Lot 53 – 2018

Wajukuu – Joseph Waweru (Kenyan, born 1987), Ngugi Waweru (Kenyan, born 1987) and Lawrence ‘Shabu’ Mwangi (Kenyan, born 1985)
Valley of Duty, 2018, Holes, 2018 & Lost Identity, 2018
Signed ‘JOSEPH WAWERU 2018’ (lower right), ‘Ngugi Waweru 2018’ (lower middle), signed ‘Shabu Mwangi 2018-01’ (lower right)
Mixed media on canvas, acrylic on canvas & mixed media on canvas
62 x 62 cm, 64 x 53 cm & 80 x 58 cm
Sold as a three

Ksh 200,000-400,000
(US$ 2,100-4,100)
Sold Ksh 293,500

Provenance: direct from the artists

In the Lunga-lunga neighbourhood of Mukuru slum, the Wajukuu Art Centre have been mentoring local youth through a range of arts programmes for over ten years. Now a registered community-based organization, Wajukuu’s origins go back to 2004, where it began as a group of young artists sharing a common goal: to make Mukuru a place for a child to thrive and to use art as a means of empowerment.

Wajukuu runs art classes and mural projects and provides a space for children to develop their talents and express their experiences. They have also opened a library of books for community access.

Joseph Waweru, Ngugi Waweru and Shabu Mwangi are three of Wajukuu’s founding members and prominent artists. Although each has developed a distinct visual language, their works share an engagement with the struggles of social inequality.

Joseph Waweru’s Valley of Duty visualizes the suffocating sense of being kept in position of powerlessness; a pawn in the games of leaders. Holes, by Ngugi Waweru, explores the obsessive, passionate feelings roused by guns, and their destructive power. Shabu Mwangi’s piece focuses on the loss of life in the slum areas during the 2017 elections and how these cases were reported.

The proceeds from the sale of the works will be raised to help fund the centre’s youth engagement programmes for 2018. Circle will waive its commission, so we encourage all our bidders to be generous and support their cause.