ZURICH.- Galerie Eva Presenhuber announced the representation of Nairobi-based artist Chemu Ng'ok, alongside Central Fine, Miami, and Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg. On November 15, her debut solo exhibition with Galerie Eva Presenhuber Echoes will open at Waldmannstrasse, Zurich.

Ng’ok investigates personal, psychological, political, and spiritual relationships through her art. Her works unveil tensions and shifts in belief systems within African societies, blending reality and imagination to create intricate narratives. These include themes such as the act of negotiating power for the self within the institution, bearing witness to ceremonies, the search for justice, and navigating loss through the body within the theme of transition. The works are in constant flux as their meaning changes over time and the ambiguity of the work allows for different interpretations. Painting becomes a verb, an act of doing, searching, witnessing, or navigating. An elusive conclusion is never reached.

In painting the body, I show a psychological disjuncture. The flexibility of flesh offers me painterly ammunition. Lines hint at the unfinished aspects of thought. The lines morph and become a type of coding that hovers “in the air” of painting. These transmutations are endless. They refer to language, memory, ritual, absence, a future that is yet to be determined, things left unsaid and bodies on the verge of eruption. – Chemu Ng'ok

I am delighted to welcome Chemu to our gallery and look forward to being part of her artistic journey. I admire how her paintings connect the psychological and corporeal aspects of themes such as human existence, power, justice, and identity. They feel intimate, yet with great political relevance. As her hometown of Nairobi emerges as one of Africa's leading contemporary art hotspots, it is artists like Chemu who are driving this vibrant cultural movement with their bold voices. – Eva Presenhuber

Ivy Brandie Chemutai Ng’ok was born in 1989 in Nairobi, Kenya, where she lives and works. In 2017, she received her MFA in painting from Rhodes University, Grahamstown, ZA. In 2023, she was the subject of a solo exhibition at ICA Milano, Milan, IT. She has participated in group exhibitions at institutions including The Institutum, Singapore, SG (2024); Kunstmuseum Basel, Basel, CH (2024); Nairobi Contemporary Art Institute, Nairobi, KE (2024); Galerie Eva Presenhuber x Taxa, Seoul, KR (2023); Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens, Sint-Martens-Latem, BE (2022); Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami, FL, US (2022); Zeitz MOCAA, Capetown, ZA (2022); de la Cruz Collection, Miami, FL, US (2021); New Museum Triennial, New York, NY, US (2018); Grahamstown National Arts Festival, Grahamstown, ZA (2018; 2014); and National Gallery of Zimbabwe, Harare, ZW (2017).