This exhibition brings together two strong female voices from Nairobi’s world of emerging artists. With layers of multi-coloured dots that combine to result in visually striking images, Aweko explores a rich tapestry of African life. Using bold colours from a rich palette, Owira mines her life experiences to interrogate the shifting identities of African people, often focusing on women and examining the gap between who society says women should be and what they are. Both artists are exploring African culture and lives in their paintings, particularly from a female lens and from their perspectives as East Africans.
Aweko Rosette (L) and Achieng Owira (R) in their studios
Aweko’s work has a joyful facade, created by the illuminating nature of her pointillistic style. She says that she purposefully creates work like this to speak to the moments of joy that exist within African lived experiences, which can be very hard.
In putting this exhibition together, Aweko and Owira wanted to challenge the traditional depiction of African women, with burdens on their heads, taking care of children, because they feel that this is the image of African women that the world is presented . Instead the artists wanted to explore ideas around societal culture and religious norms.
Aweko is originally from Uganda, but has lived and worked in Nairobi for the last decade. Owira is Kenyan from Kisumu region, but also lived in Mombasa and now in Nairobi. Alot of her feminist reflections derive from her perceptions of village life after returning there from Mombasa city life.
It’s a Long Life by Achieng Owira
In Owira’s work “It’s a Long Life”, she depicts “a modern woman who is thoughtful, is educated, is well traveled, but she’s still not married”. She is shown with a Holy Bible, denoting her Christianity, but also a glass of wine. Owira wants us to think about how society views a woman like this. For many the Bible and the wine may be a contradiction. But are they? Do they need to be?
Kibera Ballerinas by Aweko Rosette
Aweko says, “With the “Kibera Ballerinas”, I was trying to show women who made their path through life in a different way; these girls use dance to change their lives, which was something that was very inspiring. Because traditionally, as a woman, there are roles that you had to take on”.
Through the stories that Owira tells, she seeks to encourage women to speak up, to occupy space and to believe in themselves. Through her paintings she looks at topics like family, domestic violence, and mental health, as well as examining cultural norms and feminism. Her work delves heavily into emotion and you feel like the people in her paintings have something to say to you.
Owira and Aweko also want to move away from the idea of suffering Africans, that “they have AIDS, they live in poverty”. An image like Aweko’s “Daredevil” shows a boy swimming and flipping in the water. She wanted to portray the joyous feats she witnessed the boys in her village on the Nile performing when she was growing up.
Detail of “Daredevil” by Aweko Rosette
The artists also feel it’s important to be an example in a very male dominated art world. They have learned from female mentors and want to show girls through both their images and their own careers that they have different options.
“We’re not just being relegated to the kitchen and taking care of children and raising them, and we are out here pursuing our dreams, trying to make something amazing out of our lives, while trying to push the boundaries of society and culture. Because when you see a lot of the art that we do, we are trying to push that boundary”
She Speaks: Feminine Perspectives in Art is on show at Under the Swahili Tree, Marula Lane, Karen until 7 January 2025.
There will be an opening reception on Thursday 28 November from 6pm.
You can find the artists’ work on Instagram @little_aweko & @achieng_owira_studio