section3: Conceptual Q: within the past fifteen years, Kuona has moved from the Museum, to the Godown and to the current space. All these moves perhaps coincided with evolution in programming its activities; perhaps because every shift coincided with the Centre’ s gaining more control of its programs. What was the effect of this evolution on your personal practice? A: Well, I think the physical changing of spaces was to a certain extent destabilizing, but then there was an upside to it in that it also brought in another dimension for me to function in. You can actually grow stale when you exist in one space or with the same program for too long ….
Q: It was a constructive destabilization … A: I think it was... It was constructive, especially the first move from the NMK studio to the Godown because it broke this model of pure communal studio. At the Godown you ended up having artists renting individual studio spaces, shared spaces which prior to that was not very common in the Nairobi art scene. It also brought in some kind of energy. Of course a lot of things were also lost along the way- we lost this strong, very intense communal setting where everyone functions in one space, there was a lot of cross over. The problem with that was that you ended up having a lot of hybridity- I remember one time at the NMK when we started dissecting each
34 other’ s work and the way people draw noses had kind of crossed over into others works. Nonetheless, the thing I remember about the NMK studio, and which set it apart from other artist collectives in and around Nairobi is there was this desire for individual artists to find their own visual unique visual expression. But then of course on a subconscious level, there were all these references, be it in the shape of certain forms, the use of certain colors, or the use of certain tools in painting or sculpture, certain finishes …
Q: In content..? A: You could actually find a distinct identity whereby this is your individual expression. But then was a very deliberate attempt by people. There are a lot of things I really appreciated about that space. Nonetheless, hybridity in the sense that sometimes when you all try to be so different, the processes end up being the same, and the outcome inadvertently similar- and this is one of the arguments I have with conceptual art practice in Europe at the moment. You desire to be so different, but that difference feels the same.
Q: Speaking of conceptual art practice in Europe, these trends have crept into our visual vocabulary. Some may even say we are trying very hard to be‘ conceptual’, and the hypothesis is that with the Kenyan scene connecting at an unprecedented level with the global art scene, especially Europe, there is a flow of this kind of visual vocabularies- Is this is why we have what was basically the same role acted by certain artists being redefined by what you termed‘ cutting edge expression’ and calling it curatorial? A: What I meant, to expound on that a bit, is that we had a situation where we didn’ t have spaces to show, and artists would mobilize themselves in groups of two, three and approach spaces or people who had spaces, propose to have exhibitions in those spaces, they would have to go through the process of transporting their works there, work on the publicity which at the time meant sending out cards in envelopes …. with stamps- now of course you get everything through e-mail. Of course Kuona would do this too, which brings in another aspect of the NMK, the exhibitions once, twice or thrice a year. I think part of that process where we didn’ t have a gallery system, and instead people would come into your space, frame it, hang it and do the publicity and all you do is end up showing up at the exhibition opening, or directing the hanging process.
Q: is the difference therefore, between those days and now that exhibitions are more like the result of critical research project, whereby an artist, or a group or artists come up