.png)
February Spotlight Artists: Okafor Paschal Kenechukwu, Andrew Arim, and Dumbor Debeeh
- THE.CCART
- Feb 9
- 2 min read
This February, THE.CCART spotlights three artists whose practices examine identity, power, and imagined futures. Okafor Paschal Kenechukwu, Andrew Arim, and Dumbor Debeeh offer distinctive approaches to figurative art, using realism, metaphor, and speculative imagery to explore the complexities of personal and collective experience. Their work opens space for reflection on cultural presence, political critique, and the possibilities of transformation.
Okafor Paschal Kenechukwu: Portraiture Rooted in Emotion and Memory
Okafor Paschal Kenechukwu is a Nigerian artist whose practice centres on figurative painting and portraiture as a way of exploring identity, emotion, and cultural presence. Trained in Fine and Applied Arts, he began with pencil drawing before developing a strong connection to oil and acrylic on canvas. His portraits focus on human expression, using gesture, gaze, and form to convey inner states and personal narratives. Rooted in cultural appreciation, his work balances sensitivity and clarity, creating images that feel intimate yet open to interpretation. Through an evolving practice, Paschal invites viewers to reflect on shared experience, emotional depth, and the ways identity is shaped through memory and observation.
Andrew Arim: Questioning Power Through Symbolic Realism
Andrew Arim is a Ugandan visual artist whose practice explores power, identity, and contradiction through hyper-realistic, metaphorical portraiture. Raised in a domestic environment shaped by instability and emotional tension, his work is informed by lived experience rather than fixed cultural narratives. Arim is widely recognised for his striking figures that merge human bodies with animal heads, often dressed in uniforms, religious garments, or formal attire. These combinations question authority, control, and social hierarchy within Ugandan politics, religion, and society. Working primarily with oil and acrylic, and increasingly sculpture and installation, his practice blends satire with social commentary, connecting African popular culture with classical portraiture while situating local realities within a broader global dialogue.
Dumbor Debeeh: Imagining New Realities Through Afrosurrealism
Dumbor Debeeh, also known as Dr Imagination, is a Nigerian-born artist working at the intersection of Afrosurrealism and Afrofuturism. Raised in Rivers State, his photographic memory and early fascination with nature shaped a practice grounded in observation, detail, and imagination. Using ballpoint pen, pastel, and acrylic, Debeeh builds speculative worlds where organic forms blend with futuristic elements. His ongoing series Fusionist Realities explores the intersections of humanity, technology, and ecology, reimagining African identity beyond history and into future possibility. Through symbolic and layered compositions, Debeeh reflects on hybrid existence, cultural continuity, and the emotional dimensions of progress and transformation.
From grounded realism to imaginative futures, these three artists remind us that visual art can serve as both mirror and portal. Their work challenges, invites, and expands how we think about identity and possibility in today’s world.
By THE.CCART
