Ango Makau: Tukiendanga (2021), Oil on canvas, 50cm by 70cm
‘Tukiendanga' is a Swahili slang word that translates to ’As we go’. This painting is about an old man from the coastal Kenyan community taking a morning walk. As he strolls around his home area he feels like he’s entered into another world. It’s like the sweet sound of the sea flowing through your ears, water flowing through your legs and the wind blowing past you in a gentle motion. Something so surreal like oblivion. They say that in the morning a man walks with his whole body; in the evening, only with his legs. Well, that must be true because there is an awkward yet emotionally and physically satisfying factor in it. There is beauty in landscapes that captures your body, soul and mind . The dress code of the people in Mombasa and the people’s attitude towards you is just pure harmony. Day to Day people take walks around their locality so as to feel connected to the society. It is agreeable that we should love the life we live and live the life we love.
Ango Makau: Uhuru (2021), Oil on canvas, 50cm by 70cm
Uhuru is a Swahili word which means freedom. Freedom is a choice and it should be used by everyone to express themselves. Freedom of expression covers freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and gives individuals and communities the right to articulate their opinions without fear of retaliation, censorship or punishment. As days go by, the society has started accepting things that were previously considered as taboos and this has led to the diversification of the community. In today’s world various people and organisations are dedicating time, energy and skill to finding out what’s going on around us because the society is more dynamic than it was before therefore freedom to information is able to bring important issues out into the public arena thus forming shared values and influencing policies at local, national and international levels. For us to be able to voice out our differences we should be able to speak out our minds so as to be heard and seen. There are some other people that are here, and things that are here which are unseen. But you first have to set yourself free and believe in what you cannot see, believe that there is something more out there.
Makau Joseph Musungu, famously known as ‘Ango’, is a contemporary artist from Kenya. He focuses on the poetic and surreal nature of art, aiming to depict the different experiences of life through a fusion of color, symbolism, surrealism and texture. Ango’s artworks are influenced by African masks, people, love, hate, deceit, landscapes, humor and human expressions.