FEATURED ARTIST OF THE MONTH

Featured Artist Jonathan Malanda(Congo)

Jonathan Malanda Mbutu a new wind blowing in Congolese Contemporary art.

Jonathan Malanda is one of the new faces that is gaining momentum in plastic art in the Democratic Republic of Congo.Son of Mr. Achille Malanda Mbutu and Mrs. Jeanne Landu Lutete, Jonathan Malanda is third in a family of seven (7) children. it was born on August 30, 1992 in Kinshasa.

Passionate and lover of drawing since his childhood, Jonathan Malanda fell under the spell of art from an early age. He took this taste alongside his father who was an engineer-architect and whom he also considers as his mentor.

Anxious to professionalize and work in the art sector, after his secondary studies; Jonathan Malanda is enrolled in the College of Fine Arts ESFORA one of the application schools of the Academy of Fine Arts Institute. It was there that he obtained his state diploma (equivalent to the baccalaureate) in plastic art, interior decoration option.

Very ambitious, with this desire to touch the roof, Jonathan Malanda will seek to perfect his art and go even further. To do this, he decided to continue his training in one of the best workshops in Kinshasa with master Maketa. In this apprentice, he will discover his talents in contemporary African art and become a specialist in this branch. As required by religion and the line of conduct of art, each artist must convey a message through his works. To respond to this rule, Jonathan Malanda creates his own style, emphasizing the woman more.

His inspiration comes from her mom’s behavior. “In my mother, I find the embodiment and the true value of the African woman. She has this capacity to find the solution to every problem that she faces”.

Like any artist, Jonathan Malanda draws his inspiration from nature, from social facts but especially more particularly from various music clips where the woman is highlighted in several aspects such as beauty, morphology, smile and many others.

Nothing is more special than to make his works pleasant and to sell the image of the African woman in general, the artist always uses a background painted in loincloth symbol of the culture, dignity and the pride of the African woman.

Note that in each painted picture, there is the presence of an old-fashioned landline. With this image, Jonathan Malanda alludes to the return to authenticity, to the starting point for the African woman. He wants the latter to be able to know its cultural values ​​that the current generation tends to ignore and forget. “In Africa to educate a woman is to educate a whole nation. A woman educated with values ​​brings happiness and reflects the image of a whole family”, says the artist.

In his young career, Jonathan Malanda participated in several Exhibitions such as BILEMBO And cultural festivals we quote for example BISO organized each year by the television channel B-one, In his native country; but also in Brazzaville, where it has a strong clientele and receives more requests.

Currently, Jonathan Malanda has set up a mini-workshop with the means on board to teach contemporary art to the youngest, in order to transmit his knowledge to other generations and to perpetuate this art.