“Hyperrealism by Ngue Freeman” is the young artist’s first solo exhibition.

Born in 1999 in Kinshasa (DR Congo), the self-taught artist Ngule Freeman began to earn a living from his drawings from the age of 17 by doing portraits on request.

His first truly personal work, Futur obscur, is a striking self-portrait produced at the age of 19 using graphite pencils. A series of works depicting Congolese society ensued, particularly portraying the feelings and ways of life of young people in Kinshasa: jealousy (Nkento), young people’s views being ignored with Misu ezo mona nionso (“The eyes see everything”), perverted religion (5e évangile), identity issues (Tala sima zonga mutu), and Kimia, the yearning for brotherhood.

Ngule also depicts his own story. He used coloured pencils to create Elikia (“Hope”), a drawing evoking a tough period of his life, when there were only cheap biscuits for the children’s evening meal. In a lighter style, the artist set himself the challenge of a first ballpoint pen work, and created the outstanding Freeman, or self-portrait in the shower.

The exhibition also showcases portraits of public figures: the iconic Patrice Lumumba, for whom Ngule set himself another challenge, that of creating a colour portrait, when most of the portrait photos of the icon of Congolese independence are in black and white, and disconcertingly realistic portraits of the Congolese artists Freddy Tsimba and JP Mika.

> Go to the artist’s biography