Wajukuu Art Project
Wajukuu Art Project is a community-based organization situated in the Lunga-Lunga neighborhood of the Mukuru slum in Nairobi.
The project was established in 2004 by a group of artists with a common goal: to make Mukuru a place where children can thrive and to create employment through the production and sale of quality artworks.
Mukuru slum sits on a hillside below the factories that make up the industrial area of Nairobi. A nearby dumpsite draws youth from the slum, who are largely shut out from employment in the factories that pollute their community. Scavenging for items to sell is one of the few economic opportunities available to them. Many eventually turn to crime and selling drugs. Violence and sexual assault are all too common, jeopardizing their well-being and claiming the lives of many young victims. From this landscape, Wajukuu emerged, a testimony to the resilience and capacity of people to transmute suffering into beauty.
Art forms the backbone of Wajukuu. It is understood not just as a practice but a way of life. Through art classes, Wajukuu empowers children and youth to cope with daily challenges, and speak out against injustices imposed on them. A community library, the first in Mukuru, provides a safe space for students and adults to study. Documentary screenings and mural painting address various topics such as conflict resolution, crime prevention, culture practices, gender equality, health, teen pregnancy, and youth decision-making. This way, Wajukuu creates a platform for the community to fully participate in the issues affecting them.
ARTWORKS
Joseph Waweru Wangui, Msingi wa nyumbani
2022 / Mixed media installation / Dimensions variable
Ngugi Waweru, Kahiu kogi gatemaga mwene
2022 / Mixed Media Installation / Dimensions variable
Shabu Mwangi, Wrapped Reality
2022 / Mixed Media / Dimensions variable
Wajika Kwetu, When they come to our place
2022 / Mixed-media installation / Dimensions variable
Shabu Mwangi, Captive believes
2022 / Oil on canvas / 160 x 200 cm / 63.0 x 78.7 in
Shabu Mwangi, Trauma at birth
2022 / Oil on canvas / 200 x 160 cm / 78.7 x 63.0 in
Kimathi Kaaria, Valor of hope
2022 / Mixed media on canvas / 70 x 95 cm / 27.6 x 37.4 in
Kimathi Kaaria, Scars
2022 / Mixed media on canvas / 147 x 170 cm / 57.9 x 66.9 in
Kimathi Kaaria, Emotional bond
2022 / Mixed media on canvas / 70 x 90 cm / 27.6 x 35.4 in
Kimathi Kaaria, Affecionate
2022 / Acrylic on canvas / 60 x 70 cm / 23.6 x 27.6 in
Joseph Waweru, Reconstructing
2021 / Mixed media on canvas / 100 x 100 cm / 39.4 x 39.4 in
Joseph Waweru, Presenting a home
2021 / Mixed media on canvas, 2021 / 100 x 100 cm / 39.4 x 39.4 in
Stanley Githinji, Illusion
2022 / Acrylic on canvas / 70 x 50 cm / 27.6 x 19.7 in
Stanley Githenji, Faces
2022 / Acrylic on canvas / 90 x 69 cm / 35.4 x 27.2 in
Ngugi Waweru, Man down
2018 / Acrylic on canvas / 75 x 140 cm / 29.5 x 55.1 in
Ngugi Waweru, Powerless
2018 / Acrylic on canvas / 72 x 104 cm / 28.3 x 40.9 in
Ngugi Waweru, Tega niku tege
2020 / Mixed media on canvas / 182 x 144 cm / 71.7 x 56.7 in
Ngugi Waweru, Lock down
2020 / Acrylic on canvas / 142 x 125 cm / 55.9 x 49.2 in
Ngugi Waweru, Heaven and hell decide
2022 / Acrylic on canvas / 145 x 98 cm / 57.1 x 38.6 in
Ngugi Waweru, The long wait
2021 / Acrylic on canvas / 118 x 88 cm / 46.5 x 34.6 in
Shabu Mwangi, Embracing self – reserved
2019 / Oil on canvas / 137 x 105 cm / 53.9 x 41.3 in
Shabu Mwangi, Untitled 2
2019 / Oil on canvas / 137 x 90 cm / 53.9 x 35.4 in
soldFreshia Njeri, The window (2) – sold
2022 / Acrylic on canvas / 37 x 54 cm / 14.6 x 21.3 in
soldFreshia Njeri, The window (1)
2022 / Acrylic on canvas / 40 x 71 cm / 15.7 x 28.0 in
Lazarus Tumbuti, The elder
2019 / Acrylic on canvas / 69 x 54 cm / 27.2 x 21.3 in
Lazarus Tumbuti, White cat
2021 / Acrylic on canvas / 100 x 77 cm / 39.4 x 30.3 in
Lazarus Tumbuti, Untitled 1
2020 / Acrylic on canvas / 105 x 74 cm / 41.3 x 29.1 in
Lazarus Tumbuti, Old nyatiti
2021 / Acrylic on canvas / 102 x 77 cm / 40.2 x 30.3 in
Lazarus Tumbuti, Mother care 2
2021 / Acrylic on canvas / 107 x 78 cm / 42.1 x 30.7 in
Lazarus Tumbuti, Mother care 1
2021 / Acrylic on canvas / 104 x 67 cm / 40.9 x 26.4 in
Lazarus Tumbuti, Sometimes in july
2021 / Acrylic on canvas / 96 x 73 cm / 37.8 x 28.7 in
Sammy Mutinda, Small windows
2021 / Acrylic on canvas / 91 x 69 cm / 35.8 x 27.2 in
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