Kenyan artist Longinos Nagila to upset status quo with political exhibition
After a successful solo exhibition entitled Technicians Of The Sacred held at the Artspace Nairobi in February 2016, Longinos has come up with a brilliant yet satirical exhibition titled, ”Democracy My Piss” set to be opened on Thursday 28th at Kuona Trust Nairobi.
Democracy My Piss traverses ethnicity, cynicism and pokes at the rib of bad leadership and slackness of Africans towards political change. The artist has carefully used his mastery to play wit with leaders like Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and Yoweri Museveni of Uganda who have, as a result of stinking democracy, marshaled power to continue their tyrannical reign. Moreover, the art questions the conscience of Presidents like Kagame Paul of Rwanda and the quest for more time in office.
Longinos once again strides boldly into the shoes of renaissance artists like Michelangelo who connived to use art as a vessel of satirical sneer to a society that is doomed. He wittingly like Da Vinci, places his art to the scrutiny of the audience without fear of intimidation.
The 30-year-old whose artistic tendencies lean on acrylics, Indian ink and charcoal has a prolific talent that speaks volumes. In February, his exhibition at ArtSpace Technicians of the Sacred raised: eyebrows on the demigods worshipped by those in society today. He distinctively satirized market Hype which has become the moral fiber of our society and reminded us of our core values.
Democracy My Piss on the other hand, questions the commitment of subjects or voters in the struggle to bring change. According to the organizers the ordinary people who are subjects to these politics being positioned as bit-players, pawns, the supporting cast to a centralized system of influential men and women. But still they queue in n umbers to vote, are they exercising a right denied for too long? Is there a need to make a mark even though that mark is mostly ignored? Is democracy an experiment? is Africa defining its own kind of democracy?
The exhibition runs until May the 28th 2016