ONYIS MARTIN
Onyis Martin was born in 1987 in Kisumu, Kenya, when he was
only 6 months old his family decided to move to Nairobi, born in a big family
with 6 sisters and 1 brother, Onyis started to notice that he had a great
talent as an artist, since he was only 5 years old.
He didn’t went to nursery so he entertained himself painting,
and he used to paint almost everywhere, his passion in art started to grow, and
when he was 18 years old he decided to engage definitely with this profession.
Onyis is always looking forward to help in different
communities of Kenya, he gives some art classes in different slums, and he
really enjoys working with kids because as he said, “I like them to be happy I like
when they smile”.
Through his paintings, Onyis leads
us into his own cultural world, a world in which the sacred and the profane
constantly mingle, in which worship and domestic life are one and the same, in
which every gesture has a pre-established purpose and in which everything has a
meaning. Within that culture, everything is determined in advance; everything
that occurs in the present can be explained in terms of the past and has to be
ritualized so as to be integrated into everyday life, which is itself a ritual.
As we walk into his paintings, we have to look deep into our own souls for it
awakens sensations and feelings, which we, caught up as we are in an inhuman,
and artificial world, thought were lost for ever.
He is also a NLP practioner,
Systematic work therapist and Thai Yoga masseuse.
Using mixed media including paper
collage and cloth, today, his subject matter consists of aspects of everyday
life, a lot of which includes figurative paintings of the Kenyan disposition.
As Martin explores different styles, we are privy to some harmonious and some
disordered works… all part of the growing pains of becoming an artist.
Kaloki was born in 1985
in Kitui District , Eastern Kenya. At an early age he interest in art began to
grow, thanks to the encouragement from his mother. She taught him how to draw
with love and passion in his work. His early drawings were of anything he came
across and he drew almost everywhere, he always got himself into trouble.
Kaloki received his primary education and attended secondary school. He
attended college to study Interior Design however he was unable to complete it
because it was too much financial pressure on his parents. He joined Kuona
Trust Art Centre in 2005 and started learning from other artist through
workshop and public projects.
Dickson Kaloki is a
self-taught artist whose work is calm and intense all at the same time with his
use of materials and techniques. His motivation comes from memories, dreams and
his creative processes. He gets inspiration from the slums, town buildings,
fashion design and people’s way of life.
He captures the mood of
the slums by telling a story through his paintings. Layers of charcoal and
touches of scratches enables him to be even more connected to his work. He
gives each painting all his attention and presence.
You may ask why paint the
slums. Kaloki believes it holds the unseen beauty. People negatively
misinterpret the slums but in reality it is filled with community, life and
love among people living together despite the hard living conditions. Every
time he goes there he reminisces about his child hood, Good and bad memories,
each day was a different experience, where he found freedom within himself to
became an innovative and exciting artist.
Kaloki has manage to do
exhibition both locally and internationally . in Germany ( colon and berlin) ,
Spain , Denmark and London .
