“Elembo (trace)” is the artist’s first solo exhibition in Europe.

Catheris Mondombo was born in 1992 in Kinshasa, where he lives and works. Following two years of study at ABA Kinshasa (2012-2013), Catheris devoted himself to painting on canvas, but was not satisfied with the results of his first attempts. He then got hold of second-hand tarpaulins, salvaging them from markets in Kinshasa.

In his own way Catheris is addressing Kinshasa’s excess waste issue by giving these salvaged tarpaulins a new lease of life. However, the symbolic aspect goes further. For Catheris, the salvaged tarpaulins reflect the socioeconomic situation of the people of Kinshasa, and beyond that, the precariousness of the human condition. He makes use of rips in the tarpaulins. Dressings and stitching conceal the holes, simultaneously repairing the medium and the subject.

The exhibition illustrates two of his favourite themes: the history of DR Congo and women’s lives. Catheris bears witness to the darkest hours of his country’s colonial past in Notre histoire series. The shapes are simplified and the subjects are primarily depicted as shadows on monochrome backgrounds. The large format of the works makes the end result even more striking.

Women are at the heart of the artist’s recent work. Four works evoke the injuries inflicted on women and lost youth, but also their resilience and repair. Hope exists, despite past and present suffering. For Catheris, it is based on emancipatory knowledge, the theme of the work Renouveau.

> Go to the artist’s biography