Les Ombres Multicolores, 2011

Chéri Samba

In 1972 Chéri Samba left school in order to become a sign painter on Kasa Vubu Avenue in Kinshasa. From this circle of artists (which included Moke, Bodo, and later Samba's younger brother Cheik Ledy) arose one of the most vibrant schools of popular painting of the twentieth century. Working both as a billboard painter and a comic strip artist, Samba employed the conventions of both genres when he began making paintings on sacking cloth (canvas being too expensive) in 1975.

Indeed, he borrowed the bubbles from the comics in order to incorporate in his paintings not only narrative but also comments. Samba has recalled how he came to use text in these paintings: "I had noticed that people in the street would walk by my paintings, glance at them and keep going. I thought that if I added a bit of text, people would have to stop and take time to read, to get more into the painting and admire it. That's what I called the 'Samba signature'. Since then I put text in all my paintings." In the early 1980s he began signing his paintings 'Chéri Samba: Artiste Populaire'. Indeed, the popularity of his paintings soon went beyond Kinshasa's borders. By the mid 1980s his work was gaining an international audience. Samba's paintings of this period reveal his perception of the social, political, economic and cultural realities of Zaïre (now the Democratic Republic of Congo), with subject such as everyday life in Kinshasa, customs, sexuality, AIDS, social inequalities, and corruption.

Samba explained, "My painting is concerned with people's lives. I'm not interested in myth...

MACAAL - Museum of African Contemporary Art Al Maaden

In 2016, Fondation Alliances committed itself to long-term public action in order to contribute to the development of educational and cultural leisure activities in Marrakech by offering the city an art museum.

The Museum of African Contemporary Art Al Maaden (MACAAL), Marrakech, is an independent, not-for-profit contemporary art museum and one of the first of its kind in North Africa.

MACAAL is dedicated to the promotion of African art across a range of media, with diverse exhibition and educational programmes. The museum nurtures an understanding of contemporary African art by collecting and exhibiting both established and emerging artists, and highlighting the creative energy and cultural diversity found across the continent.

MACAAL is a philanthropic initiative of Moroccan art collectors Alami Lazraq and his son Othman Lazraq. It forms part of their charitable not-for-profit association Fondation Alliances, which focuses on supporting cultural development in Morocco. Motivated by a passion for the arts, and managed by Othman, MACAAL brings the Lazraq family’s private collection of modern and contemporary African art, built up over the past 40 years, to a broader audience.

Othman Lazraq — President
Mouna Lazraq — Head of the Commercial Department
Meriem Berrada — Artistic Director
Janine Dieudji — Exhibitions Director
Hanaa El mrabet — Sales and Event Planning Manager
Yassir Yarji — Gallery Educator

MACAAL
Al Maaden, Sidi Youssef Ben Ali
40000 Marrakech, Morocco Read more