Wambui Kamiru Collymore installation
One Off is pleased to present
Wambui Kamiru Collymore installation
Akile Ni Nywele - Series III (2020)
An installation about femininity and the cultural legacy of colonialism in the perception of African and Black women’s beauty.
Opens Saturday 31 July - 22 August 2021
Gallery Open
Tuesday through Sunday, 10am - 4.30pm
Please note that masks are mandatory around the gallery.
Gallery Open
Tuesday through Sunday, 10am - 4.30pm
Please note that masks are mandatory around the gallery.
About the exhibition
Akili Ni Nywele - Series III (2020): An installation about femininity and the cultural legacy of colonialism in the perception of African and Black women’s beauty.
“Akili ni nywele, kila mtu ana zake.” – Kiswahili Proverb
(Intelligence is like hair, everyone has their own)
Akili ni Nywele looks at perceptions of African beauty with relation to hair. The work discusses the idea of a “clean, polished and expensive” look. It breaks down the sense of approachability attached to ones presentation of a more European aesthetic made accessible by straight, often, long hair. It questions ideas around femininity.
Owning a wig and/or having a hair weave is usually seen as a sign of success in urban areas and is considered a lifestyle choice for the modern Nairobi woman. It asks about the origin of that perception of beauty as related to long, “flappable,” straight hair.
It also begins to question the “norm” and who decides what the norm is. The work explores the thought that women with natural hair are unattractive because they are rebellious and untamable. It also questions the hierarchy that places some hair types over others. For example Russian Hair for hair weaving is more expensive and sought after than Indian Hair. In the end though, the goal is the same, to alter the look given by African Hair.
Akili ni Nywele asks us to review our built environment (urban environment) by looking at what has been told to us as African girls growing up and what we continue to say to our own little girls about what beauty is. It also looks at men’s role in the construction and perpetuation of ideals of beauty. From this, the work discusses expectations of women and the entitlement society feels to when discussing how a woman presents herself.
Just like the saying goes, everyone charts his or her own path. However, who sets whom on the first step to that path?
This is the second more extensive iteration of a work that was originally shown in brief in 2017 at the British Institute of East Africa as part of the Remains, Waste & Metonymy II - Sensing Nairobi Series.
“Akili ni nywele, kila mtu ana zake.” – Kiswahili Proverb
(Intelligence is like hair, everyone has their own)
Akili ni Nywele looks at perceptions of African beauty with relation to hair. The work discusses the idea of a “clean, polished and expensive” look. It breaks down the sense of approachability attached to ones presentation of a more European aesthetic made accessible by straight, often, long hair. It questions ideas around femininity.
Owning a wig and/or having a hair weave is usually seen as a sign of success in urban areas and is considered a lifestyle choice for the modern Nairobi woman. It asks about the origin of that perception of beauty as related to long, “flappable,” straight hair.
It also begins to question the “norm” and who decides what the norm is. The work explores the thought that women with natural hair are unattractive because they are rebellious and untamable. It also questions the hierarchy that places some hair types over others. For example Russian Hair for hair weaving is more expensive and sought after than Indian Hair. In the end though, the goal is the same, to alter the look given by African Hair.
Akili ni Nywele asks us to review our built environment (urban environment) by looking at what has been told to us as African girls growing up and what we continue to say to our own little girls about what beauty is. It also looks at men’s role in the construction and perpetuation of ideals of beauty. From this, the work discusses expectations of women and the entitlement society feels to when discussing how a woman presents herself.
Just like the saying goes, everyone charts his or her own path. However, who sets whom on the first step to that path?
This is the second more extensive iteration of a work that was originally shown in brief in 2017 at the British Institute of East Africa as part of the Remains, Waste & Metonymy II - Sensing Nairobi Series.
Artist's Bio
Born and raised in Kenya, Wambui has been developing artwork around the themes of decoloniality, identity and independence in Africa. Originally a painter, Wambui now expresses her work through installation.
Wambui holds an MSc. in African Studies with a focus on Violence, History and Memory from the University of Oxford. She lives and works in Nairobi.
Wambui holds an MSc. in African Studies with a focus on Violence, History and Memory from the University of Oxford. She lives and works in Nairobi.
Education
June 2008 - MSc. African Studies - University of Oxford, Oxford - UK
June 2008 - MSc. African Studies - University of Oxford, Oxford - UK
Exhibitions
Collaborative Projects/ Public Art
March 1st – 5th 2019 – Pray for us as we reply, forward, delete or archive. Series II in the Daily Nation Newspaper Obituary Section
August 2017 – Harambee63 Series VI “Who are you voting for?” in Kawangware, Korogocho, Mathare, Kibera, CBD
2013 – 2016 Who I Am, Who We Are: A Public Art Project about the Kenyan Identity, Nairobi, Kisumu, Isiolo, Lamu and Nyeri – Kenya (with Xavier Verhoest) www.whoweare.co.ke
Collaborative Projects/ Public Art
March 1st – 5th 2019 – Pray for us as we reply, forward, delete or archive. Series II in the Daily Nation Newspaper Obituary Section
August 2017 – Harambee63 Series VI “Who are you voting for?” in Kawangware, Korogocho, Mathare, Kibera, CBD
2013 – 2016 Who I Am, Who We Are: A Public Art Project about the Kenyan Identity, Nairobi, Kisumu, Isiolo, Lamu and Nyeri – Kenya (with Xavier Verhoest) www.whoweare.co.ke
Selected Group Exhibitions
Feb 2021 Their Eyes Were Watching, A Show with Lisa Milroy, One Off Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2020 Home is Where His Clothes Are. :Rapid Response Restitution, Home Museum, An Initiative by LagosPhoto20, Lagos Photo Festival, Lagos Nigeria and
Online here: Rapid Response Restitution, LagosPhoto20
2020 Hello Rajiv – Virtual Photography 20:20, One-Off Contemporary Art Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya and Online here: Hi Rajiv
2018 Mashakura: Kikulacho – Remains, Waste & Metonymy III, Sensing Nairobi, British Institute of East Africa, Nairobi – Kenya
2018 Pray For Us As We Reply, Delete or Archive: New Threads, Circle Art Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2017 Akili Ni Nywele: Remains, Waste & Metonymy II Sensing Nairobi, British Institute of East Africa, Nairobi – Kenya and The National Museum of Kenya
2016 Your Name Betrays You, 2016 Mediations Biennale, Poznan, Poland
2016 Your Name Betrays You, ErrorX, Ostrale, Dresden, Germany
2016 Harambee63, ErrorX, Ostrale, Dresden, Germany
2016 Harambee63, When Things Fall Apart, Trapholt Museum of Modern Art, South Jutland – Denmark
2015 ForeCast, “Tree”, Goethe Institute, Nairobi – Kenya
2015 I Move Out. Tomorrow, Concerning the Internal, Circle Art Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2015 Suitcase Commodity Cash on Delivery (COD), Sarakasi Trust, British Institute of East Africa, GoDown Arts Centre, Nairobi – Kenya
2015 Your Name Betrays You, United States Embassy Residence, Nairobi, Kenya
2015 Harambee63, National Museum of Kenya, Nairobi – Kenya
2015 Between A Rock And A…, CitiBank, Nairobi – Kenya
2014 Net, Kuona Trust Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2014 Coffee Conversations, Manjano, Village Market Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2011 Double Vision, Kifaru House and Karen Country Lodge, Nairobi – Kenya
Feb 2021 Their Eyes Were Watching, A Show with Lisa Milroy, One Off Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2020 Home is Where His Clothes Are. :Rapid Response Restitution, Home Museum, An Initiative by LagosPhoto20, Lagos Photo Festival, Lagos Nigeria and
Online here: Rapid Response Restitution, LagosPhoto20
2020 Hello Rajiv – Virtual Photography 20:20, One-Off Contemporary Art Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya and Online here: Hi Rajiv
2018 Mashakura: Kikulacho – Remains, Waste & Metonymy III, Sensing Nairobi, British Institute of East Africa, Nairobi – Kenya
2018 Pray For Us As We Reply, Delete or Archive: New Threads, Circle Art Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2017 Akili Ni Nywele: Remains, Waste & Metonymy II Sensing Nairobi, British Institute of East Africa, Nairobi – Kenya and The National Museum of Kenya
2016 Your Name Betrays You, 2016 Mediations Biennale, Poznan, Poland
2016 Your Name Betrays You, ErrorX, Ostrale, Dresden, Germany
2016 Harambee63, ErrorX, Ostrale, Dresden, Germany
2016 Harambee63, When Things Fall Apart, Trapholt Museum of Modern Art, South Jutland – Denmark
2015 ForeCast, “Tree”, Goethe Institute, Nairobi – Kenya
2015 I Move Out. Tomorrow, Concerning the Internal, Circle Art Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2015 Suitcase Commodity Cash on Delivery (COD), Sarakasi Trust, British Institute of East Africa, GoDown Arts Centre, Nairobi – Kenya
2015 Your Name Betrays You, United States Embassy Residence, Nairobi, Kenya
2015 Harambee63, National Museum of Kenya, Nairobi – Kenya
2015 Between A Rock And A…, CitiBank, Nairobi – Kenya
2014 Net, Kuona Trust Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2014 Coffee Conversations, Manjano, Village Market Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2011 Double Vision, Kifaru House and Karen Country Lodge, Nairobi – Kenya
Solo Exhibitions
2019 Wakariru, One Off Contemporary Art Gallery Pop-Up Space, Nairobi – Kenya
2015 Your Name Betrays You, Kuona Trust Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2013 Harambee63, Kuona Trust Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2019 Wakariru, One Off Contemporary Art Gallery Pop-Up Space, Nairobi – Kenya
2015 Your Name Betrays You, Kuona Trust Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
2013 Harambee63, Kuona Trust Gallery, Nairobi – Kenya
Exhibition openings are usually on the last Saturday of every month, excluding December.
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