Kamal Shah (Kenyan, born 1953)
Village Diva in Red, 2005
Signed ‘Signature ’05’ (lower right)
Mixed media on canvas
68.3 x 68.3 cm
Ksh 200,000–250,000
(US$ 1,850–2,300)
Sold Ksh 305,240
Provenance: direct from the artist
Kamal Shah was born and lives in Kenya, and is of Indian origin. He studied English Literature and Fine Art followed by a postgraduate diploma in Textile Design at Leeds University, UK. His paintings and mixed media work draw on his African, Asian and European upbringing, using motifs and references from all these cultures, often creating work that is spiritual in content or quality.
Shah is a renowned and popular artist in Nairobi, he has exhibited regularly in Nairobi, Copenhagen, Mumbai, Goa and London, including a group show entitled Sanctuary, Home Away, The Common Ground at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS University, London, 2014. He has undertaken many corporate commissions in Kenya.
This painting is an evocative combination of both the modern and the traditional, depicting a Kenyan village scene in the background eclipsed by a woman whose dress shows influences of the artist’s Indian heritage.