Henry Tayali
22 November 1943 – 22 July 1987
Henry Tayali, Born in Serenje, Zambia, was a multi-lingual Zambian fine artist, sculptor, printmaker, raconteur and lecturer. He has been described as Zambia's most famous painter, and most revered and pre-eminent artist. Tayali’s talent was evident so early that he had his first exhibition at the age of 15, in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe where he lived at the time.
Tayali developed artistically from his first major, untutore and representational work, Destiny, to his unexplained Red Abstract via a BA in Fine Arts from Uganda’s Makerere University and an MA in Fine Arts from Dusseldorf Art College, West Germany, his professor, Gerd Weber, said of him,
"Of all the foreign students who have worked in my class, Henry Tayali is by far the most talented of them all. His work reflected African nationalism, and deep concern for Africa’s urban masses uncomfortably uprooted from their traditions it constitutes a synthesis between the traditional African art, the tools and techniques of the modern era. Some of his works are found in famous Zambian private collections like Lechwe trust and Chaminuka game reserves to name a few.