BIO & CONTACTS

Jimmy Ogonga

Born Nairobi, 1977.
Lives and Works in Nairobi, Kenya

Contacts: P. O. Box 46503 - 00100 (GPO)
Nairobi, Kenya.

Tel: (Studio) +254 020 477 2011 (Cell) +254 733 762 556

E-mail: info@jimmyogonga.com

Professional Background
2001 – date Program Director, Nairobi Arts Trust / Centre for Contemporary Art of East Africa.

Solo Exhibitions
January 2008 “His Story: Reflections / Deceptions”
Various Venues,
Nairobi, Kenya.

October 2007 “Catastrophe”
Images of the transition - Selected Photographs
Goethe Institute Auditorium,
Nairobi, Kenya.

October 2007 “Catastrophe”
Recent Works: Video, Photography & Installations
The Go-Down Arts Centre,
Nairobi, Kenya.

December 2003 “Juogi” – On Life and Memory
John Tuska Gallery, University of Kentucky,
Lexington, Kentucky, U. S. A.

Selected Group Exhibitions

March 2008 Johannesburg Art Fair
Sandton Civic Centre,
Johannesburg,
South Africa.
March 2007 “African Spots”
Evangelische Stadtakademie Frankfurt am Main,
Römerberg, Frankfurt,
Germany.
March 2007 Trans - Cape
Contemporary African Art on the Move
Cape Town, South Africa.

Jan. - Feb. 2007 “Contemporary Video Art & Photography from Kenya”
Kennesaw State University Gallery
Kennesaw, U. S. A.

Feb. - April 2007 “My Vision”
Reis Engelhorn Museum / REM
Mannheim, Germany.

March 2005 “Navigating the Crisis”
Go-Down Arts Centre

November 2000 Best of Kenyan Art
Rahimtullah Museum of Modern Art, Nairobi.

March 2000 No Name
Fordsburg Artists Studios, Johannesburg, S. Africa.

June 1999 Everyday People
Festival Mundial, Tilburg, the Netherlands.

June 1998 Best of Kuona
Gallery of Contemporary Art of East Africa
National Museum of Kenya, Nairobi.

Selected Workshops & Residency Programs
April 2007 “Faces & the City”
Bamako, Mali.

Jul. – Aug. 2006 “Combined Structures give some snap”
Ludwigshafen Am Rhein, Germany.

June 2006 Dak’art Lab: Art & Technology (Within the Frame framework of the Dakar Biennial ‘06)
Dakar, Senegal.

Aug. – Dec. 2003 Ruth Hunt-Wood Foundation Residency Program
University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, U. S. A.

Sept. 2002 European Satellite of Contemporary Art of Africa
Brussels, Belgium.

Aug. 2000 Wasanii International Artists Workshop
Naivasha, Kenya.

Jan. 2000 Fordsburg Artists Studios
Johannesburg, South Africa.

July 1998 United Nations Camp Sadako Program
Kakuma Refugee Camp

Sept. 1997 Wasanii International Artists Workshop
Naivasha, Kenya.

June 1997 Bush Glass International Workshop
Kitengela Glass, Kenya.

Selected Projects & Relevant Initiatives

Convener “Amnesia: Imagining Afrika Without the Crisis of Historical & Cultural Memory”
Oct 2007 - Dec 2012.
Afrika
All over the World

Creative Direction “Mombasa Billboard Project”
October - December 2001.
Likoni Canal, Indian Ocean,
Mombasa, Kenya.

Exhibition Curator “Images in Transit” Exhibition,
November 2001.
Mombasa Old Law Courts, Fort Jesus Museum,
Mombasa, Kenya.

Concept & Direction “A paradigm of Affinity: Art Workshops, Training & Exchange Programs”
January 1997 - September 1999,
Kakuma Refugee Camp, Turkana, Kenya.
Daadab Refugee Camp, Garissa, Kenya.

Talks & Conference Presentations
October 2007 “Africa Remix: Contemporary Art of a Continent”
Johannesburg Art Gallery,
South Africa.

March 2007 “ARTerial: Conference on African Cultural Centre Development”
Goree Institute, Goree Island,
Senegal.

July 2006 “Combined Structures Give some snap”, in collaboration with IngridMwangiRobertHutter Collective
Rudolf-Sharpf Gallerie,
Ludwigshafen, Germany.

May 2006 “Dak’Art Lab (Dakar Biennial) : Art & Technology”
Centre De Culture Douta Seck,
Dakar, Senegal.

Nov. 2003 “Art, Culture, Politics: a personal Interweave”,
University of Kentucky,
Lexington, Kentucky,
U. S. A.

March 2000 “Enhancing mental & creative infrastructures in the Contemporary African psyche”,
Witwatersrand University,
Johannesburg,
South Africa.

March 2000 “Comparative socio-colonial disorders”,
Witwatersrand Technikon,
Johannesburg,
South Africa.

February 2000 “Creating your own opportunities,
Market Theatre Photography Workshop,
Johannesburg,
South Africa.

Selected Published Articles & Essays
Ogonga J. (Aug. 2006) ‘IngridMwangiRobertHutter Collective: Celebrating the Triumph of Ritual’.
www.mwangi-hutter.de
Ludwigshafen am Rhein, Germany.

Ogonga J. (April 2006) ‘Kenyan Art: New Forums, New Dialogues – Navigating the multicultural Clash and defying Cultural Stagnation’.
Contemporary Commonwealth Exhibition, National Gallery of Victoria,
Melbourne, Australia

Ogonga J. (May 2002) ‘The evolution of Contemporary East African Art’
Co@rt News Magazine,
Brussels, Belgium.

Ogonga J. (May 2002) ‘Kenyan Art: Looking at ourselves’
www.africancolours.com,
The Hague, Netherlands.

Commissions
1997 Restoration & Repair of the permanent sculpture collection of the National Museum of Kenya.

2000 ‘Eternal Beauty’ a sculpture
DEG (Deutsche Investitions und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH) bank.
Johannesburg, South Africa.

Awards Received
1998 United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Camp Sadako Certificate of Accomplishment.

Other
Founder: Nairobi Arts Trust / Center for Contemporary Art of East Africa, a non-profit organization that acts as an advocate for Contemporary art and provokes the evolution of new ideas.

Trustee: Nairobits Trust Kenya, an organization that assists in the development of youth from disadvantaged backgrounds by providing web design, Graphic & Digital Imaging skills and other creative exercises that generally improve their opportunities in the society and provide an avenue for expression.