2016-10-10Staff Report 2 Windhoek After impressing with his first solo exhibition titled The Passion of Life at the Restaurant La bonne Table late 2014, local visual artist, Tity Tshilumba, is back again. This is his second solo exhibition, titled The Daily Lif, which will open this Thursday at the National Art Gallery of Namibia (NAGN). Tity’s contribution to the Namibian art scene has been coloured by his passion for everyday life and stories. With this exhibition he focuses on the daily lives of Namibians, drawing from his experiences in both rural and urban areas. Typically he works with oil paint on canvas. While his work often refers to various contemporary social issues, his main focus comes from his keen interest in depicting scenes from the world around him – specifically landscapes, animals, people and everyday objects. “The people I painted are mostly the people around me, my neighbours and even passers-by who interest me. I often take a quick snap shot so that I can use the scene later in my work,” says Tity. After 16 years in Namibia, Tity’s style and approach have grown and adapted to maintain a distinctive edge. He considers himself both a realistic and abstract painter, describing his style as based on movement. A number of works in ‘The Daily Life’ have been inspired by a desire to increase awareness about the current drought. “Three years ago for an exhibition with Kaleb Haipinge, I painted a piece called Red Alarm, a man moving with cattle from dry land to new pastures. It seems to me that since then things have not changed. The drought is a serious concern for animals and humans. People need to take responsibility for every drop of water they use,” he says. Tity graduated from the Institute des Beaux Arts in Lubumbashi, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in 1998 with a distinction in painting. He was born in 1976 in Lubumbashi. Due to political instability he left the country and in 2000 arrived in Namibia. In 2007 he participated in his first group exhibition in Namibia titled, The Congolese Connection, which saw him joining forces with his fellow countrymen. Tity built a name for himself in 2010 when he exhibited for the first time at the NAGN. In 2011 he became a member of Visual Artists - Namibia (VA-N). Tity’s first solo exhibition in Namibia, La Passion de Vivre, was held at the Franco-Namibian Cultural Centre (FNCC) in 2014. His exhibition will run until November 5. 2016-10-10Staff Report 2
