Manifestation Oku Yongola

Everard Read London presents a solo exhibition of mixed media works on canvas by Johannesburg-based artist, Teresa Kutala Firmino, a multi-disciplinary artist working in various media including paint, photography, and performance. Kutala Firmino's work embodies the artist's efforts to grapple with trauma, both personal and collective, in everyday life. Many of her paintings are constructed scenes of the past and present, which are often intertwined. The artist collects and curates textiles and images from magazines, newspapers, historical documents, and social media, and places them in colourful, contained stages. She creates surreal scenes in tightly confined interiors, where the characters are free to re-enact their stories or construct new ones. This process allows Kutala Firmino to consider alternate past, present and future narratives for Africa and its people, thus rebuilding her own archive of African history. -- Gallery website.