities and also serve as a place of connecting to the experiences of others. 'Hope' then becomes a revolutionary act of defiance.

fig. 3 Study III

Notes on Friendship: Breaking Bread

Currently showing in, Notes on Friendship: Breaking Bread, a collaborative exhibition between Nairobi Contemporary Art Institute (NCAI) and Savannah Center for Contemporary Art, Tamale, Ghana, which opened on 29, April. The exhibition explores friendship as a dynamic space for dialogue, critique, and support, offering a platform where shared histories and present-day realities intersect, opening up new possibilities for connection and collaboration. This flexible idea of friendship allows artists to form relationships on their own terms, encouraging mutual exploration and creative engagement.

Exhibition still fig. 1 The Substance of Things

Framed as a "lost tape" rediscovered in African history, Notes on Friendship: Breaking Bread reimagines hosting and hospitality as acts of political and artistic significance, featuring 23 artists from East and West Africa. The exhibition is a cross-cultural connection and imaginative collaboration. Emerging from a desire to bridge geographic and generational divides, the exhibition explores friendship as a site for dialogue, critique, and creative support.

The exhibition presents the worldviews of practitioners across generations, Media and, discipline through three thematic configurations: About us, Nostalgia, and Objects. About us, explores narratives that constitute the self. Nostalgia, gathers work that offer perspectives informed by history and current interpretation thereof. Works in the third group, objects, takes a speculative approach towards the future through their engagement with objects and materiality.



The exhibition runs until 27th July 2025

Echoes and Edges

Echoes and Edges 

16 January -22 February

Montague Contemporary

In the moments between the familiar and the unknown lies the potential for transformation. This space of transition, memory, and renewal is at the heart of Echoes and Edges, an exhibition inspired by Martin Heidegger’s Being and Time (1962) and Okwui Enwezor’s analyses of temporality and rupture, the show invites audiences to consider the fragile yet potent boundaries of being. As Heidegger writes, “Temporality makes up the primordial meaning of Dasein’s Being” (Heidegger, 1962, p. 41) - a reflection on the fluid and interconnected dimensions of past, present, and future that shape our existence.

Heidegger’s exploration of the concept "Dasein" (Being-there) is a meditation on existence as a state of constant becoming. For Heidegger, the human condition is defined by its temporality: our being is always situated within a continuum of memory, present experience, and anticipation. This interplay creates a dynamic process of self-definition, a navigation of edges where past and future collide. Read more here... https://www.montaguecontemporary.com/exhibitions/51-echoes-and-edges-beatrice-wanjiku-camille-wekesa-miska-mohmmed/overview/

We are Parlor Soldiers

We are Parlor Soldiers’

31st August to 21st September at the One-Off Gallery

These works call for introspection; a call to return to ourselves. A call to assess the person in front of the mirror. Especially in these times. These works focus on our internalised core feelings, as we individually seek to remedy our self-imposed ethical dilemma.

Exhibition stills  fig. 1 Parlor Soldier, fig. 2 Boogie Dark 

 

Exhibition Stills fig. 1 (left) Cannon fodder fig. 2 (right) Cannon fodder II

The paintings far from being detached from the prevailing realities of a greater society are instead a facet of it. My intention is for these paintings to encapsulate the prevailing realities and also serve as a place of connecting to the experiences of others.

Exhibition still. Canon fodder

 

Studio Still

Gallery Artist 24

Exhibition install

The work submitted in the exhibition comes from an ongoing body of work that examines the construction of the individual what is called, “ethical substance” forms stripped of flesh/skin (a recurring motif) skin often an identifier that informs stereotypes; to explore our internal territories which forms the basis of our existential angst, the pursuit of happiness, and the desire to correct our own self-imposed ethical dilemma. Through intentions and actions both consciously and unconsciously we act based on our perceived reality of this ethical substance. The work therefore serves as a mirror of the interconnectedness of our collective and shared histories.

Exhibition Install

Contours of Memory

An Unstructured Mess (2016)

“Contours of Memory” at Montague Contemporary February 1, 2024 and concluded 20 March 2024. Spans artistic expression from the past four decades, showcasing the transformative power of African art in shaping cultural narratives. I exhibited alongside works from El Anatsui, Oladélé Ajiboyé Bamgboyé, Merikokeb Berhanu, Victor Ekpuk, William Kentridge, Wole Lagunju, and Tesfaye Urgessa. Contours of Memory, is an immersive journey into the heart of African storytelling celebrating the rich tapestry of African life and culture, woven together by the unique artistic languages of these seven artists. The show stands as a testament to the enduring spirit and evolving narrative of the continent, inviting viewers to explore and reflect on the multifaceted experiences of African identity. my work in this exhibition confronts viewers with the complexities of the human condition within societal constructs, echoing themes of existentialism.