Kiripi Katembo, also known as Kiripi Katembo Siku, (June 20, 1979 – August 5, 2015) was a Congolese photographer, documentary filmmaker and painter. Katembo's short films, photography and other projects focused on the daily lives of the people of

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one o ...

, as well as the economic and social challenges facing the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

. He was also a founding director of Mutotu Productions, his film production company, and the executive director of Yango Biennale, based in Kinshasa. Katembo was born on June 20, 1979, in

Goma Goma is the capital of North Kivu province in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu, next to the Rwandan city of Gisenyi. The lake and the two cities are in the Albertine Rift, the weste ...

Zaire Zaire (, ), officially the Republic of Zaire (french: République du Zaïre, link=no, ), was a Congolese state from 1971 to 1997 in Central Africa that was previously and is now again known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Zaire was, ...

(present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo). He attended the

Académie des Beaux-Arts An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, ...

in Kinshasa.

Photography

Katembo, a noted Congolese photographer, was best known for his series, ''Un regard'', released in 2009. The exhibition used a photography technique called mirroring. In ''Un regard'', Katembo photographed his subjects by capturing their reflections in

puddle A puddle is a small accumulation of liquid, usually water, on a surface. It can form either by pooling in a depression on the surface, or by surface tension upon a flat surface. A puddle is generally shallow enough to walk through, and too sma ...

s of water found on the streets of Kinshasa. Katembo explained his goals for ''Un regard'' in an interview, "''Photography also provides a way of seeing beyond reflection as it opens up a poetic window on another world, the world in which I live. I want each image to tell of the children born here who have to grow up surrounded by pools of water, and of the families who survive while others leave to live in exile. To me, this is one way of campaigning for a healthier environment and to denounce through images what Kinshasa's inhabitants see as fate.''" In a 2015 interview with Jenny Stevens of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', Katembo also explained that the Congolese, including Kinshasaians, don't usually like having the picture taken, noting that a photographer usually has to ask permission. It was one of then reasons Kitembo used the mirroring of puddles in ''Un regard'', saying "That's why I started shooting reflections – it was a way to document people going about their lives." Katembo's work has been featured at Bamako Encounters, the

Royal Museum for Central Africa The Royal Museum for Central Africa or RMCA ( nl, Koninklijk Museum voor Midden-Afrika or KMMA; french: Musée royal de l'Afrique centrale or MRAC; german: Königliches Museum für Zentralafrika or KMZA), also officially known as the AfricaMuse ...

, the

Centre for Fine Arts, Brussels The Centre for Fine Arts (french: Palais des Beaux-Arts, nl, Paleis voor Schone Kunsten) is a multi-purpose cultural venue in Brussels, Belgium. It is often referred to as BOZAR (a homophone of ''Beaux-arts'') in French or PSK in Dutch. The b ...

, and the TAZ in

Ostend, Belgium Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...

. Photos from ''Un regard'' collection were on display as part of the "Beauté Congo – 1926–2015 – Congo Kitoko" exhibition at the Foundation Cartier in Paris at the time of his death in 2015. He also designed the official poster for the 67th

Festival d'Avignon The ''Festival d'Avignon'', or Avignon Festival, is an annual arts festival held in the French city of Avignon every summer in July in the courtyard of the Palais des Papes as well as in other locations of the city. Founded in 1947 by Jean Vila ...

in 2013.

Art

He was the founder of Yebela, an art collective in Kinshasa.

Film

Katembo filmed his 2008 seven-minute, digital short film, ''Cardboard Car Film'', which explores Kinshasa and its people, on a mobile phone. He established the Mutotu Productions and served as the company's founding director. Under Katembo, Mutotu Productions produced ''Atalaku'', directed by Dieudo Hamadi, which won best documentary film at the

Centre Georges Pompidou The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the Centre national d'art et de culture Georges-Pompidou ( en, National Georges Pompidou Centre of Art and Culture), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English, is a complex building in the Beaubourg area of ...

's Cinema du Reel festival in 2013. He also partnered with Hamadi and Divita Wa Lusala to co-direct the 2010 documentary, '' Congo in Four Acts'', which won awards at the

Africa Movie Academy Awards The Africa Movie Academy Awards, popularly known as AMAA and The AMA Awards, is presented annually to recognize excellence among professionals working in, or non-African professionals who have contributed to, the African film industry. It was fou ...

and the Cinéma du Réel film festival in 2010. Katembo had also worked in feature films. He was assistant director on the 2010 Congolese crime thriller, ''

Viva Riva! ''Viva Riva!'' is a 2010 Congolese crime thriller film written and directed by Djo Tunda Wa Munga. Starring Patsha Bay, Manie Malone, Fabrice Kwizera, Hoji Fortuna, Marlene Longage, Alex Herabo & Diplôme Amekindra, the film received 12 nomin ...

'', which was directed by

Djo Tunda Wa Munga Djo Tunda Wa Munga (born 1972) is a Congolese film director and producer. For his 2010 thriller movie ''Viva Riva!'' he won the award for ''Best Director'' at the African Movie Academy Awards in 2011. ''Viva Riva!'' also won at the 2011 MTV Movi ...

. Katembo was also an assistant director the Canadian drama, ''

War Witch ''War Witch'' (french: Rebelle) is a 2012 Canadian dramatic war film written and directed by Kim Nguyen and starring Rachel Mwanza, Alain Lino Mic Eli Bastien and Serge Kanyinda. It is about a child soldier forced into a civil war in Africa, an ...

'' (2012), directed by

Kim Nguyen Kim Nguyen is a Canadian film director and screenwriter, best known for his 2012 film ''War Witch (Rebelle)''. The film was the top winner at the 1st Canadian Screen Awards;85th Academy Awards The 85th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best 2012 in film, films of 2012 and took place on February 24, 2013, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, ...

. Katembo's films have been shown at the

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

, the

Carthage Film Festival The Carthage Film Festival (CFF) is an annual film festival that takes place in Tunis and founded in 1966. It is also called by its abbreviation JCC, from its French name, , or by its Arabic title, (''Cinema Days of Carthage''). Initially bienn ...

, the

International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) is the world's largest documentary film festival held annually since 1988 in Amsterdam. Over a period of twelve days, it has screened more than 300 films and sold more than 250,000 tic ...

, and the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...

. In addition to his work as a filmmaker, he was also the executive director of the Yango Biennale, a film festival held in Kinshasa. Kiripi Katembo died from

cerebral malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, fatigue (medical), tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In se ...

in Kinshasa on August 5, 2015, at the age of 36.

References

External links

*
Personal Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Katembo, Kiripi 1979 births 2015 deaths Democratic Republic of the Congo photographers Democratic Republic of the Congo documentary filmmakers Democratic Republic of the Congo film directors Democratic Republic of the Congo film producers Democratic Republic of the Congo painters People from Goma People from Kinshasa 21st-century Democratic Republic of the Congo people

Photography

Art

Film

See also

References

External links