Voyant
The Democratic Republic of Congo is a key source of rare earth materials for Apple and myriad other technology firms, its elements finding their way into iPhones and a plethora of consumer electronics. Born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to an electrician father and a mother working in the metal extraction business, he synthesizes influences from his direct environment in the production of objects that aim to be both functioning electrical circuits and pedagogical tools.
For Rare Earth, Katambayi proposes a work exploring ways to access alternative energy sources that do not rely on the multinational- owned or rebel-controlled infrastructure of his country. Voyant continues and develops his interest in technological self-reliance, knowledge building, and local independence.
Voyant, 2015 has been commissioned by TBA21 for the exhibition Rare Earth at TBA21-Augarten.
Jean Katambayi Mukendi was born in 1974 in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo, where he lives and works. He is a self-taught artist and scientist. Combining a resourceful artistic practice with scientific experimentation, his work addresses economic and social issues, revealed both by its aesthetic and its thematic engagement with issues of education, energy, and health.
Katambayi creates fragile yet powerful and complex installations out of the recycled materials that immediately surround him, mainly cardboard and metals like copper, aluminum, and steel, combining them with electricity to create technologically elaborate works. He was awarded the Prix de la Découverte at the Dak’Art 2010 Biennale by Fondation Blachère, following which he received a two-month residency at the École Supérieure d’Art d’Aix-en-Provence.
His works have been shown in Congo since the 1990s and more recently in Switzerland, Senegal, and France. In 2014 he participated in the group show Full House at Aeroplastics Contemporary, Brussels, and he is taking part in the exhibition Le bord des mondes at the Palais de Tokyo, Paris, opening in February 2015.
For Rare Earth, Katambayi proposes a work exploring ways to access alternative energy sources that do not rely on the multinational- owned or rebel-controlled infrastructure of his country. Voyant continues and develops his interest in technological self-reliance, knowledge building, and local independence.
Voyant, 2015 has been commissioned by TBA21 for the exhibition Rare Earth at TBA21-Augarten.
Jean Katambayi Mukendi was born in 1974 in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo, where he lives and works. He is a self-taught artist and scientist. Combining a resourceful artistic practice with scientific experimentation, his work addresses economic and social issues, revealed both by its aesthetic and its thematic engagement with issues of education, energy, and health.
Katambayi creates fragile yet powerful and complex installations out of the recycled materials that immediately surround him, mainly cardboard and metals like copper, aluminum, and steel, combining them with electricity to create technologically elaborate works. He was awarded the Prix de la Découverte at the Dak’Art 2010 Biennale by Fondation Blachère, following which he received a two-month residency at the École Supérieure d’Art d’Aix-en-Provence.
His works have been shown in Congo since the 1990s and more recently in Switzerland, Senegal, and France. In 2014 he participated in the group show Full House at Aeroplastics Contemporary, Brussels, and he is taking part in the exhibition Le bord des mondes at the Palais de Tokyo, Paris, opening in February 2015.