tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83119052647327373412024-02-18T20:27:05.583-08:00My Life UntitledBeatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.comBlogger275125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-18659209244600935982023-11-12T09:15:00.000-08:002024-01-02T07:17:44.468-08:00Sharjah Architecture Triennial. The Beauty Of Impermanence: An Architecture of Adaptability<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSSsusS3h_kP-wIxXMQ8nJ11QNToRjg0nrgJ-n7VoRww2HUAtZVaMpuqn9qqCehgDxBRJkHotD3jtHo6uDmHvu0VOPy4hjP16bsz8-8h66hx45AohQ9452Dd1GkGheBqVjcWUzL4FLUF9t1BcyxcN87UXQu4WXqeB-zJMsIyxZW0HRselxxAKisz5cmcak/s1084/5F6BA4B9-3FAA-4FD6-83E7-CCBFB8147712.jpeg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSSsusS3h_kP-wIxXMQ8nJ11QNToRjg0nrgJ-n7VoRww2HUAtZVaMpuqn9qqCehgDxBRJkHotD3jtHo6uDmHvu0VOPy4hjP16bsz8-8h66hx45AohQ9452Dd1GkGheBqVjcWUzL4FLUF9t1BcyxcN87UXQu4WXqeB-zJMsIyxZW0HRselxxAKisz5cmcak/s320/5F6BA4B9-3FAA-4FD6-83E7-CCBFB8147712.jpeg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>“Creation” 2023 Mixed Media on Canvas</i></span></div><br /><br />Honoured and delighted to be participating at the <a href="https://www.sharjaharchitecture.org/pages/triennial-2023">Sharjah Triennial</a> 2023, "The Beauty of Impermanence" An Architecture of Adaptability with <a href="https://www.cave.co.ke/about-us">cave bureau,</a> a Nairobi based bureau of architects and researchers charting explorations into architecture and urbanism within nature. whose work addresses the anthropological and geological context of the postcolonial African city as a means to confront the challenges of our contemporary rural and urban lives. <div><br />In this triennial, the ninth installment of Cave Bureau’s ( Anthropocene Museum 9.0 ) <a href="https://www.cave.co.ke/origin">research</a> series constitutes the adaptation and tour of Sharjah’s old slaughterhouse, whose primary protagonists are the animals —cows, goats, sheep, and camels — consumed in the city; often without thought of their origins or how they are processed. The audience is corralled through an ever-present, but seldom reflected upon municipal event space, in a building that is now only intermittently used.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGXjPufIGP7lx-4st32hW6-HgpQcwMiqAq3xVTlk0g0j39p3AgmWLLRW3kdeHcE7IWc-BRlj0pbRE330RwyQXlPsHhOLpj_p8Xw63oko7st4OaDEUVpPhz5p3U50jx0I1QX9pr3hNXAlNGkckmuR93yCT0flFHtjoFQ2iG_NB_X1SIAUtsX6ursEeGPSl5/s1281/IMG_7948.jpeg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGXjPufIGP7lx-4st32hW6-HgpQcwMiqAq3xVTlk0g0j39p3AgmWLLRW3kdeHcE7IWc-BRlj0pbRE330RwyQXlPsHhOLpj_p8Xw63oko7st4OaDEUVpPhz5p3U50jx0I1QX9pr3hNXAlNGkckmuR93yCT0flFHtjoFQ2iG_NB_X1SIAUtsX6ursEeGPSl5/s320/IMG_7948.jpeg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>“The old Sharjah slaughterhouse”</i></span></div><br /><br />The <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/198CIKw1ZyxK__jb8zZqA_fgR11MXAkqf/view?usp=drive_link">work</a> I've presented at the old Sharjah slaughterhouse with cave bureau explores our humanity. The forms are stripped of flesh as a metaphor for how skin often informs stereotypes and the idea of exposed flesh, ribcages, raw, and bloody the grotesque is to explore a time in decline. The vulnerable form, in this exposure is a reflection of how we contend with our own intimate nature the forms which are dissected become ambiguous, abstracted, free to move unencumbered beyond the frame. This internal structure with its endless possibilities, its transient nature is a point of reference in my work as an observation of our shared experiences. The work is inspired by a concatenation of events, (human) events, leading to the exploration of our bodies in a space and time of change; interrogating encounters within our individual states and the dysfunctionality rooted in our social structures, the intensity of these times as a consequence of this, our humanity has now come face to face with the fall out resulting from these fragmented systems.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu9yHFjaA2G6C97-m5dRfufC8X_A6b94n9HPciPKk7l40YNufg67YV7VijWqQccrVsAy8rKqgLiHEy_PjRD0kMdvawOoEpS0OGChH3Rvht6JdO5Oyx93DI7tTmR_trInaBPH_KtsvWsiSbDYyuYtR_bVQMLxaorRt2F4zNBHYnUC3UjCaOqz8TU68RCHNl/s1347/IMG_8064.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1347" data-original-width="740" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu9yHFjaA2G6C97-m5dRfufC8X_A6b94n9HPciPKk7l40YNufg67YV7VijWqQccrVsAy8rKqgLiHEy_PjRD0kMdvawOoEpS0OGChH3Rvht6JdO5Oyx93DI7tTmR_trInaBPH_KtsvWsiSbDYyuYtR_bVQMLxaorRt2F4zNBHYnUC3UjCaOqz8TU68RCHNl/s320/IMG_8064.jpeg" width="176" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">“The Primal and Unutterable III” 2023</span></i></div><br />At the core of the exhibit lies the philosophical underpinning of meaningful impermanence. In life, only death is certain, everything else is in flux. Visitors are encouraged to view the ever-shifting built landscape of life as an opportunity for reversed notions of growth, through introspection, and spiritual reconnection. It asks one to accept the need to adapt through a new planetary consciousness, that embraces meaningful impermanence without us building almost anything at all.</div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-77903581098593350502023-06-21T11:58:00.009-07:002023-06-25T05:44:32.909-07:00Past is Prologue II (Three Centuries of African Art)<p>The work in this exhibition is a juxtaposition of classical African art and Contemporary African art. Classical African art is profoundly integral to the society from which it sprung and a significant component of the communal, spiritual, and political structures of the many numerous and distinct cultures that produce it. From intricately carved masks to powerful wooden power statuary they provide a visual language through which these societies communicated not just with each other but also with the spiritual realm and the natural world around them.</p><p>My work explores the Contemporary perspective ; the paintings examining the specificity of our encounters as women which tend to be either marginalised or subsumed within patriarchal narratives steeped in culture. Constantly navigating dynamics within society the work looks to reflect ourselves back to ourselves and open dialogues. The paintings submitted in this exhibition are from the “<i>Savages</i>” and the “<i>Strait Jacket </i>series” challenging the narratives of self, place, and purpose.</p><p>The exhibition concludes June 30.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm_ljsItWPgg3COibqI9Gb9J9DVxJm8PsMz3jJuhqdBPkO-6w_XtgKH8GBkyMgAr0swp3xAytK8OOK_YsAXDvGclBP9zQL45J61ZhtKJPZdIFpXnxCvl8qs_JVK4KWq4lkfeKPrj2_I26RhKD-tYBnBo6vDTZK2-KGr1SiJYrBKtDQXA59SUQjYPN1j896/s828/IMG_5271.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="635" data-original-width="828" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm_ljsItWPgg3COibqI9Gb9J9DVxJm8PsMz3jJuhqdBPkO-6w_XtgKH8GBkyMgAr0swp3xAytK8OOK_YsAXDvGclBP9zQL45J61ZhtKJPZdIFpXnxCvl8qs_JVK4KWq4lkfeKPrj2_I26RhKD-tYBnBo6vDTZK2-KGr1SiJYrBKtDQXA59SUQjYPN1j896/s320/IMG_5271.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX2naL8hXg04RGl4lvd_YBOgt8fnXo2opuFi9wbWRRrSoad-hytKIDG4VnI-2bpCOPrKypq-d6kBRQ52SrWZhAT3739BIkNz46XGw7-hxABusIKT6isv--THnJ-qzh23Z2BDnMfWsp6pL1GTDOO96KFRBULhqBI51mvFiPr8pla_-hVeNyDes3f0bC1q1B/s2157/IMG-7830.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2157" data-original-width="1726" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX2naL8hXg04RGl4lvd_YBOgt8fnXo2opuFi9wbWRRrSoad-hytKIDG4VnI-2bpCOPrKypq-d6kBRQ52SrWZhAT3739BIkNz46XGw7-hxABusIKT6isv--THnJ-qzh23Z2BDnMfWsp6pL1GTDOO96KFRBULhqBI51mvFiPr8pla_-hVeNyDes3f0bC1q1B/s320/IMG-7830.jpeg" width="256" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Beyond Beauty (Savages series)</span></i></div><br /> <p></p>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-5380138242672255682023-05-13T11:17:00.003-07:002023-12-20T10:22:09.629-08:00Transient Beings To understand the transient nature of being is to accept that we are all just passing through one phase of our life after another. The exhibition investigates the many planes of existence, past and present, we navigate through. Each plane exists for us as a transient phase, but the entire process takes a lifetime. A continuous growth as a person is fundamental to the human experience. <div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbLzvdQ_Nr-UD7Hr0ORKxAjrH-jpu8UGKPNB0KIKsFwlvPLQRXEgi_TWn7U0H83BdQe5OHokd2kV_uzrVU8iJRagm30ZVtYG3X7K6UzM_oQUzFmTynHyXp0gllTps74ee4jaqRJLvBmWO58SVToHIs2d2s2z35MK4D-9RshCK-oByZ37Eud2aiohIEjQgv/s2269/IMG_9737.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2269" data-original-width="1910" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbLzvdQ_Nr-UD7Hr0ORKxAjrH-jpu8UGKPNB0KIKsFwlvPLQRXEgi_TWn7U0H83BdQe5OHokd2kV_uzrVU8iJRagm30ZVtYG3X7K6UzM_oQUzFmTynHyXp0gllTps74ee4jaqRJLvBmWO58SVToHIs2d2s2z35MK4D-9RshCK-oByZ37Eud2aiohIEjQgv/s320/IMG_9737.jpeg" width="269" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>The Strangeness of My Madness VI 2022</i></span></div><div><div><br /></div><div>Life is transient, yet art tries to capture its fleeting instants and this continuous process of transformation.<br /><br /></div><div>In “Transient beings. Contemporary African art and the human form”, the exhibition scrutinizes the human experience, the work functioning as a mirror of who we are. <br /><br />The exhibition will open on May 18th and run till 11 June. Read more on the exhibition <a href="https://www.duendeartprojects.com/exhibitions/17-transient-beings-contemporary-african-art-and-the-human-form/overview/">here</a><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></div></div></div></div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-23638903776145965752023-01-10T05:13:00.003-08:002023-01-11T09:03:44.163-08:00<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Happy New Year!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi24uGxI1udPlAjF6V_EDTe5qiMz-zprKNJBKs31G9MqwhLTWy_p7dzjw4RZK8YLVYF3r7KZFZURCd9N1PfjW7oFfENvtOHzgfjElJEs2AJZiyN1pRVDc9lOqKm3nuCuN1D6ksQ78ecbQpmkBlDxgweTi7LUnVg3YjLyw0yDhMd7W7Vexqf8XcUrPA1Dw/s4752/IMG_0112.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4752" data-original-width="3168" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi24uGxI1udPlAjF6V_EDTe5qiMz-zprKNJBKs31G9MqwhLTWy_p7dzjw4RZK8YLVYF3r7KZFZURCd9N1PfjW7oFfENvtOHzgfjElJEs2AJZiyN1pRVDc9lOqKm3nuCuN1D6ksQ78ecbQpmkBlDxgweTi7LUnVg3YjLyw0yDhMd7W7Vexqf8XcUrPA1Dw/s320/IMG_0112.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>In Want of All things </i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>( Mixed Media on Canvas) 100cm x 150cm</i></span></div><br /> <p></p>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-21950160568734614442022-11-17T01:42:00.003-08:002022-11-17T11:14:02.538-08:00We Contain Multitudes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5z4ns5INeS0_WMFEbhmPq9qF_I_n5tsO-O0YgmYNNhxYLtd--bErp2pZyDTWa29FOZfUYM4vRm-a_0-AJp_zC3i5OHog42DjPfNd9Z0kwAX2LAlR9RIhsvPtQ_M4JiOPzC2Ciy1BSLPDMR9iARfjzJ5zy-Q8yk17myuVnwgFOvBddBz1Ln7_Z2J7u-w/s3915/IMG_4858.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3915" data-original-width="2723" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5z4ns5INeS0_WMFEbhmPq9qF_I_n5tsO-O0YgmYNNhxYLtd--bErp2pZyDTWa29FOZfUYM4vRm-a_0-AJp_zC3i5OHog42DjPfNd9Z0kwAX2LAlR9RIhsvPtQ_M4JiOPzC2Ciy1BSLPDMR9iARfjzJ5zy-Q8yk17myuVnwgFOvBddBz1Ln7_Z2J7u-w/s320/IMG_4858.JPG" width="223" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="https://www.montaguecontemporary.com/exhibitions/36-we-contain-multitudes-jessica-atieno-prudence-chimutumah-angele-etoundi-essamba/overview/">Montague Contemporary</a> in partnership with <a href="https://www.nyccultureclub.com/exhibitions" target="_blank">NYC Culture Club</a>, presents, <i>"We Contain Multitudes," </i>an exhibition<i> </i>curated by Laura Day Webb.<div> <br />The exhibition examines multifaceted perceptions and experiences of identity, belonging, and womanhood, and their relationship to cultural heritage and the contemporary world. </div><div><div><br /></div><div>The exhibitions opened November 16, 2022 and closes January 15, 2023</div></div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-20114759805260182892022-10-10T13:22:00.008-07:002023-02-02T05:40:32.140-08:00In Memoriam; Why Should I Be Out of Mind Because I Am Out of Sight? <br /><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzCBhwNpzqAfkRffloSNMkPgDCS7TjpNMucCRpG-nkrukRoZUepX2eBwX6iAemKFluEq-BgYRPbsszcghZYXRhVvXaFqxitequOEupkH4GhiWvMEeUi05g9V_H41eWU1cKBMiaB-fyIYgp8HoRslA5stQ_vml5D-vMxZwhQHaWM0my-wG7bfa9ZV0skA/s3170/DA014860-7571-4B7E-B0A6-272DB29072E5.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3170" data-original-width="3120" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzCBhwNpzqAfkRffloSNMkPgDCS7TjpNMucCRpG-nkrukRoZUepX2eBwX6iAemKFluEq-BgYRPbsszcghZYXRhVvXaFqxitequOEupkH4GhiWvMEeUi05g9V_H41eWU1cKBMiaB-fyIYgp8HoRslA5stQ_vml5D-vMxZwhQHaWM0my-wG7bfa9ZV0skA/s320/DA014860-7571-4B7E-B0A6-272DB29072E5.jpeg" width="315" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Mother</span></i></div><br />Death is nothing at all. It does not count. <br />I have only slipped away into the next room. <br />Nothing has happened. <br />Everything remains exactly as it was. <br />I am I, and you are you, and the old life that we lived so fondly together is untouched, unchanged. <br />Whatever we were to each other, that we are still. <br />Call me by the old familiar name. <br />Speak of me in the easy way which you always used. <br />Put no difference into your tone. <br />Wear no forced air of solemnity or sorrow. <br />Laugh as we always laughed at the little jokes that we enjoyed together. <br />Play, smile, think of me, pray for me. <br />Let my name be ever the household word that it always was. <br />Let it be spoken without an effort, without the ghost of a shadow upon it. <br />Life means all that it ever meant. <br />It is the same as it ever was. <br />There is absolute and unbroken continuity. <br />What is this death but a negligible accident? <br />Why should I be out of mind because I am out of sight? <br />I am but waiting for you, for an interval, somewhere very near, just round the corner. <br />All is well. Nothing is hurt; nothing is lost. <br />One brief moment and all will be as it was before. <br />How we shall laugh at the trouble of parting when we meet again!</div><div>-Henry Scott Holland </div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-49538363885696671272022-09-20T05:59:00.013-07:002022-11-29T12:25:49.458-08:0013 Bienal do Mercosul - Trauma, Dreams, Escape<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">"<i>Nearly all of those who survive trauma experience some form of sleep disorder, such as insomnia. But for about half of the three-quarters of people, it is vivid dreams that prevent them from sleeping deeply and which open the doors of their consciousness to a path of invention".</i> -excerpt from <a href="https://en.bienalmercosul.art.br/home-bienal-13">13th Mercosul biennial </a> is investigating the work of artists that have included the narrative sequence formed by these three words - <i>Trauma, Dreams, Escape</i> – in their works.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguQW1Gk6VML9Z678C2DnJ2FnrEAEeE__mLB08jxHPZQ8LOxbOdBX_M391DIATDCcFmkIZV_ASJCAtFNkzH9FWWwVV6F-V5UEeVcJi8y2ADfFFfsS1TFU_8vxSK2WPvVKmasv-87rdD8So2dEjE5_8gsiPpQ6-0WUVZ3ij7SuK81_NgqrxWh8ewkCKkCw/s1710/IMG_0194.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1078" data-original-width="1710" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguQW1Gk6VML9Z678C2DnJ2FnrEAEeE__mLB08jxHPZQ8LOxbOdBX_M391DIATDCcFmkIZV_ASJCAtFNkzH9FWWwVV6F-V5UEeVcJi8y2ADfFFfsS1TFU_8vxSK2WPvVKmasv-87rdD8So2dEjE5_8gsiPpQ6-0WUVZ3ij7SuK81_NgqrxWh8ewkCKkCw/s320/IMG_0194.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">On The Skin of Strangers (detail) 2022</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">After the pandemic, a condition that was imposed on all humanity we explored new ways to express ourselves, to understand the traumas the pandemic exposed in all of us. The work I've presented in the <a href="https://www.eventbrite.com.br/e/13a-bienal-de-artes-visuais-do-mercosul-trauma-sonho-e-fuga-tickets-419065264487">biennial</a> whose theme is, Trauma, Dreams Escape”, curated by Marcello Dantas, is an extension of an ongoing series that examines the womb( and agency) ; the womb is central in the exploration and is used here as an allegory, referencing beginnings, rebirth and transitions. The human form is stripped of skin, a recurring motif, which is often an identifier that informs stereotypes, the stripped form used here in multiple iterations to explore our internal identities and territories as a mental frame of reference. A reference for a society that is constantly changing. During these times we are faced with ever an ever-changing global climate. From the onset of the pandemic, we find ourselves contending with the illusion that we had a semblance of control our lives were interrupted and changed. This brought about the exploration of our bodies in a time and space of change; the work is an attempt to cement the transitory feeling of developing individuality amidst the context of shared struggle. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkV-PHa-6YMgSliTsrMDeI0zx46jK7zKiFNvFeUgkU_5KLA6KfALJPEPpGXnMSRx8OljRbMxCroOL1D6ZpfLvWXN0aiDkrT_0d5AGUe2vtZ6-mGfLQYoRzmYN8sopJY9UMHuJffoma6jV_IuePpzfTW2Lh_TYoBlzndBUpfUHbC6jStNmoe9LzfbHarw/s979/DC2C4991-54A2-4DF6-9186-03190A23AADC.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="734" data-original-width="979" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkV-PHa-6YMgSliTsrMDeI0zx46jK7zKiFNvFeUgkU_5KLA6KfALJPEPpGXnMSRx8OljRbMxCroOL1D6ZpfLvWXN0aiDkrT_0d5AGUe2vtZ6-mGfLQYoRzmYN8sopJY9UMHuJffoma6jV_IuePpzfTW2Lh_TYoBlzndBUpfUHbC6jStNmoe9LzfbHarw/s320/DC2C4991-54A2-4DF6-9186-03190A23AADC.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Installation stills (Instituto Ling) 2022</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The solitude of a mandatory quarantine exposed traumas that were not only individual but global. The times exposed broken systems of governance, a precarious awareness now challenging the values that have, in different forms and times steered global societal structures. Our humanity 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, militarization and intolerance. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4yi_Bvhs3lgEec3f_B-eGqjeWeQcOjxKXLA5W61yk4uJ2bwS-GJhgoJcHmehrxUIdlHe8pGjLKWdP5XYIQYCYPz25w6aLka3oQxWmHy0mFqTxSeSrvu3IfvxbcmMi5MckO3WFf4BDzgNgO5qGOspW7-0qlZ6ZIdXaCp3So_0uKdhFfh7RrZiJFoa0cA/s3940/IMG_0982.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3940" data-original-width="2762" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4yi_Bvhs3lgEec3f_B-eGqjeWeQcOjxKXLA5W61yk4uJ2bwS-GJhgoJcHmehrxUIdlHe8pGjLKWdP5XYIQYCYPz25w6aLka3oQxWmHy0mFqTxSeSrvu3IfvxbcmMi5MckO3WFf4BDzgNgO5qGOspW7-0qlZ6ZIdXaCp3So_0uKdhFfh7RrZiJFoa0cA/s320/IMG_0982.jpg" width="224" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Babel (2022)</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The womb is an allegory and a response to a shifting global climate and also the template of our dreams, of an imagined state of being, of our Individual resistance projecting a semblance of breaking out from the exoskeleton of collective formatting and expectations. When the figures are stripped off their skin, they are invariably stripping away the pretensions and powers of humanity; allowing room to explore our lives, our influence and expose our collective universal interconnectedness. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drawing on parallels of the “<i>Tower of Babel”</i>in Genesis; </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><i><div style="text-align: left;"><i>“and this is only the beginning of what they will do; and nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them”. </i></div></i><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">To our modern-day, “<i>Babel</i>", examines ambition, the erasure of the individual in favour of the collective, the use of legislation to suppress the rights of the individual. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">By exploring the theme of Trauma, Dreams Escape, the work also examines the construction of the individual what is called "<i>ethical substance</i>," 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.</div> Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-31767858278451049822022-06-20T08:45:00.015-07:002022-11-29T12:26:49.799-08:00Unsettled<p></p>Currently exhibiting work at <a href="https://www.duendeartprojects.com/exhibitions/7-unsettled-zwartzusters-monastery-antwerp-belgium/overview/">Duende Art Projects</a>, The exhibition, "<i>Unsettled</i>" is an ode to restlessness. What are humans if not always striving to become a better version of themselves? Restless souls who are invariably moving, stretching themselves – and thereby others - in an active pursuit for impalpable aspirations. This continuous chase can go hand in hand with a passionate desire to express this unsettled state. <div><br /></div><div>The exhibition closes 3 July 2022.<div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia_Oqkevc7DMUVtz9wrg3eUJ5k1_AdWHdxRfCb_ftaD2DPiG1YsFPeXlBYfUFSUM15rV5n_MD1HHXTdRxDTaHXfHEgJP8ejMYIAIAxh4u1jycmoAnWx0cd30nlhPdco0UIt1Zj-ED7hwHZd5xRMQ4gyTa_WkD4RuoHrM5pupqdzKawU-isPhNLHqAvdg/s2048/EB1DC98B-8FEE-4D0A-BEA7-5C18A0C2E430.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia_Oqkevc7DMUVtz9wrg3eUJ5k1_AdWHdxRfCb_ftaD2DPiG1YsFPeXlBYfUFSUM15rV5n_MD1HHXTdRxDTaHXfHEgJP8ejMYIAIAxh4u1jycmoAnWx0cd30nlhPdco0UIt1Zj-ED7hwHZd5xRMQ4gyTa_WkD4RuoHrM5pupqdzKawU-isPhNLHqAvdg/s320/EB1DC98B-8FEE-4D0A-BEA7-5C18A0C2E430.jpeg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Installation still</span></i></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><i>An excerpt about the work by Curator, Bruno Claessens.</i><div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">...In her practice Wanjiku examines the times we are living in. With ambiguous feelings, she senses the world is in a phase of self-combustion. Moved by social and political situations, both on a local as global level, her works interrogate their unsettling impact on our lives. Her paintings are not political, but reflect on our journey as human beings, and how we are forced to constantly adapt to navigate our social spaces. Wanjiku’s paintings scrutinize the human experience, functioning as a mirror of who we are.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">With her paintings, Wanjiku hopes we can return to our true selves, bringing back the completeness that we are searching for. Her work reflects this pursuit for meaning, to make sense of our constantly altering realities.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdrZwwrDbNQup5P7oNJ2UG7N93XSXNRJ5SmbUJu5GDYCBTb6IdgE0D4RVpD7cMQ_A9MRsW2QXfa7t3rXwVrMbcae__NuW3vpUtpGYzNv6gvKpcK-QyEV-onnbRjEduYq5X3Z7NKq01xycjZN2iV_WBPywi4FxzX1sLy-j0Pl7LN3g4UAR_onrePdnMQA/s320/4CDEF53E-9DC0-498A-AE79-26C98A92B243.jpeg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Exhibition Installation stills</span></i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Exploring the ‘condition humaine’, Wanjiku displays who we are as human beings, in our genuine entirety. While being masters of our own destiny, she visualizes the duality of our inner selves, constantly battling between choices in a process of doubt while trying to reinvent ourselves. Wanjiku is inspired by the shared experience of the multifaceted persons we are, ever- changing and evolving. The motif of the gaping mouth, omnipresent in many of her paintings, is a metaphor for this constant and consuming search that alters us; it is an insatiable abyss. Wanjiku’s portraits deliberately have a certain abstractness, not wanting to portray identifiable persons so they can function as a mirror to each. In the unsettling confrontation with her works, the viewer is challenged to re-evaluate oneself.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQpISeB_qZtJHh9amxx73vikGlazlosljIu3YA0WGMP5wN2AONLkfDm5LdAkAeujuiYpPCwP7n3ClDk7D5zwhleP5oYV9YsQbRyxmihto8UGDt0nG8KjvnJaqWyRHcpkUuvRBfP5VIvCzZ0FQW_rCXkiwQDfJZ4msG1-wzA_AB1FddNXTK_A1EKR4l0A/s320/37D7D667-04C4-4DC5-B7B8-88F1BCD9D92D.jpeg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>The Strangeness of My Madness VI (2022)</i></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">With her paintings Wanjiku expresses something that’s within. She is on an elusive quest to figure out how our internal functions, trying to represent our inner selves by peeling away the layers of constituted social norms. Wanjiku goes straight to the core of our being. She bypasses the superficialities and dives into the common features of being human, like bones, blood, veins and other guts. She wants to show the backbone of our human existence. While painting the physicality of the human body, it is our mental interiors she is trying to capture.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjESizOCzswjDt-4iq_ICWHmzZ78Gfeb5wrW-S_3MvGksWNHrJ64Ocq_tSean5TccY6JWNB559bl8Ms_vQJ4rgk7DyHruBsUAGtrflFmY65WtLntVp79sXrmQJKjCpeGHebRwrTI55kGW3Wqm4pzW1zMGHy57htFP_QF5rGf3TlFK6YuT-i_Wt3CmtgoQ/s320/7484C361-719D-4CF7-B916-CDB44C436D5F.jpeg" /></i></span></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Installation Stills</i></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">A prominent visual element in the featured works is her anatomical deconstruction of the human body, especially the ribcage, protecting the body’s essential’s guts. For Wanjiku, human bodies are a metaphor for our mental frame of reference. Her art has a larger, more universal message – as our human condition it is shared by all, notwithstanding physical differences in skin color, gender, or age. Wanjiku prefers to work with darkened hues,building up her portraits with a layering of flesh tones and shades of dark blue. The final layer is so thin it becomes see-through. Underneath, a brightness of red hues emerges from a womb like shape – suggesting re- birth. The womb suggests a reclaiming of a life and hope, filled with energy and power. Pregnant of possibilities, her paintings are metaphors for new beginnings, a rebirth within oneself. To peer into a painting of Wanjiku is to lose yourself in questions of being, of belonging and of existence.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-8LAT3trj2bQDVNIY_mggtNkFb9pDMQRYj5DDXU62mKR8dOatwcFlOMIKPGgQoK9U1qvJND8dcB4syqNMTpxXBRjJaysBX4tEk-JVEbMf7YbCJuOX6B7ctv94w8U7l23WYB9iEovwX2X8bz0LKkgQnC9Cblck7j55XxQM5Kuawv3JOkCEhGTWlJ1W5g/s320/DF0F9969-6C6A-45A2-81E0-C26A94B085C5.jpeg" /></i></span></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Installation Stills</i></span></div> <p></p></div></div></div></div></div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-91242101917706775652022-05-16T10:48:00.001-07:002022-05-16T10:59:52.380-07:00FictionsCurrently showing work at <a href="https://circleartagency.com/portfolios/exhibitions/current-exhibition/fictions-group-exhibition/">Circle Art Gallery</a>, this exhibition curated by Don Handa, invites the viewer to consider possible relationships between one work and the next and, by extension, between each artist’s practice and the next. The title of the exhibition <i>"Fictions"</i> speaks to the possible connections that can emerge in the distance between artworks; and how that space can offer room for the viewer to begin thinking about thematic connections and overlaps. Fictions contends that one artwork/artist can expand the viewers thinking about another.<div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgficKGXVEDSwFzQ0IVIl9YHGRka0pGQq4M4US0l4UsDTvkNY7eopX1f5pP6ib2EEZEF9t8MCbAc24mO0uLDo7UCALVlvaGm7p9hh0_hlKdHb4rkPPk6dL5wgMVzVRDM858yydKUFVYmCIEkGuU96sZFVIKzUOJy6m6Ov0vCvlgK_VRSav7iAEOsmCJsA/s5511/_MG_1384.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5511" data-original-width="4294" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgficKGXVEDSwFzQ0IVIl9YHGRka0pGQq4M4US0l4UsDTvkNY7eopX1f5pP6ib2EEZEF9t8MCbAc24mO0uLDo7UCALVlvaGm7p9hh0_hlKdHb4rkPPk6dL5wgMVzVRDM858yydKUFVYmCIEkGuU96sZFVIKzUOJy6m6Ov0vCvlgK_VRSav7iAEOsmCJsA/s320/_MG_1384.jpg" width="249" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Recalled to Life (2020)</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: start;">How, for example, do the intricate drawings of Gor Soudan, which intermingle the natural and man-made in our environment relate to the large abstract, iterative, landscape-inspired works of Tahir Karmali, or the material experiments of Maliza Kiasuwa? Where does the interiority that marks the works of Beatrice Wanjiku and Tiemar Tegene meet the narrative, observational quality of Salah Elmur and Geoffrey Mukasa’s portraits? Can the unfixed compositions of Jonathan Fraser somehow lead one to the dreamlike visions of Wanyu Brush? How do inanimate objects take on new lives in the paintings of Sujay Shah and Nahom Teklehaimanot?</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: start;"><br /></span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjagIGIppBTOPdPuBylt0aKy9EGXkrk1JslDVYcPb8xrovMkuexLjrOl0_MGBBVVyAxAMhHqM-OMwXWpNbeoqyXOf6YSboPSrONkMKGaV9r6ch0vWs80KUP9BTP6MUbBQazhmRgT8EklShZupbTZNXogfYfyYeK9KRBi9xmHjetK_itfVCOPexRmLn-rA/s1152/IMG_9609.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="828" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjagIGIppBTOPdPuBylt0aKy9EGXkrk1JslDVYcPb8xrovMkuexLjrOl0_MGBBVVyAxAMhHqM-OMwXWpNbeoqyXOf6YSboPSrONkMKGaV9r6ch0vWs80KUP9BTP6MUbBQazhmRgT8EklShZupbTZNXogfYfyYeK9KRBi9xmHjetK_itfVCOPexRmLn-rA/s320/IMG_9609.jpg" width="230" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>The Primal and Unutterable II (2021)</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: start;">Such questions – perhaps they are suggestions – lie at the heart of the exhibition. The show treats visual, thematic, and material parallels and starting points for richer, more involved interpretations of the selected works. The exhibition insists that we think of artworks as existing within a broader context of making and thinking, and not solely as discrete objects emerging from the studio.</span></div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-11290479298067013452022-04-13T05:46:00.013-07:002023-11-14T02:21:16.354-08:00Mount Kenya Point Lenana<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Life is defined by many, many things, but mostly those moments that challenge us and reveal our mettle, summiting Mount Kenya is top most my greatest accomplishment. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I embarked on a journey to summit Lenana peak Mount Kenya, the highest mountain in Kenya, second highest highest in Africa, after Kilimanjaro on Saturday 9th 2022. We accessed it using the Naro Moru trail a tough trail due to its steep ascend to make camp overnight at Naro Moru River Lodge/Teleki Lodge to make the final ascend the following morning. The hike is scenic with lolling clouds sweeping over the mountains, giant lobelias and moorland. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbdZASobQ_0NIbb9zQUElt2nblYCpLiXTK511pBXCYOScggzAXKHC65ZUSkyWkq1bFBTLw3w81Z21LkGXiw7REZyueTYO7SwPe8_OeW3Rps9Qsz2Hr4UZ8zq9QxOA4Ycnq58R89-QHqu41Q3n4C23I43jaHcvmFgQBsRwo3DHwKtvIl_u0sEE-O2Q4LQ/s4032/IMG_9113.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbdZASobQ_0NIbb9zQUElt2nblYCpLiXTK511pBXCYOScggzAXKHC65ZUSkyWkq1bFBTLw3w81Z21LkGXiw7REZyueTYO7SwPe8_OeW3Rps9Qsz2Hr4UZ8zq9QxOA4Ycnq58R89-QHqu41Q3n4C23I43jaHcvmFgQBsRwo3DHwKtvIl_u0sEE-O2Q4LQ/s320/IMG_9113.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>View from the summit 16,355 ft Above Sea Level</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiK87VX18YEEH2ho9DWhYpWrcqsP922zf61bWuSfDb2-OQeLm-iIX-H8GNgt2PuTQPgnaTjkIZzQFhrUpqFboh604OHlplvQhA72Shg0CeCAK1T0_KzGq-FYCo8E_u0AlC81ud9ZLmopxR_YcTeeczU_ftIagzA7GlqOwSW_b4Vb7w922eA5-7C9rvQg/s4032/IMG_9114.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiK87VX18YEEH2ho9DWhYpWrcqsP922zf61bWuSfDb2-OQeLm-iIX-H8GNgt2PuTQPgnaTjkIZzQFhrUpqFboh604OHlplvQhA72Shg0CeCAK1T0_KzGq-FYCo8E_u0AlC81ud9ZLmopxR_YcTeeczU_ftIagzA7GlqOwSW_b4Vb7w922eA5-7C9rvQg/s320/IMG_9114.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">View from the descend</span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I had previously done a day hike to Mackinder’s camp having started at 10.30 am and summiting at 2.30pm, four hours. Which I would imagine is quite a great start considering the altitude changes and elevation of 4300 meters or 14200 feet above sea level. As I arrived at Mackinder’s camp one of the hikers we were with, remarked that it was just 6km to the Lenana peak summit a 500 meter gain in elevation. I recall looking back and thinking had I come prepared, I would have summited the very next day. Let’s just call this sentiment, an over estimation we were high from the mountain air. Hiking Mount Kenya is a fete that people prepare for, doing altitude hikes at many Kenyan altitude ranges. So having summited <i>Mackinders</i>, the rush of finishing, the feeling that one is unstoppable; turning back and heading home I was resolved to conquer this mountain.</div><div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpCx3-000b0krDKHRjq5HDSNy8L6qUN7b5wq3VSIgwCuFBCI7hsbaaoBsXn3etkErG8b63hfqguHZ_Ra5RqTvkdtZJLOuOG6q9c9qrihF20L-9fQZTBl9bA-wT2MA_WkHbNx8yfV_nyGHlNVa_YE1EJVlk8orIu3Pr-MOqZ8cv9VpoElzTLkgMZFyFRw/s1280/f1d9e52a-e162-4fdd-8a87-ad84f1a1c1e9.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpCx3-000b0krDKHRjq5HDSNy8L6qUN7b5wq3VSIgwCuFBCI7hsbaaoBsXn3etkErG8b63hfqguHZ_Ra5RqTvkdtZJLOuOG6q9c9qrihF20L-9fQZTBl9bA-wT2MA_WkHbNx8yfV_nyGHlNVa_YE1EJVlk8orIu3Pr-MOqZ8cv9VpoElzTLkgMZFyFRw/s320/f1d9e52a-e162-4fdd-8a87-ad84f1a1c1e9.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>This is me hunched over just a few meters to the summit, struggling to breathe, my heart palpitating so loud at his point I didn't think summiting was a possibility. It felt like my body was giving up on me. However much I wanted to proceed I couldn't breathe had to breathe through both my nose and mouth. I stood at this point for a good ten minutes until my heart rate became regular.</i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQfUH7hL9owulX3qV96N4TrSu2GhLzesDuCWeulUkpZZ517cUOMrA5e-c2jlLd6sP7O_KAVZ4lT7-fuCExAtJsmuVv1BWdN9EsYvfA7x8IjVZIJDUhVlgSSltI06mNnxFbNZbqMm2f6zyuztneXSKkjWjJshs2HBvOyCJ1TZHzvNSaGEp7n0xIn9rzFA/s1280/31c809a3-d325-44a7-b4b5-37f93a14784c.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="958" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQfUH7hL9owulX3qV96N4TrSu2GhLzesDuCWeulUkpZZ517cUOMrA5e-c2jlLd6sP7O_KAVZ4lT7-fuCExAtJsmuVv1BWdN9EsYvfA7x8IjVZIJDUhVlgSSltI06mNnxFbNZbqMm2f6zyuztneXSKkjWjJshs2HBvOyCJ1TZHzvNSaGEp7n0xIn9rzFA/s320/31c809a3-d325-44a7-b4b5-37f93a14784c.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">A mountain conquered, a victory </span></i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>realised!</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The day arrived, we set out for Mackinder’s camp at 1:30pm and arrived before 6pm. The hike up the mountain scenic, we stopped every so often to take pictures and to just take in the sights. The weather was very favourable no rain, hail or snow, but nothing prepared me for the freezing winds. When we set out for the mountain, we had left the porters behind and with them our food rations and among them was our cook for the night. So you can imagine having arrived at Mackinder’s everyone was a bit famished there was not a hot meal and it was soon a dying of the light as the night set in. We asked if a fire could be lit but apparently due the thin air and the smoke from the firewood would apparently be poisonous. I think the whole idea of camping at Teleki lodge is so that the body can acclimatize during the night. </div></div><div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsmN5DY5yT-f1sBJ3p30ZdKB86tGpDprEQ8Sg7T5B2Bb6MMDGrJYsU2XEzz5K-XDfObA7LmnxDRbdIGhAW3MCtaeX0hiKEyD4ILV88KHUX7ucSRjrzEwu9_kbq7eQ67QeFKkLabie_MR4wtiGzXdk2amMg6VoXaQkz5BCPn5bUvU12sg6Gj-szu3Mc_g/s4032/IMG_9085.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsmN5DY5yT-f1sBJ3p30ZdKB86tGpDprEQ8Sg7T5B2Bb6MMDGrJYsU2XEzz5K-XDfObA7LmnxDRbdIGhAW3MCtaeX0hiKEyD4ILV88KHUX7ucSRjrzEwu9_kbq7eQ67QeFKkLabie_MR4wtiGzXdk2amMg6VoXaQkz5BCPn5bUvU12sg6Gj-szu3Mc_g/s320/IMG_9085.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Giant lobelias </span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Waking up at 1:30am for a light breakfast we departed for peak Lenana, a 6km ascend with an elevation gain of 500 meters at 3am with nothing but our torches illuminating the way. The skies clear, stars visible, and the trail of torches lighting the way as we made our way up the mountain. Silence enveloped us save for the grunts and strained breathing as the altitude assaulted our senses; all around us the only sound audible was that of our feet as we made our ascend. The ascend gruelling and brutal, freezing winds, stopping for a minute or two for some reprieve to catch our breathe and acclimatise to the altitude. The air thin an assault on my lungs as I struggle with my laboured breathing, my heart palpitates so loud but we trudge on until we reach the Austrian camp and rest a bit before we make the final ascend which as estimated by the guide will take us another hour. At this point my fingers, toes and mouth are numb talking is impossible and when I make an attempt it feels like I had a visit to the dentist words come out jumbled. </div></div><div><div style="text-align: left;">We make the summit at 6am in time to view the sunrise four hours later; four hours is relatively the distance one covers walking 15km on a normal trail. Words fail in describing having succeeded to summit, but as the saying goes, “what goes up must come down”, and that was another challenge in on itself. All that mattered is that I conquered Mount Kenya!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3fDCJJih1US03GfDetplKoU24MpCsLXTEGO2WVV1EhdtqBMApYWt6d1hu6k96PNug4aRE63WtmFqzQSGC34DmZJOtFPlp_Uj7CEApn0iAxmjo9UyGl6p7nqn3ebInDwnDcz4YX25xHaufryQz9GtaqnxHGzaq9KIzOwJzly5RFgjXcXYx-pGYiOPvsg/s4032/IMG_9108.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3fDCJJih1US03GfDetplKoU24MpCsLXTEGO2WVV1EhdtqBMApYWt6d1hu6k96PNug4aRE63WtmFqzQSGC34DmZJOtFPlp_Uj7CEApn0iAxmjo9UyGl6p7nqn3ebInDwnDcz4YX25xHaufryQz9GtaqnxHGzaq9KIzOwJzly5RFgjXcXYx-pGYiOPvsg/s320/IMG_9108.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>The temperature dropping to freezing degrees, let me just say that no amount of preparation prepares you for how cold it got at night. The views though are incomparable! </i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><br /></div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-13648606080650205232022-02-23T09:29:00.017-08:002022-10-11T03:51:21.430-07:00Studio News!Happy belated new year! <br /><br />I know, I know, like really? Yes. The year is still new though we carry on our days with the responsibilities of the old one. Fresh thought and new ideas growing off the previous both literally and metaphorically, finishing up projects and starting new ones. I have resumed and are back in the the studio after a small hiatus having had a dynamic year that left me feeling burnt out and in need of some rest, I am back, rejuvenated, and refreshed excited to update you and let you in on some studio news;<br /><br />The year is off to an exciting start; I will be exhibiting at the Expo Chicago with <a href="https://www.montaguecontemporary.com/">Montague </a>Contemporary. The International Exposition of Contemporary & Modern Art, that features leading international galleries alongside the highest quality platform for contemporary art and culture.<div>In 2022, <a href="https://www.expochicago.com/about">EXPO CHICAGO</a> will host the 9th edition in-person exposition on April 7-10, 2022<div style="text-align: justify;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg6U5T5f_8hG1K7-g2-_v_AABtRd_ZSh3Sj-c3KKOAJxEkqazHb4TnrUkBNw_LQff_vmi1s3TQ8yc9dtqVlaixzvv8ROzvchn-1_WPgFwL_oRXeoOPpw5zu4JmLQoeeXYGXgD0qDVBek0xvpSagTFQoe0nlS-27xfRWN7QHJ1Qi4mgSb2UlIpq6dVCK5g=s2419" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2007" data-original-width="2419" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg6U5T5f_8hG1K7-g2-_v_AABtRd_ZSh3Sj-c3KKOAJxEkqazHb4TnrUkBNw_LQff_vmi1s3TQ8yc9dtqVlaixzvv8ROzvchn-1_WPgFwL_oRXeoOPpw5zu4JmLQoeeXYGXgD0qDVBek0xvpSagTFQoe0nlS-27xfRWN7QHJ1Qi4mgSb2UlIpq6dVCK5g=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Restless in rest IV (2020)</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br />On 26 May - 3 July 2022, I have an upcoming group show with Duende Art Projects dubbed<i>, “Unsettled” </i>at Zwartzusters monastery, Antwerp, Belgium <br /><br />Unsettled” is an ode to restlessness. What are humans if not always striving to become a better version of themselves? Restless souls who are invariably moving, stretching themselves – and thereby others - in an active pursuit for impalpable aspirations. This continuous chase can go hand in hand with a passionate desire to express this unsettled state. <div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhSxWI8179AuWMs8Hvk95gWw4Ilbac_Wg6qhDL7n8L1Ga38zlSFFvyIH5zTZqAvmtKdbZTs3ysJOQvDTCd5-WH8dTdSJTlhNKMaRefYQ25BTlcI0MBeIecRaNV79Cd_CdiT2vfdvC47NhNg0124miNuaITIoONxU1C4tPOJ0GjJVf2L9wsnW2b01EKwwg=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhSxWI8179AuWMs8Hvk95gWw4Ilbac_Wg6qhDL7n8L1Ga38zlSFFvyIH5zTZqAvmtKdbZTs3ysJOQvDTCd5-WH8dTdSJTlhNKMaRefYQ25BTlcI0MBeIecRaNV79Cd_CdiT2vfdvC47NhNg0124miNuaITIoONxU1C4tPOJ0GjJVf2L9wsnW2b01EKwwg=s320" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Work in progress (2022)</span></i></div> </div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-24467366275619882392021-12-24T23:17:00.016-08:002022-05-03T09:53:16.129-07:00Season's Greetings!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;">I know I haven’t posted for a minute save for updating on art and studio matters. But where else do I get to postulate and ruminate on my life. Let me take this moment to wish everyone happy holidays! The end of the year is nigh; 2022 looms over the horizon, and as always, it’s time to reflect the year that was.Taking stock of lessons learned, opportunities seized, failed states of being, growth, and an all-round illusion of some semblance of order. I woke up saying I need to name five things that I’m grateful for each day. Just five. There’s something about naming them that not only makes one thankful but also one gets to pause and really think. In that way it becomes a way of appreciating even the most mundane moments. While it is easy to define our lives by what we do, these times have proven that is no longer a viable option. Reflections are very illuminating calling to mind my shortcomings and failings. These reflections allow me to appreciate beyond my work, circles of support that I have around me. Family and friendships not necessarily the one you’re born into but those whom we have adopted and have remained true through adversity, joy, at this journey we call life. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgt2alh39zzKXh5ygIZ1d4C7NJ9PeWfi94kDbGcu6E8Behm_TNKL-fNwTgvqOtwkGlycl9GLo7QlRO0PzjWGw7l2MsMsjrFItemjaFk0AjDalB5v3dU72_YzSnAckWFDThIyzOql6-UTdxQbuXo9JN0KISxmuuZj4FeR_W-4vMgzs23AbslqCIdlJ2ASw=s3256" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3256" data-original-width="2252" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgt2alh39zzKXh5ygIZ1d4C7NJ9PeWfi94kDbGcu6E8Behm_TNKL-fNwTgvqOtwkGlycl9GLo7QlRO0PzjWGw7l2MsMsjrFItemjaFk0AjDalB5v3dU72_YzSnAckWFDThIyzOql6-UTdxQbuXo9JN0KISxmuuZj4FeR_W-4vMgzs23AbslqCIdlJ2ASw=s320" width="221" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span><i>(When not in the studio you'll find me outdoors hiking</i></span><i> the trails)</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;">I ushered this year uncertain of what it might entail, after the year that was 2020 a year plagued by a pandemic which by the way is still ongoing that utterly shuffled the way we do life. By this I mean the illusion that we somehow had a semblance of control on our lives. One thing I was certain of, was not to fall back to habits that were both time consuming and unproductive. I had to narrow down what exactly it is I wanted to achieve by the close of the year. I confess I am not one of those people who always ushers a new year with a plethora of resolutions, I mean it might work for some but for me every new year is an opportunity to complete ongoing projects or the completion of set goals. That way I am not fooling myself and I can realise my projects and find balance in both my work and personal life.</span></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgyowx1XLWBEByfXJPLn9Dj2qdxS2g4kBfsvo4CJlc8M3dmr4SBcToo17TpSbDbh1Rns7I7pr8I1vfbyaov99VFlFZcnmofdKm-CG9FUVrD9vivYTLN5Flq8uExGLBt0GxQbpnulv-lGlzqBj3KcY3lqdKXsd9LjCqcDD4Vt_ZdbwOxIHjbrEZdZQEcYg=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgyowx1XLWBEByfXJPLn9Dj2qdxS2g4kBfsvo4CJlc8M3dmr4SBcToo17TpSbDbh1Rns7I7pr8I1vfbyaov99VFlFZcnmofdKm-CG9FUVrD9vivYTLN5Flq8uExGLBt0GxQbpnulv-lGlzqBj3KcY3lqdKXsd9LjCqcDD4Vt_ZdbwOxIHjbrEZdZQEcYg=s320" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>(The studio)</i></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">As we come to the close of the year gratitude rings in my mind. I’m grateful for mistakes I’ve made and they are many but more the lessons learned. I’m grateful for my solo show that was three years in the making amidst the times we are living in. Collaborated on a VR project that got selected for the <a href="https://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/2021/lineup/venice-vr-expanded/il-dubbio-episodio-ii">Labiennale de Venezia,</a> exhibited at the museum, was part of the tusk lion trail, a global project that aimed to highlight the ongoing threats to the survival of the lion population in Africa. Even with all these projects and more it is astonishing to discover I have a penchant to complain. Realizing I am, my own worst critic, I hope to eschew moving forward from this proclivity. I hope to remedy this by taking a moment to appreciate it all. This year with its wins and losses where sometimes the losses seems to engulf everything. Grief. What is grief? But a part of life. I buried many people this year. I mourned and yet there didn’t seem to be an end to the mourning. Grief hit different having lost an uncle who was like an adoptive father to me, it was one of those moments. Grief coming in unexpectedly, as I accepted the seasons of my heart with its infinite depths boundless and measureless. I grieved failed relations mourning the possibilities I hoped they would be. We continue to mourn for ourselves, the self we are constantly shedding.</div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj0iJNlV7vmLdpwZa6Y1leO8C3A4kmkW9uIdjmin6-35A-ClhXhJP7hIt9Kt3v0V4BAjnwAgaL0ePS3Rt8OS9WsbiYVmqexB2oFksIWkK47k3Uc9ZjKEoBbHPs4R9r22GDw5wo7AtKM5TF8fPoQE1foAYQvxI8XVDU_Sp5f_XKwDzPA9CzcL2p1RIurzQ=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj0iJNlV7vmLdpwZa6Y1leO8C3A4kmkW9uIdjmin6-35A-ClhXhJP7hIt9Kt3v0V4BAjnwAgaL0ePS3Rt8OS9WsbiYVmqexB2oFksIWkK47k3Uc9ZjKEoBbHPs4R9r22GDw5wo7AtKM5TF8fPoQE1foAYQvxI8XVDU_Sp5f_XKwDzPA9CzcL2p1RIurzQ=s320" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>(A Wild infection of a Wildly Shaken Public Mind, <a href="http://mylifeuntitled-bea.blogspot.com/2021/08/a-wild-infection-of-wildly-shaken_23.html">Solo </a>Exhibition 2021)</i></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Every end of the year this ruminations culminate in not carrying this baggage into the new year. Hoping to arrive at it with optimism. The remedy for this, gratitude. Gratitude even if the mundane moments feel so trivial making them more worth celebrating. So, as we enter the holiday season, I reflect on all those who don’t get to celebrate it for one reason or another. Whether we are alone or with the family we’re born into or adopted, the best way to celebrate the holidays is to be at peace with oneself within the spaces we find ourselves in. The seasons mantra, “peace and goodwill” to all men resounds most times goodwill barely hanging by a thread. Peace within ourselves allows the goodwill to spread to our loved ones. So, while we celebrate this festive season, I hope that everyone wherever we are, are loved and are loving in a small way and are able to extend friendship and love by paying it forward. These times that call for little moments shared between some grilled meat, the buffet, the loud laughter at the family table while my eyes scan across the room at faces I haven’t seen in a while sometimes since we ushered the year; this tradition where we gather for the holidays, each holiday we seem to be fewer and fewer at the table or when we come together for a funeral or impromptu gathering. This manner of getting together for those fleeting moments we engage and try to fit a whole year into conversations. Loud animated conversations where it feels like everyone is talking over everyone at the same time, music humming in the background and when everything has quieted down, we come to an understanding and are understood in whatever we are trying to say. Everyone somehow hearing and being heard; or sometimes we’re sitting on the couch completely stuffed and while you’re in a food coma and can barely remember the conversations a thought flashes across your mind catching you off guard that you laugh with reckless abandon in contentment. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><span> <span> <span> <span> <span> <span> <span> <span> <span> <span> <span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjloKuTDYynICR1ZclhbLDU0iTxVVTC35Lzn-hINEcFQHqzcBLcA2NjPM3DoJiQR-UP6Isn10-tGBaJ6dkUR8QHlAuMAXXbJ7X-TuVM-F2FW1E-t9Pr29rt6RWxmzW9f0QoyVqBHsky_8jkvGDz432hlSqNvD1OWDBVOv-OKhvnfHqxdkz02rdCZ0nADw=s1127" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="733" data-original-width="1127" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjloKuTDYynICR1ZclhbLDU0iTxVVTC35Lzn-hINEcFQHqzcBLcA2NjPM3DoJiQR-UP6Isn10-tGBaJ6dkUR8QHlAuMAXXbJ7X-TuVM-F2FW1E-t9Pr29rt6RWxmzW9f0QoyVqBHsky_8jkvGDz432hlSqNvD1OWDBVOv-OKhvnfHqxdkz02rdCZ0nADw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Behind the Scenes <a href="https://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/2021/lineup/venice-vr-expanded/il-dubbio-episodio-ii">IL Dubbio</a> A VR Project 2021)</div><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></i></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Wherever we find ourselves, let the most minutiae in the sounds of laughter, running footsteps, fading echoes of conversations in this festive season be the guiding light ushering us into a new year. Because who are we save for these fleeting moments that we so often take for granted. I wish you all love and when the curtain unveils the dawn of the new year, I hope to find you all on the other side.</div> <div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Happy holidays!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><br />Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-2540938330059643752021-11-09T01:08:00.008-08:002021-11-16T02:56:50.457-08:00Artworlds Podcast<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://artworlds-podcast.net/podcast/episode-3-beatrice-wanjiku/"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5_UkFXy-OZ2wiThXSDmTuyTt1lFfSSs7At8d5ypK93j4E9qOkoQK1hk96Hwv2MP5XNDmkvQb2m1fNqgT0OYgq_2LjJFoLF5qIA6pHl3IBRFZqPRhp1EDoXucfbD0rM2gzLVcstFkfd95Y/s320/IMG-20210223-WA0015.JPG" width="320" /></i></a></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://artworlds-podcast.net/podcast/episode-3-beatrice-wanjiku/"><i><br /></i></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://artworlds-podcast.net/podcast/episode-3-beatrice-wanjiku/">https://artworlds-podcast.net/podcast/episode-3-beatrice-wanjiku/</a></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.artsy.net/artist/beatrice-wanjiku"><span style="font-size: x-small;">https://www.artsy.net/artist/beatrice-wanjiku</span></a><br /></div></div><p></p>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-43186210451659061712021-11-04T03:51:00.002-07:002021-11-04T03:51:21.054-07:00In Other News...<p><a href="https://www.elle.com/it/magazine/storie-di-donne/a38023227/artiste-per-africa/">https://www.elle.com/it/magazine/storie-di-donne/a38023227/artiste-per-africa/</a> </p>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-30630052192967908352021-10-15T02:59:00.016-07:002022-11-25T02:16:03.338-08:00Excerpt of A Review<div style="text-align: justify;">Beatrice goes straight to the core of our being, bypassing the superficialities and diving into the common features of being human, like bones, blood, veins and other guts. She has a way of striping her subjects down, literally to the bare bones so one has little choice but to journey with her into those interior parts.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">She has taken us into those mental interiors in her previous shows. But often I’d felt I was heading towards a ‘heart of darkness’ where some inner sadness was revealed through her art. </div><div style="text-align: justify;">But there’s a radical shift in the artist’s perspective in this show that she entitles<i> “A Wild Infection of the Wildly Shaken Public Mind.” </i>to continue reflecting on the deeper challenges of being human. Only now, there is far more brightness, hope, and possibility in her art. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6uJdNQGFc90TAis40w7HCeU3gPg0IIYQsWNqRRceqVi2jXmu0s4_zBUtsGqfBRwzLudiiaGi_Y8tb3GR5l9cF4WzvVAskFKfJkTrkvTaqX6eWyxxoC2EP-FfUznQfYTI8WNg0ibdYye33/s2048/_MG_1459.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1452" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6uJdNQGFc90TAis40w7HCeU3gPg0IIYQsWNqRRceqVi2jXmu0s4_zBUtsGqfBRwzLudiiaGi_Y8tb3GR5l9cF4WzvVAskFKfJkTrkvTaqX6eWyxxoC2EP-FfUznQfYTI8WNg0ibdYye33/s320/_MG_1459.JPG" width="227" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Restless in Rest X 2021</span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;">In her show, there is one feature of the human form that repeats itself in multiple iterations. (Someone suggested her repeated forms reminded them of Monet’s multiple beach scenes which he painted and repaints at all hours of day and night.) And that is the ribcage. I find that an apt metaphor since Beatrice seems to be dealing with a delicate subject, namely, what it means to be safe and secure in these times of COVID. Yet in a brief interview with the artist at her show’s opening, Beatrice said she began this body of work well before COVID-19 hit the world stage. “I began this series in 2018,” she confessed. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The ribcage itself is a protected zone, a brilliant structure designed to protect precious organs like the lungs, heart, and liver from events that could ‘shake the public mind’. “For me, human bodies are a metaphor for mental frames of reference,” says Beatrice whose art seems to have a larger, more universal message. It is that irrespective of one’s skin, facial features, body size, or gender, the human condition is one that is shared by all. Working with darkened hues, especially shades of black and dark blue. But now, she also includes works where the brightness of her hues literally explode on her canvas. And as those explosions take place in works where pelvic bones are prominent, I had to ask what that light source was meant to signify?</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitrjO9CbQeyDQyuiMWuK_t_84p6-6kKZxUPy5HSTC2HWhR0ovQ405KzUBBmAfeAaMpzD0VDSXZ4RQcKnzgW0taOP3NjcDwBE2XTdY7d6Knp1DSH2CPBhGq1kUFO1nTc3GMusiezszOtrQX/s2048/IMG_20210302_124409.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1372" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitrjO9CbQeyDQyuiMWuK_t_84p6-6kKZxUPy5HSTC2HWhR0ovQ405KzUBBmAfeAaMpzD0VDSXZ4RQcKnzgW0taOP3NjcDwBE2XTdY7d6Knp1DSH2CPBhGq1kUFO1nTc3GMusiezszOtrQX/s320/IMG_20210302_124409.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Recalled to life II 2021</span></i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“It’s about re-birth,” Beatrice says simply. “It’s also about hope and new possibilities,” she adds. With that major hint in mind, I begin to reevaluate my views of all her paintings. All have dazzling moments of brightness, be they yellow, bright orange, blood red or even white.The blood red might suggest violence, but for Beatrice, it would seem that the colour affirms renewed life, energy, and power. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">She has a unique way of looking at the anatomy of the mind. For instance, in one painting, what appears to be positioned like a womb, is painted in blacks and blues. But Beatrice explains that all the growth inside the womb goes on in darkness, waiting for the time to be right, and a new being is born. But that’s another phase, another painting. So when she says her work is about journeying in life, Beatrice is reclaiming a life of hope and rebirth, when darkness is only a bridge to something brighter and more full of possibility.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Excerpt Written for the Business Daily (published 3 September 2021) by </i><a href="https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/margaretta-wa-gacheru-2140728" style="font-style: italic;">Margaretta Wa Gacheru</a></span></div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-266533031536602372021-10-08T14:49:00.018-07:002023-04-29T13:36:15.473-07:00Currently At The Redhill Gallery<div style="text-align: left;">The exhibition currently showing at the <a href="http://www.redhillartgallery.com/">Redhill Art Gallery</a> until 31 October, shows work from their collection from two Exhibitions, “<i>Divine Discontent</i>” (2015) and “<i>Mourning a Memory</i>” (2018).</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">In “<i>Divine Discontent</i>” (A Straitjacket Series), <i>The premise of the work is that, “People believe in certain ways, predetermined manners often according to pre-described norms of society. Anything counter to this is normally punished whereas “normalcy” is encouraged and rewarded.</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">In the series the<i> “</i><a href="https://www.artlabafrica.com/beatrice-wanjiku"><i>Strait Jacket</i>”</a> is a recurring motif, a metaphor, exploring boundaries, the idea of boundaries (social and self) and imposed system of thought. The work examines how we are anchored by social conditioning and expectation, always bound at the expense of what we desire, a reflection of an outward expression of our inner and intimate existence.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div> <div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAUHMNZp80t-eEt3PcEFawUgfr5BEp3GRhWoKrwWTIzXryNCKqN1sYZ70TXtREIuwG1oNMjqQkwswNB82vwBBpxed0Aq4k3e51ALtRAy2JQB8ivegyUWnzXdsFS8dUk0Gz58oswcvVphpi/s320/4068CF84-084B-42E5-AA65-00EACFF3BCA5.jpeg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Resume your Flesh and Form V (2018🔴</span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">“<i><a href="https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/magazine/Beatrice-Wanjiku-art-exhibition-Nairobi/434746-4834508-bi91hw/index.html">Mourning A Memory</a></i>” (2018) was/is an examination of a time in decline and our in/ability to compartmentalize our lives, how we change/evolve and are forced to adapt in order to navigate our social spaces. Informed by social, political situations happening both locally and globally the series was an interrogation of our lives and as an estrangement and reinventing of self.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The similarity in the work is the constancy of the gaze that is repeatedly directed inward, an excavation of the soul to better understand ourselves and the spaces we occupy </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Featured work:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>Resume your flesh and Form V(2018)</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>Acrylic/Pastel/Mixed Media on Canvas</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>150cm x 100cm</i></div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-35931448029682762102021-09-13T07:02:00.005-07:002023-04-29T13:34:59.765-07:00Kesho Kutwa (The Day After Tomorrow)<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm;"></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Kesho Kutwa</div><div style="text-align: center;">11 September - 15 October 2021</div><br /><br />Kesho Kutwa – "<i>The Day After Tomorrow</i>", heralds re-birth and renewal in a post-pandemic Kenya. The exhibition explores life in a post-pandemic existence. <div><br /><div>The work I submitted in this exhibition explore the duality of the state of being and the natural intrinsic state of fulfillment and happiness. The gaze is directed inwards, and continues on towards the expression of our individual states. </div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhGlG9mSuWgZc0GLlrNsXDRlwFH-n6MxwPpqqGX1kblUVsmHZTOwfMMmXt2iyqImSBqmGIuobPouAV4hEZx3MM8xb4IRKXZPiV1oKdJOJGxX_jIMDYL21SUH30owuLaW84tqk1VavtjKPa/s2048/IMG_3293.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1363" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhGlG9mSuWgZc0GLlrNsXDRlwFH-n6MxwPpqqGX1kblUVsmHZTOwfMMmXt2iyqImSBqmGIuobPouAV4hEZx3MM8xb4IRKXZPiV1oKdJOJGxX_jIMDYL21SUH30owuLaW84tqk1VavtjKPa/s320/IMG_3293.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Out of This Mess II (2021)🔴</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /> </div></div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-46990382742756786422021-09-05T08:11:00.005-07:002021-12-17T03:38:44.259-08:00IL Dubbio Episode 2<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjrt4kM4siN2cVXmC_2BN2ISY_Pc9CGDUS6vRu2iWMa8krRFFr2Y3T42eFpu6Urp2wo1NPFK0H8TZs8odQ91gVjQ_4HNfaOQg1qkY9GpuJR3pdgNmS9NEyB844eVd2tbg1O0psdq2yDsTk/s1600/9cc3cb68-acc8-4af7-bbe6-bf1bb07f2870.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjrt4kM4siN2cVXmC_2BN2ISY_Pc9CGDUS6vRu2iWMa8krRFFr2Y3T42eFpu6Urp2wo1NPFK0H8TZs8odQ91gVjQ_4HNfaOQg1qkY9GpuJR3pdgNmS9NEyB844eVd2tbg1O0psdq2yDsTk/s320/9cc3cb68-acc8-4af7-bbe6-bf1bb07f2870.jpg" width="180" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"<i><b>Il Dubbio</b></i>", is a VR library of artists’ doubts, an exploration of the timeless relationship between artistic expression and doubt, at the Venice VR expanded which is the Virtual Reality section of the 78th Venice International Film Festival of <a href="https://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/2021/lineup/venice-vr-expanded/il-dubbio-episodio-ii">Labiennale di Venezia</a>.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In Episodio II, reflects on the loss of my mother and how the loss informed my work and my identity as an artist. The experience brings to light that infamous feeling that we don’t speak of but which often defines creative work. </div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Directed by Matteo Lonardi</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Production: Reframe VR (Francesco Lonardi)</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Running time: 7'</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Language: English</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Country: Spain, Italy </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Main Cast: Beatrice Wanjiku</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Screenplay: Matteo Lonardi, Rafael Pavon</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Cinematographer: Javier Garcia Lajara</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Music: Vittorio Giampietro</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Sound: Jose Luis Lara</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Platform: Viveport</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Devices:HTC Vive/Vive Pro/Vive Pro 2 HTC Vive Cosmos Oculus Rift/Rift S/Quest w/Link Valve Index</p><br /><table class="lb-dati-film" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border-collapse: collapse; border-spacing: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; width: 640px;"><tbody style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><tr style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><th style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; padding: 1px 15px 1px 0px; vertical-align: top; width: 160px;"><br /></th><td style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; padding: 1px 15px 1px 0px; vertical-align: top; width: 480px;"></td></tr><tr style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><th style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; padding: 1px 15px 1px 0px; vertical-align: top; width: 160px;"><br /></th><td style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; padding: 1px 15px 1px 0px; vertical-align: top; width: 480px;"></td></tr></tbody></table><table class="lb-dati-film" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border-collapse: collapse; border-spacing: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; width: 640px;"><tbody style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><tr style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><th style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; padding: 1px 15px 1px 0px; vertical-align: top; width: 160px;"><br /></th></tr></tbody></table>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-47380429769767329722021-08-23T12:41:00.016-07:002023-04-29T13:36:01.994-07:00A Wild Infection of The Wildly Shaken Public Mind<p>An attempt to describe the human self informs the recent work of Beatrice Wanjiku. Through drawing and painting she continues to explore our internal identities and territories. For her, the internal self is the centre of our intuitions, emotions and beliefs; the place where the inner person is first found, then prised out and delineated. The vehicle that carries her to her discoveries is the human figure — primarily the head and the torso — and by demarcating her findings the artist has succeeded in revealing some of the intricacies that define the bond between self and the physical body. </p><p>From our many conversations, I believe Beatrice’s work draws from a deep well of personal realities and truths. As a result it radiates a warmth of possibly subliminal recognition that nonetheless can be disconcerting, because of its unembellished gaze. For the honesty that hallmarks her unflinching study suggests that her paintings and drawings far from being detached from the prevailing realities of a greater society are instead a facet of it. Her work therefore resonates beyond her own truthful insight to connect with the experiences of others; an experience that is intrinsic to most great creative expressions. This resonance is evident through the rawness and depths experienced when viewing her paintings. At times looking at Beatrice’s paintings and drawings becomes disquieting as they force one to look inwards</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB2BvO_os1BmNgAJAmkYq5_qfF2CM5m1AUbDP2Nv0fCTXuyTGsr9PB7WAgy6cpnOjVJy9AHkujwUXyyIk7FHz1YW2VaYC_iDxTSdMBSML2KkUgpHmDhp7xikSg8L2hHYtelvCrnADM7eKu/s2048/IMG_20200804_161256.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1714" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB2BvO_os1BmNgAJAmkYq5_qfF2CM5m1AUbDP2Nv0fCTXuyTGsr9PB7WAgy6cpnOjVJy9AHkujwUXyyIk7FHz1YW2VaYC_iDxTSdMBSML2KkUgpHmDhp7xikSg8L2hHYtelvCrnADM7eKu/s320/IMG_20200804_161256.jpg" width="268" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Untitled IV (2020)🔴</i></div></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div>In a previous text I have touched on how her skillful use of paint and brush becomes a celebration of both craft and medium and here ‘<i>A wild infection of the wildly shaken public</i>’ offers a resolution both of her formal skills and her creative interpretation of her findings. This exhibition is of paintings and drawings that Beatrice has created over the last two years. The timeline is significant. In late 2019 the emergence of the Covid-19 virus and the resultant pandemic has reshaped and continues to alter most of social structures. Public health protocols of social distancing, masking, curfews, quarantines and lockdowns have been some of the measures introduced to combat this catastrophe to produce a new reality that is affecting not only our cultural development but also the ways in which we express and maintain our personal selfhood.<br /><br />In ‘<i>A a wild infection of the wildly shaken public mind</i>’ the artist’s frame of reference is that isolation can become a setting that enables us to face up to circumstances beyond our control. In some of the work the forms appear volatile, lacking definition. They are dark and allude to an atmosphere seemingly striving to envelope and obscure our humanity and confound the existence of our inner selves.The subjects struggle to emerge or remerge into clarity. Yet while through these works, Beatrice grants the uncertainty embedded in the present, she also evokes our inherent potency and capacity for regeneration and new beginnings. <div><br /></div><div>© Kamwathi 2021</div></div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-82760962902440334782021-08-21T11:21:00.013-07:002022-11-29T12:24:01.252-08:00Exhibition<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqT9zQeKat5oSfOC8-wc9q3F4yB8bKBaV92a85ITB6mmQLFI3xrJDg8EkL7Pglkmmlya_q9Ka_joqMGEQUWW5XPJbCzHBu_9pEIafgEYe9_45uS8LaTdCOqSp0Q7GG8J8L9R_3_63BjP6C/s1472/49CA891E-F548-4215-8663-84CB3537003F.jpg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqT9zQeKat5oSfOC8-wc9q3F4yB8bKBaV92a85ITB6mmQLFI3xrJDg8EkL7Pglkmmlya_q9Ka_joqMGEQUWW5XPJbCzHBu_9pEIafgEYe9_45uS8LaTdCOqSp0Q7GG8J8L9R_3_63BjP6C/s320/49CA891E-F548-4215-8663-84CB3537003F.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The paintings explore our internal identities and territories, the self being the centre of our intuitions, emotion and beliefs; the place where the inner person is first found, then prised out and delineated.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-56591047667620373532021-08-05T12:26:00.015-07:002022-11-25T02:29:11.923-08:00Studio News<p style="text-align: justify;">I hope everyone has been keeping well during these times. I admit I have been a bit neglectful with keeping up with the updates and the happenings in my studio. Hopefully something I can to remedy as I get back into the rhythm of things. I embraced the lockdown (which is nothing new seeing as an Artist most of our time in the studio is spent in isolation) I approach my studio work and dare I say life differently, Intentional, and more involved in everything and a bit experimental and open to new ideas and ways of working. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;">One such project was,</span><span style="text-align: left;"> </span><i style="text-align: left;">“The Tusk Lion Trail” </i><span style="text-align: left;">A sculpture Trail curated by Chris Westbrook, that aims to highlight the ongoing threats to the survival of Lion population in Africa. The trail taking place simultaneously in London, Bristol, Edinburg, Sidney, New York City, Nairobi and Auckland. This project will be launched on world lion day which is on the 10th of August until 28th September. More information at </span><a href="https://www.tuskliontrail.com" style="text-align: left;">https://www.tuskliontrail.com</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6TixoXKZjwlzCLokIxu0TLC30WN_9QwYn3QHus2Vgew_BCSQTRfxY1oM1JZp8VKXEbPrr3-xaOesQr93iJ8mbmDyD480DO1hLIYgwEfHBuQlU2TMMGsvSw5FxIGs24Sp_FCdk_NaW9BXk/s2048/IMG_1971.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6TixoXKZjwlzCLokIxu0TLC30WN_9QwYn3QHus2Vgew_BCSQTRfxY1oM1JZp8VKXEbPrr3-xaOesQr93iJ8mbmDyD480DO1hLIYgwEfHBuQlU2TMMGsvSw5FxIGs24Sp_FCdk_NaW9BXk/s320/IMG_1971.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>A life-size sculpture of Panthera Leo</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoZexQs7bY0vXoAphpudVhbsao9ohxuu5R_CGScieJ_xPygAaLuIJaTd24Az-8qfG4N_9AtkbATusPVaUOCAwKJNHtaFu9PRnZzo-j2C48z2kPDeN-7hH-wqPpxwvruLydENhZdaQCkF7p/s2048/IMG_2224.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoZexQs7bY0vXoAphpudVhbsao9ohxuu5R_CGScieJ_xPygAaLuIJaTd24Az-8qfG4N_9AtkbATusPVaUOCAwKJNHtaFu9PRnZzo-j2C48z2kPDeN-7hH-wqPpxwvruLydENhZdaQCkF7p/s320/IMG_2224.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i>Work in progress</i></div><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAoN9aZ6X_MVvS2JCGUH-ZGP_eeZ0ZyfxtCVi5tBVzzKlu4_BAWnd9NC-P6iCq6AjkxmSrnlHePpmKH02tnbfxGYR_iLy1j1JvKGVjom2m1b_ktLUiAAlDqXKGtUWYe2z-VfVSzNwqq5FG/s4032/IMG_2023.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAoN9aZ6X_MVvS2JCGUH-ZGP_eeZ0ZyfxtCVi5tBVzzKlu4_BAWnd9NC-P6iCq6AjkxmSrnlHePpmKH02tnbfxGYR_iLy1j1JvKGVjom2m1b_ktLUiAAlDqXKGtUWYe2z-VfVSzNwqq5FG/s320/IMG_2023.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Samarra </i></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Scheduled for this month and more specifically 28th of August is my Solo Exhibition at <a href="https://www.oneoffafrica.com/beatrice-wanjiku.html" target="_blank">OneOff gallery. </a>And as is the norm introspective and interrogating encounters within our individual states. Can’t wait for you all to see the work.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Also scheduled but date to be announced is a group show at the Nairobi National Museum so stay tuned..</p>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-39886295038239067922021-01-28T04:29:00.005-08:002021-02-01T23:56:53.819-08:00Losing My Religion<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_GLshhHWKFeR00om6avPtwE7fK-ZOFoaGRVu_OFcS8dUbpc08lAG48vSjFmaNAUx_XqaZr5plavcRXQeQpjSIiOOGAxGZUtO-ES8hZOLNQBkZeHcUQ04pcjTlOq9Pczgf_4NTJ3yIUu_1/s2048/13C125ED-B373-41DE-873C-7B5C3D892B62.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1793" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_GLshhHWKFeR00om6avPtwE7fK-ZOFoaGRVu_OFcS8dUbpc08lAG48vSjFmaNAUx_XqaZr5plavcRXQeQpjSIiOOGAxGZUtO-ES8hZOLNQBkZeHcUQ04pcjTlOq9Pczgf_4NTJ3yIUu_1/s320/13C125ED-B373-41DE-873C-7B5C3D892B62.jpeg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"> <i><a href="https://www.montaguecontemporary.com/artists/37-beatrice-wanjiku/overview/">Losing My Religion III (2020)</a></i></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i>Acrylic and Mixed Media on Canvas </i></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i>160cm x 133cm</i></p>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-56156512093002776522021-01-14T07:15:00.005-08:002023-04-29T13:36:32.791-07:00Catch A Fire<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAmC9LQsZFD-w9iaeAw-p0PtH78R9kviW35scHYZKdvSqPeO30oy1-u3xQ0vUb7jDaeY7dSumDwS-0cQVRANcAspuDOazwyPrr1bY9bU7xDy1igLhZ4AFPXJBHXuQLaVMSnBeILypDCt1y/s2048/_MG_1469.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1687" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAmC9LQsZFD-w9iaeAw-p0PtH78R9kviW35scHYZKdvSqPeO30oy1-u3xQ0vUb7jDaeY7dSumDwS-0cQVRANcAspuDOazwyPrr1bY9bU7xDy1igLhZ4AFPXJBHXuQLaVMSnBeILypDCt1y/s320/_MG_1469.jpg" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Restless in Rest V (2020)🔴</div><div style="text-align: center;">Acrylic and Mixed Media on Canvas </div><div style="text-align: center;">160cm x133cm</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#">Opening Thursday, January 28th (by appointment only) Montague Contemporary</a></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Catch a Fire” adopts the lens of individual experience to understand the intersectionality of the agent of change within society. Oscillating from self-examination of our social identity to challenging prescribed and untenable norms, each work is a rallying cry to re-examine our collective experience.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ultimately, the exhibited work attempts to cement the ephemeral, to both identify and make concrete that palpable and transitory feeling of developing individuality amidst the context of shared struggle, when passionate optimism and collective sense of purpose overcomes collective dread. Each artist interrogates these interstices, with their own proposition for a way forward, whether tackling climate change, racial justice, economic inequity, or internal strife.</div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-41186416798261764462021-01-02T01:24:00.007-08:002021-01-02T01:31:47.625-08:00Happy 2021<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3wq6HQ0g8EYWBw9wwMOPVrZw1UXu7JlqrXfIBMBpoP_yYU8hz2nwvGSOx-stpLqSguH3fPQSDiesrUg3FmOkj8TRytOw7yFf1paJ3mC_2lK2PquJ4-imTggESC90hr24ZXa78x1EDBsIi/s2048/CB78BC4D-EE34-4395-AE38-3BEF3C09B6BF.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1574" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3wq6HQ0g8EYWBw9wwMOPVrZw1UXu7JlqrXfIBMBpoP_yYU8hz2nwvGSOx-stpLqSguH3fPQSDiesrUg3FmOkj8TRytOw7yFf1paJ3mC_2lK2PquJ4-imTggESC90hr24ZXa78x1EDBsIi/s320/CB78BC4D-EE34-4395-AE38-3BEF3C09B6BF.jpeg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i> The Quintessence of Loneliness II (2020)</i></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i>Acrylic and Mixed Media on Canvas </i></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;">As I look back on 2020, the greatest lesson I learned is gratitude. The world is an eternal return, we are but passengers in it. Grateful to see a new sunrise as it peeks through the curtains of a new dawn.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Happy New Year!</p>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8311905264732737341.post-25972229206999577742020-11-30T05:05:00.012-08:002023-04-29T13:36:48.747-07:00<p></p><div style="text-align: left;">Currently on view at one-off gallery. The exhibition opened 28 November and runs till 16 January 2021. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The work examines our bodies in a space and a time of change. The forms are stripped to the bone, flesh and muscle exposed bloody contending with our ultimate and intimate nature, fragments of ourselves returning.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh115HzZLRwvKk5lqyZukFngWvIism8mwGEfGITs5ugmHciw9h4BcQPBqOj0MEV0XSfryz8R2C3QOu2a2hj61yET5A-ZnidyfCZQfP_WiJNfWcNYzp1Va9p7XdPY_5z4o5sMXYwOoIExN3E/s2046/64836094-D5D4-47E0-89B6-964B7B144F13.jpeg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh115HzZLRwvKk5lqyZukFngWvIism8mwGEfGITs5ugmHciw9h4BcQPBqOj0MEV0XSfryz8R2C3QOu2a2hj61yET5A-ZnidyfCZQfP_WiJNfWcNYzp1Va9p7XdPY_5z4o5sMXYwOoIExN3E/s320/64836094-D5D4-47E0-89B6-964B7B144F13.jpeg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Restless in Rest I 2020 Acrylic and Mixed Media on Canvas🔴</i></span></div>Beatrice Wanjikuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03838705886273537255noreply@blogger.com0