Thom Ogonga (Kenyan, born 1975)
Brothers Karamazov
Signed ‘OGONGA THOM ‘14’ (lower left)
Charcoal and soft pastel on canvas
109 x 84cm
Ksh 110,000-160,000
US$ 1,250-1,820
Sold Ksh 176,100
Provenance: direct from the artist
Thom Ogonga exhibits regularly in Nairobi. Born and raised in the city, his figurative drawings, paintings and masterful prints depict his fascination with Nairobi nightlife.
Ogonga has worked from studios at Kuona Trust, the GoDown Art Centre and has recently moved to a private studio in Loresho. He writes a popular and widely read blog on the Kenyan contemporary art scene.
‘Brothers Karamazov’ is from Ogonga’s latest series ‘Playfully Serious’, which is an interpretation of Dostoyevsky’s philosophical novel that interrogates free will. Combining fiction with fact, it also explores the alcohol abuse in his neighbourhood.