Smokey lands in Loresho with artist Onditi

Paul Onditi is not waiting around this time for the government to decide if it will support a Kenyan art Pavilion at this year’s Venice Biennale.

“I’ve already been in one [Kenyan pavilion in Venice] and I don’t need to do that again,” the artist told BDLife last Friday. Instead, he will be exhibiting in Venice at the European Cultural Space. In the meantime, he is having a solo exhibition of nearly 20 of his most recent paintings at the Tribal Gallery in Nairobi.

“This exhibition is a mix of both recent and past works,” Onditi says, adding that it makes sense since his painterly ‘pal’ Smokey seems to take on various subtle differences in this show, suggesting the artist’s avatar man was reincarnated at various points in time.

The quirky character of Smokey appears in almost all the artworks in Onditi’s current show. As an avatar, he has become emblematic of the artist, since he has figured into almost all of Onditi’s paintings since he returned from living and studying abroad, in Germany in 2010.

The fact is Smokey has never failed to ignite people’s curiosity. Where is this man going? Sometimes he looks like he is assuredly going somewhere.

Sometimes he appears mystified and lost. Often, he appears in unusual places. The terrain around him rarely includes landmarks or signs to suggest where he is or wants to go.

Smokey’s genius is the mixture of mystery and admiration that his silhouette rouses in us. Is it because we identify with him or we simply admire his perseverance, animated posture of moving forward, and his adventurous, intrepid spirit, even in these Covid-19 times?

One cannot easily pinpoint Smokey’s broad appeal among Kenyan art lovers. All we know is that several years back, Onditi had an exhibition in which Smokey absented himself.

The paintings in that show could have served as beautiful, organic backdrops for Smokey’s relentless sojourns. Otherwise, the works felt like they were lacking something.

Onditi got tired of the public’s inquiry into Smokey’s whereabout because, in his subsequent shows, Smokey reappeared, as if he had never been gone.

The avatar had taken on a life of its own. His fans made that clear: they wanted him back. So here he is, in all but one of the paintings at Tribal Gallery.

Last Friday night, Onditi looked relaxed as many came to enjoy this lovely space which doubles up as both an art gallery and gracious home of Louise Paterson, the former nurse turned humanitarian aid administrator turned international art dealer.

Between his greeting of guests, Onditi tells BDLife he is under intense pressure to complete the art by March to send it off to Venice in preparation for the April opening of the Biennale.

“I have to send them four paintings since ours is a group exhibition,” he says, noting what’s needed from him in Venice.

BDLife reminds him that shouldn’t be difficult for him. But the artist is not convinced.

“It’s not easy to be creative when you are under pressure,” says Onditi who in addition to having had numerous exhibitions both here and abroad, also teaches aspiring artists in his spare time.

The one other thing about the artist that has set him apart from other Kenyans is his unique technique of painting on plastic sheeting, using everything from bleach, turpentine, and oil paints to sponges, cartridges of ink toner, and image transfer.

That blend has had a magical effect on audiences who are moved by the mystery and depth of his imagination and his art. The technique combined with the curious figure of Smokey has created an entire universe in which the avatar moves effortlessly.

In his current show at Tribal Gallery, Onditi occasionally juxtaposes his inscrutable avatar within a context that seems familiar. Perhaps it is the artist’s studio (Me & Myself 3), or the entrance into some medieval town (Dilemma Era).

And in one work (Astro 1), Smokey looks like he would like to be an astronaut like the other characters floating above him in outer space. Otherwise, many of his backdrops are abstract in design, constructed in layers of ink and bleach, paint and turpentine.

Onditi says there is just one painting in this show that doesn’t give space to Smokey. It’s also the largest, longest, and most stunning of all the works. It’s entitled ‘Celluloid Series’.