GravitArt is an online art gallery that’s been
hosting a wide array of East African artists based in Nairobi since
early this year. It was officially launched with a Pop-Up Exhibition at
the Safron Spa in Westlands last April.
Both
the exhibition and the website feature mainly Kenyan artists like Peter
Elungat, Dennis Muraguri, Shabu Mwangi, Michael Soi and many others.
But one will also find works by a broad assortment of East African
artists, such as Fitsum Berhe from Ethiopia, El Tayeb Dawelbait and
Yassir Ali from Sudan. Artworks from Congo, Benin and Nigeria are also
on the website.
GravitArt’s second
pop-up exhibition currently up at Ikigia Business Centre (off General
Mathenge Road) reflects the mission of the gallery’s founder Veronica P.
It’s to make the online gallery more inclusive of African art.
Entitled ‘Hidden Stories from Egypt’, the exhibition features nearly 50 paintings by seven Egyptians and one Sudanese artist.
Two
of the artists have been in Kenyan severally and even exhibited in
various Nairobi galleries. That is how Veronica got to know Dr. Souad
Abdel Rasoul and Salah Elmur, both of whom live in Cairo and were happy
to introduce Veronica to a number of their artist friends.
The
eight artists whose works reveal the “Hidden stories from Egypt” all
have distinctive styles. All also have had the good fortune to study
fine art up through the university with Souad having received both a MFA
in the history of Modern Art and a PhD in the Philosophy of
Contemporary and Modern Art.
Veronica P of GravitArt with two paintings by Ashraf Rassian at Ikigai. PHOTO | MARGARETTA WA GACHERU | NMG
But there’s nothing academic or inaccessible
about the works in ‘Hidden Stories’, especially as they’ve been
tastefully hung in this cosy, high-ceiling-ed business centre that’s got
a Japanese name.
“Ikigia in Japanese
translates to mean ‘when you find your purpose you have found your
ikigai,’” explains Veronica who discovered this perfect spot for a
pop-up show through a fellow Spaniard.
Trained
as a both a fine artist and an architect, Veronica seems to have found
her own ‘ikigai’ with the establishment of GravitArt. “It’s my way of
giving artists a global platform to showcase their work,” she says.
Adding
that apart from wanting to continue expanding the range of African
artists featured on the website, she’s intent of building her network of
both artists and art collectors.
“Currently,
I have friends who are representing GravitArt in their respective
countries [and regions],” she says. “One is in New York where we plan to
have our next pop-up exhibition next year. Another is in Santiago,
Chile, and another is in Madrid (Spain),” she added.
Walid Taher's faces at Igikai. PHOTO | MARGARETTA WA GACHERU | NMG
In all of these global cities,
Veronica wants to introduce regional collectors to Africa Art,
particularly Kenyan art. But she also wants to showcase other
contemporary African artists who have not yet gained visibility or
renown in other parts of the world.
The
eight Egypt-based artists include Evelin Ashamalla, the oldest of the
eight and the former Director of the Museum of Modern Egyptian Art. Her
son Basem Yousri is also a prominent painter and sculptor in his own
right. Ashraf Rassian's art is reminiscent of Picasso’s Blue Period.
Hala El Sharouny, the youngest painter in the show, creates art that is
emphatically feminist.
Mohamed
Elganoby has got a colourful transparency to his work. Walid Taher, a
cartoonist, puppeteer and satirist is also a children’s book
illustrator. Salah Elmur, the one Sudanese artist who’s now an adopted
Egyptian, is married to Souad Abdel Rasoul, the painter who facilitated
Veronica’s creation of this eye-opening exhibition.
Souad also shared her latest paintings with Vero despite being busy with her own one-woman exhibition in Cairo.
Go
online and discover how reasonably priced the Egyptians’ art is. The
show will be up until December 15, but the beauty of an online
exhibition is that if you live in or around Nairobi, you can easily
obtain the works by getting in touch with Veronica directly.
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