Born in Kananga (DR Congo) in 1970, Kura Shomali graduated from ABA Kinshasa (School of Fine Arts) in 2003, and Strasbourg School of Art and Design in 2008.

His works often give top billing to mockery and humour, although he depicts anything, and no subject is off limits. He lets inspiration guide his work. Kura has the ability to be able to capitalize on each visual, artistic or social experience, and use it to nourish his creative ability.  He seizes on anything that comes to mind, without seeking to put things into some kind of order.

Working on drawing paper, Kura uses ink, poster paint, felt tips and even charcoal. His works are immediately recognisable. This is because of his unique lines, but also the splashes of ink found on most of his drawings. These splashes call to mind the teeming disorder of Kinshasa, in the same way as the medium, paper that has been roughly handled, crumpled and speckled in the working environment of his studio.

Snapshots of life in DR Congo dominate the exhibition. The drawings are sometimes Kura’s fresh take on photographs by leading African photographers. For instance, Papa Mombasa draws on Santu Mokofeng’s work, and Basi na Biso is inspired by Jean Depara. Kura loves to revisit the work of the masters. One of the rooms showcases three fresh takes on some of Matisse’s most vibrant iconic paintings (Spanish woman with a tambourine, Woman with a hat, and Madame Matisse).

The exhibition’s quintessentially Congolese title is borrowed from a famous song title by the legendary Congolese rumba orchestra – Tout Puissant OK Jazz.

> Artist’s biography