Kimathi Donkor (born in 1965) is a

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

-based contemporary British artist of

Ghanaian Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

Anglo-Jewish British Jews (often referred to collectively as British Jewry or Anglo-Jewry) are British citizens who identify as Jewish. The number of people who identified as Jews in the United Kingdom rose by just under 4% between 2001 and 2021. History ...

and Jamaican family heritage whose figurative paintings depict "African diasporic bodies and souls as sites of heroism and martydom, empowerment and fragility...myth and matter". According to art critic Coline Milliard, Donkor's works are ""genuine cornucopias of interwoven reference: to Western art, social and political events, and to the artist's own biography".

Early life and education

Donkor was born in

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, in 1965. Agnaldo Farias; Moacir dos Anjos;

Adrian Piper Adrian Margaret Smith Piper (born September 20, 1948) is an American conceptual artist and Kantian philosopher. Her work addresses how and why those involved in more than one discipline may experience professional ostracism, otherness, racial ...

; et al
''29th Bienal de São Paulo catalogue: there is always a cup of sea to sail in''
São Paulo: Fundac̦ão Bienal de São Paulo, 2010. ; . He has said of his background: "I was born in the UK to an Anglo-Jewish mother and Ghanaian father, but was raised by my adopted parents who were from Jamaica and the UK. We lived for a time in Zambia, Central Africa, where my adopted dad worked as a vet. I finished my schooling in the west of England, then moved to London, where I eventually settled. In the meantime, my adopted parents had divorced and remarried, so the family diversity actually increased, as Zambians also joined the party. This smörgåsbord life induced an early sense of the wondrous, and sometimes maddening, complexity of identities and histories, which, I think, has been reflected in my artworks. Precisely because I was such an intimate witness to the multiple crossings and re-crossings of stories, images and journeys from around the world." Donkor received an Art Foundation Diploma from Bournemouth and Poole College of Arts followed by a BA (Hons) degree in fine art from

Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, officially the Goldsmiths' College, is a constituent research university of the University of London in England. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by the Wor ...

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

, and a master's degree in fine art at

Camberwell College of Arts Camberwell College of Arts is a public tertiary art school in Camberwell, in London, England. It is one of the six constituent colleges of the University of the Arts London. It offers further and higher education programmes, including postgra ...

.Yvette Greslé, , FAD, 3 October 2013. He earned his PhD at

Chelsea College of Arts Chelsea College of Arts is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London based in London, United Kingdom, and is a leading British art and design institution with an international reputation. It offers further and higher educat ...

in 2016. He also participated in community education initiatives such as

Black History for Action In politics and history the Black History for Action (BHA), founded in 1986, became a long-standing and highly regarded independent lecture and discussion forum for the British African-Caribbean community in London. Nature and purpose Notable ...

. In 2011, he was the recipient of the Derek Hill Foundation Scholarship for the

British School at Rome The British School at Rome (BSR) is an interdisciplinary research centre supporting the arts, humanities and architecture. History The British School at Rome (BSR) was established in 1901 and granted a UK Royal Charter in 1912. Its mission is " ...

Career and works

Works by Kimathi Donkor are held by significant UK and international collections, including at the

International Slavery Museum The International Slavery Museum is a museum located in Liverpool, England that focuses on the history and legacy of the transatlantic slave trade. The museum which forms part of the Merseyside Maritime Museum, consists of three main gallerie ...

Wolverhampton Art Gallery Wolverhampton Art Gallery is located in the City of Wolverhampton, in the West Midlands, United Kingdom. The building was funded and constructed by local contractor Philip Horsman (1825–1890), and built on land provided by the municipal aut ...

, the

Sindika Dokolo Sindika Dokolo (16 March 1972 – 29 October 2020) was a Congolese businessman and art collector. Since 2002 he had been married to Isabel dos Santos, the eldest daughter of José Eduardo dos Santos, then President of Angola. As of January 2020 ...

Collection and the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

. His history paintings "fearlessly tackle key, dramatic, monumental moments of African diaspora history ... with a painterly preciseness that borders on aesthetic frugality", according to art historian

Eddie Chambers Edward Chambers (born March 29, 1982) is an American former professional boxer. He challenged once for a unified world heavyweight title in 2010. He was ranked as the fourth best heavyweight in the world by '' The Ring'' at the conclusion of 20 ...

. In 2005, '' Time Out'' magazine reported that officers from London's

Metropolitan Police The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...

had entered the Bettie Morton Gallery to demand the removal of one of the artist's paintings, ''Helping With Enquiries'' (1984), from his solo exhibition ''Fall/Uprising'' (which addressed policing controversies). Gallery staff refused to comply and police later issued a statement that "no further action" would be taken against the painter. The artist's "Queens of the Undead" paintings depict historic female commanders from Africa and the African Diaspora, but with contemporary Londoners as models. Prior to featuring in Donkor's 2012 solo show at London's Institute of International Visual Arts ( Iniva), some works from the series were exhibited at the Ciccillo Matarazzo Pavilion in

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...

, Brazil, for the 29th São Paulo Biennial in 2010. Caroline Menezes suggested that Donkor's work, "articulates a hidden history, tales of the past and chronicles of suppressed voices", with figures such as

Nanny of the Maroons Queen Nanny, Granny Nanny, or Nanny of the Maroons ONH (c. 1686 – c. 1733), was an 18th century leader of the Jamaican Maroons. She led a community of formerly enslaved Africans called the Windward Maroons. In the early 18th century, under ...

Nzinga Mbande Nzinga may refer to: People * Nzinga of Ndongo and Matamba (c. 1583–1663), Central African warrior queen * João I of Kongo, also known as Nzinga a Nkuwu or Nkuwu Nzinga * Afonso I of Kongo (c. 1456–1542 or 1543), also known as Mvemba a Nzi ...

Stephen Lawrence Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...

, Joy Gardner,

Toussaint L'Ouverture François-Dominique Toussaint Louverture (; also known as Toussaint L'Ouverture or Toussaint Bréda; 20 May 1743 – 7 April 1803) was a Haitian general and the most prominent leader of the Haitian Revolution. During his life, Louverture ...

and

Jean Charles de Menezes Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * J ...

among the subjects addressed. Writing about his 2013, London solo show, ''Daddy, I want to be a black artist'', Yvette Greslé proposed Donkor as “one of the most significant figurative painters, of his generation, working in the United Kingdom today”. In 2017, works by the artist were featured in the Diaspora Pavilion during the 57th Venice Biennale, and in 2019 he won the DiLonghi Art Projects Artists Award at the

London Art Fair The London Art Fair (LAF) is an annual contemporary art fair held at the Business Design Centre in Islington, London. Overview The fair displays modern British and contemporary art, from the early 20th century onwards, presented by galleries ...

Curating and art teaching

In 2008, Donkor was commissioned to curate the touring group show ''Hawkins & Co'' at

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

's Contemporary Urban Centre, featuring 70 works by 15 artists, including Raimi Gbadamosi, Keith Piper, George "Fowokan" Kelly and Chinwe Chukwuogo Roy

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

. The show, which toured to Liverpool from London, marked the bicentenary of Parliament's Act to Abolition the Slave Trade. In 2009, Donkor embarked on a three-year project at

Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in ...

, ''Seeing Through'', which engaged a group of young people from London foster homes in producing and exhibiting art at the museum. Dr Donkor is a senior lecturer at the

University of the Arts, London University of the Arts London is a collegiate university in London, England, specialising in arts, design, fashion and the performing arts. It is a federation of six arts colleges: Camberwell College of Arts, Central Saint Martins, Chelsea Col ...

and in 2019 was appointed as Course Leader for the BA (Hons) in Painting at

Selected solo exhibitions

*201
''Some Clarity of Vision''
Gallery MOMO,

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

*201
''Daddy, I want to be a black artist''
Peckham Space, London *201
''Queens of the Undead''
with InIVA at Rivington Place, London *2008 ''Hawkins & Co'', Market Theatre Gallery,

Armagh Armagh ( ; ga, Ard Mhacha, , "Macha's height") is the county town of County Armagh and a city in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the Pri ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

*2005 ''Fall/Uprising'', Bettie Morton Gallery, London *2005 ''Caribbean Passion: Haiti 1804'', Art Exchange Gallery (touring),

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

*2004 ''Caribbean Passion: Haiti 1804'', Bettie Morton Gallery, London

Selected group exhibitions

*2019
"London Art Fair"

Business Design Centre The Business Design Centre is a Grade II listed building located between Upper Street and Liverpool Road in the district of Islington in London, England. It was opened in 1862, originally named the Agricultural Hall and from 1884 the Royal Ag ...

, London, England (Presented by Ed Cross Fine Art). *2018
"Diaspora Pavilion: Venice to Wolverhampton"
Wolverhampton Art Gallery,

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...

, England (curated by David A. Bailey and Jess Taylor) *2018
"A History of Drawing"
Camberwell Space, London, England (curated by Kelly Chorpening). *2017
"Diaspora Pavilion"
Venice Biennale, Palazzo Pisani S. Marina, Venice, Italy (curated by David A. Bailey and Jess Taylor). *2017–18
"Ink And Blood"
International Slavery Museum, Liverpool, England (curated by Jean Francois Manicom). *2017
"Untitled: Art on the Conditions of Our Time"

New Art Exchange New Art Exchange is a contemporary art gallery in Nottingham's Hyson Green neighborhood representing contexts of Black, Asian, and minority ethnic artists and communities. The organisation formed as a charity in 2003 from APNA Arts (a South ...

, Nottingham, England (curated by

Paul Goodwin Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

and Hansi Momodu-Gordon) *2013
''Entre Trânsitos e Viagens''
Carpintaria São Lazaro, Lisbon, Portugal *2013
''What's Going On''
The Usher Gallery,

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincol ...

, UK *2012
''Invisible Forces''
Furtherfield, London *2011
''Seven Things To Do In An Emergency''
The British School at Rome, Rome, Italy *2010
''29th Bienal de São Paulo''
São Paulo, Brazil *2008: ''Hawkins & Co'', Contemporary Urban Centre, Liverpool, UK *2004
''Historicism''
198 Contemporary Arts and Learning, London *1985: ''Young, Black & Here'', People's Gallery, London *1985: ''Artists Against Apartheid'',

Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...

, London

References

External links

Kimathi Donkor's official website

Kimathi Donkor's page
at Gallery MOMO, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Kimathi Donkor's page
at Omenka Gallery, Lagos, Nigeria.
Kimathi Donkor's page
at Ed Cross Fine Art, London, UK. {{DEFAULTSORT:Donkor, Kimathi 20th-century English painters English male painters 21st-century English painters Alumni of Camberwell College of Arts Alumni of Chelsea College of Arts Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London English contemporary artists Black British artists 1965 births Living people English people of Ghanaian descent English people of Jewish descent Alumni of Arts University Bournemouth Artists from Bournemouth 21st-century English male artists 20th-century English male artists