To question is to challenge our preconceived ideas of our self and others. It takes us on a pursuit of wisdom through which we dismantle levels of complacency we have grown content with. While at times we attempt to cast aside intricate questions – often because they are uncomfortable, inconvenient, or ominous – they nevertheless always return, continuing to disturb us until the day we confront them. When this journey begins it leads us to develop new hypotheses and conclusions as to who we are and the world around us. This process ultimately creates situations for new questioning which takes us on a perpetual voyage of discovery. Mwini Mutuku’s art practice and work is all about questions; questions which explore and confront emotions that respond to various aspects of life; questions that lead to greater self-awareness; questions that bring about conversation. The artist states “Art for me is about connecting with other minds especially through conversation. In this way, I try to harness the ability of art to ease inter-personal exchange. To question ‘art’ is to question ‘us’ and for this reason I consider my work to be questions.”
Mwini Mutuku grew up in Eastland’s Nairobi. At 21 he moved to Malaysia to study for a Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Professional Design (Visual Communication) at Limkokwing University of Creative Technology. Returning to Kenya in 2011, he acquired an art studio in 2014 at Kuona Trust (Nairobi) where his artistic career began. Initially he focussed on painting – something he had a yearning for though never the opportunity to profoundly explore. During this period he re-evaluated his art practice and the direction he wanted it to go – not only in terms of the form and medium, but also its purpose. For Mutuku “If art does not lead to anything that is progressive then it is not interesting.” The artist does not feel his work must provide the spectator with answers to certain questions – rather, Mutuku looks to advance art forms and challenge received ideas and in so doing create work that sparks dialogue or becomes the foundation for thinking in a certain direction.
The experience of living internationally, in addition to globalisation, technology and online expansion, exposed Mutuku to contemporary ideas, trends and art forms. This challenged conventional art practices found in Nairobi while it also fed Mutuku’s intellectual outlook on life and continual philosophical inquisitiveness. The artist began developing his own visual vocabulary of patterns, shapes and motifs – believing “if your fingerprint is not on the work then it’s not really art.”
Influenced by the simplicity of minimalism – and moving away from painting – Mutuku says he started to “make art in an attempt to understand the ‘self’ and to question my place in the world.” His artwork is clearly informed by conceptualism and, to quote Sol LeWitt, Mutuku believes “the idea becomes the machine that makes the art.” It is these elements in addition to the use of novel materials and processes which gives the artist and his work a refreshing edge of non-conformity and individuality within the Nairobi art world.
Mutuku likes to explore new approaches in his art practice, particularly the integration of organic and man-made materials with new digital and technological processes – for the artist “any medium can be art.” Interrogating ‘what can be art’ and ‘what art can be’ is central to Mutuku’s outlook. He says “if we stay stagnant in what has already been accepted in art then we come to a point where art can die…you need to ask yourself, are you really commenting on the time that you are living in.” One result of this has been the development of Mutuku’s own signature style in which he employs the use of laser cutting – a process that is typically used for industrial manufacturing, though one that he has mastered to create his own aesthetic. The use of laser cutting, in which the laser beam destroys the surface it comes into contact with, creates an element of performance in which the act of destruction simultaneously becomes an act of creation. Though in keeping with all of Mutuku’s work the ideas involved in each piece, or series, remain equally, if not more, important than the aesthetic and material concerns – as the artist explains “beauty dies, ideas don’t.”
Mutuku has a growing body of exciting work. He is certainly an emerging artist to keep an eye on. In addition to the many shows Mutuku has participated in across Nairobi; Mutuku’s work was also chosen in 2016 and 2017 to represent Kenya in one of Africa’s most prestigious art competitions, Absa L’Atelier. In April 2017 the artist exhibited his work in South Africa with The Absa Gallery, in partnership with the KKNK. Aditionally Mutuku won the Prestigious Absolut Art Award in 2014, the Kenya Art Fair prize for Digital Art in 2015 and third prize in the 2017 Manjano Art Competition.
As a young artist who has been practising for a relatively short amount of time Mutuku is unafraid to subvert traditional or accepted modes of artistic production. He explores the world of ideas through his art, which are presented across conceptual and minimalist forms. Experiencing Mutuku’s work raises interesting questions, revelations of emotion, empathic responses, and at times causes a reimagining of our perceptions and values. It is these features of the artist and his work that not only prompt questions but create an invitation to have a conversation – something Mutuku strives for his work to achieve.
Mwini Mutuku grew up in Eastland’s Nairobi. At 21 he moved to Malaysia to study for a Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Professional Design (Visual Communication) at Limkokwing University of Creative Technology. Returning to Kenya in 2011, he acquired an art studio in 2014 at Kuona Trust (Nairobi) where his artistic career began. Initially he focussed on painting – something he had a yearning for though never the opportunity to profoundly explore. During this period he re-evaluated his art practice and the direction he wanted it to go – not only in terms of the form and medium, but also its purpose. For Mutuku “If art does not lead to anything that is progressive then it is not interesting.” The artist does not feel his work must provide the spectator with answers to certain questions – rather, Mutuku looks to advance art forms and challenge received ideas and in so doing create work that sparks dialogue or becomes the foundation for thinking in a certain direction.
The experience of living internationally, in addition to globalisation, technology and online expansion, exposed Mutuku to contemporary ideas, trends and art forms. This challenged conventional art practices found in Nairobi while it also fed Mutuku’s intellectual outlook on life and continual philosophical inquisitiveness. The artist began developing his own visual vocabulary of patterns, shapes and motifs – believing “if your fingerprint is not on the work then it’s not really art.”
Influenced by the simplicity of minimalism – and moving away from painting – Mutuku says he started to “make art in an attempt to understand the ‘self’ and to question my place in the world.” His artwork is clearly informed by conceptualism and, to quote Sol LeWitt, Mutuku believes “the idea becomes the machine that makes the art.” It is these elements in addition to the use of novel materials and processes which gives the artist and his work a refreshing edge of non-conformity and individuality within the Nairobi art world.
Mutuku likes to explore new approaches in his art practice, particularly the integration of organic and man-made materials with new digital and technological processes – for the artist “any medium can be art.” Interrogating ‘what can be art’ and ‘what art can be’ is central to Mutuku’s outlook. He says “if we stay stagnant in what has already been accepted in art then we come to a point where art can die…you need to ask yourself, are you really commenting on the time that you are living in.” One result of this has been the development of Mutuku’s own signature style in which he employs the use of laser cutting – a process that is typically used for industrial manufacturing, though one that he has mastered to create his own aesthetic. The use of laser cutting, in which the laser beam destroys the surface it comes into contact with, creates an element of performance in which the act of destruction simultaneously becomes an act of creation. Though in keeping with all of Mutuku’s work the ideas involved in each piece, or series, remain equally, if not more, important than the aesthetic and material concerns – as the artist explains “beauty dies, ideas don’t.”
Mutuku has a growing body of exciting work. He is certainly an emerging artist to keep an eye on. In addition to the many shows Mutuku has participated in across Nairobi; Mutuku’s work was also chosen in 2016 and 2017 to represent Kenya in one of Africa’s most prestigious art competitions, Absa L’Atelier. In April 2017 the artist exhibited his work in South Africa with The Absa Gallery, in partnership with the KKNK. Aditionally Mutuku won the Prestigious Absolut Art Award in 2014, the Kenya Art Fair prize for Digital Art in 2015 and third prize in the 2017 Manjano Art Competition.
As a young artist who has been practising for a relatively short amount of time Mutuku is unafraid to subvert traditional or accepted modes of artistic production. He explores the world of ideas through his art, which are presented across conceptual and minimalist forms. Experiencing Mutuku’s work raises interesting questions, revelations of emotion, empathic responses, and at times causes a reimagining of our perceptions and values. It is these features of the artist and his work that not only prompt questions but create an invitation to have a conversation – something Mutuku strives for his work to achieve.