Press
Kambi was born in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, a culturally diverse nation with more than 120 ethnic groups and rich artistic traditions going back to prehistoric times. A talented youth, he sought opportunities everywhere.
“I entered a competition related to research on chimpanzees in the Gombe Forest in Kigoma and was one of five artists selected as the winners and had the chance to meet former President Mwalimu Julius Nyerere.”
Kambi apprenticed with artist Mohamed Raza and his son, “They taught me a lot about art and painting.” He worked with cartoonist Godfrey Mwampemba known as Gado. “Having no formal art training, I acquired my skills with the help of these fellow Tanzanian artists and while attending workshops in Dar es Salaam.”
For a time, he practiced his trade in Kampala, Uganda, but returned to Tanzania where he had several exhibits. He has also exhibited in the Netherlands, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Italy, Denmark, and the United States.
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“For me, art is all about color. I use color to depict feelings… of people, landscapes, animals.” Like the anonymous ancestors of the Sandawe people in central Tanzania, who painted or engraved images on rocks, Kambi depends entirely on color. They used predominantly a single primary color, relying exclusively on red, black, or white values. He uses oil and acrylic paints applied with a knife, a brush, or both to create striking abstractions that exude feeling.
In more modern terms, his work recalls the fauvists, the French avant-garde movement of the early 20th century, and their spontaneous expressions in potent color used directly from the tube.
Amazwi is the Zulu word for “voices.” Our goal at Amazwi Contemporary Art is to give voice to a diverse array of African artists, while broadening appreciation of their talent and understanding of their cultures. By supporting their continued growth and development as artists, all of us have the opportunity to contribute to an exciting time in African art.
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In thinking about Contemporary African art, put aside pre-conceived ideas of wood carvings, masks and other traditional artifacts. In many cases, contemporary African art is influenced by tradition, but its growth and ability to flourish derive from the political transition of African countries from colonialism to independence. African artists suddenly had more exposure to the work of their counterparts from other continents, had more opportunities for formal training, and were not as restricted by political and social pressures to limit art making to “tourist art.”
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In the latter half of the 20th century, African artists started experimenting with nontraditional manners of expression and interpreting the world around them in fresh, new ways. Whether abstract, impressionistic or realistic, their work often uses bold colors and mixed media to connect with the viewer. Their subject matter most often celebrates the natural beauty of Africa – the most exotic of continents – and its people
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Paintings by Salum Kambi from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, were exhibited in the culture church Jakob in November 2010. His paintings have also been shown in several countries in Africa, Europe and USA.
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