Everything that I am
Evans Mbugua was born in Kenya where he happily lived until the age of nineteen. In 1999, he moved to France where he has resided ever since. His cultural identity is a combination of growing up in his African, anglophone country of birth and navigating adult life in his western, francophone adopted home. His artistic expression explores the experience of this hybrid identity.
Born of keen awareness of his surroundings and sensitive to the complexity of human relationships, Evans’ work explores the connections between people(s) and places. “Everything that I am comes from lived experiences – what I’ve smelled, tasted, heard or seen, what I’ve read, where I’ve been, who I’ve met…”. He creates visual memories as a way to affirm presence and links of existence.
Exhibitions 2024
LESSONS IN SELFHOOD
ART MADRID, 6 — 10/March
OOA Gallery – Spain.
SOLO / DUO EXHIBITIONS (selection)
2022
POINTS DE DEPART (Dakar Biennale Off) : Galerie Arte – Senegal.
2021
FLOWER POWER : OOA Gallery – Spain.
2020
TU M’ES INDISPENSABLE : REGARD SUD – France.
FREEDOM IS MINE ! : OOA Gallery – Spain.
2019
A SPECTACULAR NOW : Circle Art Gallery – Kenya.
2018
RECALL : Galerie Art-Z – France.
PORTRAIT TIRÉ : Galerie Emmanuelle Rousse – France.
TRÉSORS D’AFRIQUE : Maison Chaumet – France.
DIALOGUE : Gallery of African Art (GAFRA) – UK.
IDENTITIES : OOA Gallery – Spain.
2017
HIGHLIFE : Galerie Art-Z – France.
2016
STYLE FUSION : Gallery of African Art – UK.
EVANS MBUGUA : Galerie Art-Z – France.
GROUP EXHIBITIONS (selection)
2023
LE FEU DES ORIGINES : BISO Biennale – Burkina Faso
ART NOIR : Art Culture Now – USA
WE ARE ENOUGH : 193 Gallery – France.
2022
19th ASIAN ART BIENNALE : National Art Gallery of Bangladesh.
SCOPE Art Show (Miami) : Galeria Out of Africa (Spain) – USA.
AFRICAN IDENTITIES (Venice Biennale Off) : AKKA Project – Italy.
2021
1-54 Art Fair (Londres) : Loft Art Gallery (Morocco) – UK.
ArtxLagos Art Fair : OOA Gallery (Espagne) – Nigeria.
2020
ART X LAGOS Art Fair : OOA Gallery (Espagne) – Nigeria.
1-54 Art Fair (Londres) : Atelier le Grand Village (France) – UK.
METAMORPHOSES : Galerie Emmanuelle Rousse – France.
ASPIRING : ArtCo Gallery – Germany.
2019
LES AFRIQUES AUTREMENT : Art-Z – France.
BEIRUT Art Fair : Galeria Out of Africa (Espagne) – Lebanon.
NAIROBI, HERE WE ART ! : OOA Gallery – Spain.
MON RÊVE EST POP : Loft Art Gallery – Morocco.
2018
AKAA Art Fair : ArtCo Gallery – Allemagne.
ART X Lagos Art Fair : Galeria Out of Africa – Espagne.
FNB JOBURG Art Fair : ArtCo Gallery – Afrique du Sud.
CAPE TOWN Art Fair : ArtCo Gallery – Afrique du Sud.
2017
EXODE : Galerie Emmanuelle Rousse – France.
My Collection : MoCADA museum – Etats-Unis.
The ArtBall 2017 : Amref Health Africa – Etats-Unis.
2016
Cartes et Identités : Galerie Art-Z – France.
Origines et trajectoires : Piasa – France.
2015
Afriques à Venir : Galerie ko21 – France.
Afric’Art – Villetaneuse (COP21) : HCE Galerie – France.
2014
La semaine du Kenya : UNESCO – France.
RESIDENCIES
2023
LE FEU DES ORIGINES : BISO Biennale, Burkina Faso.
2020
Printmaking residency : Atelier Le Grand Village – France.
2019
TRANSLATION [DES PAS ET DES MOTS] : Espaço Luanda Arte – Angola.
2018
Portrait Tiré: Galerie Emmanuelle Rousse – France.
2016
Art’Rimal : Galerie d’Art d’Oujda – Maroc.
PRESS (selection)
2022
RFI : L’artiste Evans Mbugua, ou l’Afrique émotionnelle…
2018
REUTERS : Dancers portraits come alive at Paris Art Fair
WHITEWALL : Chaumet Collaborates with Kenyan artist Evans Mbugua