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July Spotlight Artists: Damilare Jamiu, April Kamunde, and Athenkosi Kwinana
- THE.CCART
- Jul 6
- 2 min read
This July, THE.CCART spotlights three powerful voices in contemporary art. Damilare Jamiu, April Kamunde, and Athenkosi Kwinana each use portraiture and figurative work to explore identity, emotion, and visibility. Their art not only highlights deeply personal stories, but also challenges broader cultural narratives, inviting viewers to reflect, slow down, and see differently.
Damilare Jamiu: Celebrating Black Identity
Damilare Jamiu, a Nigerian artist, creates bold, vibrant portraits that celebrate Black identity, culture, and daily experience. Working with oil and acrylic, he combines rich patterns and symbolic elements to reflect contemporary African life. His compositions exude warmth and energy, offering a joyful yet thoughtful view of the world around him.
Jamiu’s work is as much about pride as it is about presence, centering Black subjects in ways that honour both heritage and individuality. Watch the video interview below to step inside his studio and learn more about his creative journey and the stories behind his art.
April Kamunde: Painting Rest and Emotional Resilience
April Kamunde, a Nairobi-based Kenyan artist, explores the emotional landscapes of women navigating everyday life. Her oil paintings focus on themes of rest, exhaustion, and quiet strength, often portraying intimate moments of stillness. Kamunde’s Rest Series places her female subjects in soft, natural surroundings, a response to the emotional toll of fast-paced urban life.
A recurring element in her work is the dera, a loose-fitting dress commonly worn for comfort across East Africa. The dera becomes a visual metaphor for personal space, emotional relief, and self-preservation. Through gentle brushwork and reflective scenes, Kamunde makes a compelling case for rest as a necessary, radical act of care.
Athenkosi Kwinana: Reclaiming Representation Through Self-Portraiture
Athenkosi Kwinana, a South African artist and visual activist based in Johannesburg, uses art to challenge how people with albinism are portrayed in African visual culture. Through drawing and printmaking, Kwinana creates large-scale self-portraits that directly confront stereotypes and misrepresentation.
Her work is deeply personal and powerfully political, shaped by her lived experiences of discrimination and exclusion. By focusing on visibility, identity, and the body, Kwinana not only reclaims space for herself but also opens space for others. Her art serves as advocacy, education, and healing, inviting empathy and pushing for more inclusive cultural narratives.
This July, dive into the compelling works of Damilare Jamiu, April Kamunde, and Athenkosi Kwinana. Through vibrant portraits, tender reflections, and bold self-advocacy, their art speaks to the strength in being seen, the power of rest, and the richness of Black identity.
By THE.CCART
