Robert Saidi (Congolese, born 1936)
Joy, 1995
Signed ‘R. Saidi 95’ (lower left)
Acrylic on plywood
40 x 20 cm
Ksh 190,000-280,000
(US$ 1,750-2,500)
Sold Ksh 540,040
Provenance: private collection of Klaus Betz
Robert Saidi was born in Kisangani in Democratic Republic of Congo. In 1963 he graduated from the University of Kinshasa where he had studied French History and African Culture and Linguistics. He then moved to Kampala, where he developed his practice as a painter alongside working as a lecturer in Lingala studies at Makerere University. In 1977 he became a full-time artist and since then has exhibited in Germany, Belgium, Italy, France, the USA and the UK, as well as frequently in Kampala.
This miniature painting was purchased by the seller from the Nommo Gallery, National Art Gallery of Uganda.