Friday Focus: Kaloki Nyamai
Kaloki Nyamai, born in 1985 in Kitui, Kenya, lives and works in Nairobi. His first inspirations were his mother, who worked in fashion, and his grand-mother, who was a musician. It is his mother who first taught him how to draw and his grand-mother who would recount the stories history books do not tell. Drawing heavily on the stories of the Kamba people he was told by his grand-mother, Nyamai – a multidisciplinary artist who studied interior design, film and taught art classes before dedicating himself to his craft – explores how history and identity are intertwined. His works are multimedia and characterized by rich layers, offering fragments to be pieced together slowly. The lengthy, searching process employed in the making of the works is mirrored in the experience of viewing them. His work has been presented in fairs and exhibitions in Africa and Europe. In 2018, he participated in the third edition of the Kampala Biennale, curated by Simon Njami, with a monumental installation.
Can you tell me about your practice? How do you get started on a piece of work?
I start by preparing the canvas, then I start adding layers, painting on it and finally finish by adding stitching.
Who or what are your biggest influences?
Exploration and examination of human behaviour and the shared histories of cultural ancestry runs through your work, can you talk further about this?
The choice of materials is very important. The stitches in the paintings for example, I use them to suggest the idea of bringing broken parts together, like a doctor stitching body parts together after an accident. Putting layers in my work is like layering history, and it creates a sculptural effect.
My roller, without it, I always feel lost.
Finally, is there anything new coming up that you would like to tell us about?
Yes I am planning work for Art Basel (unlimited section), solo shows with Barbara Thumm gallery and Pippy Houldsworth, and Frieze London.