Exhibition Details

AKKA Project is pleased to announce the upcoming show Allan Kioko: Mangbetu People, a solo exhibition by the Kenyan emerging artist, running from June 10th to August 25th, 2023, in conjunction with the 18th Venice Architecture Biennale, and officially opening on the occasion of the Art Night in Venice 2023 on June 17th.
Venice, Italy - The vibrant emerging artist, Allan Kioko, is thrilled to present his first solo exhibition in Venice, titled Mangbetu People. The exhibition marks the culmination of Allan’s inclusion in the African Identities program held by the AKKA Project in Venice during the 2022 Art Biennale.
The exhibition follows up on the success that Allan’s artworks received during the African Identities program held by AKKA Project in Venice during the 2022 Art Biennale. Allan 'Think' Kioko is a visual artist, illustrator and muralist based at the Karen Village, Nairobi, Kenya.
He is an expressive painter and a lover of bold strokes, colour and texture. His artwork is done using acrylic on canvas and watercolour on paper, deemed as thought-provoking, humorous and sometimes controversial. He draws inspiration from his own life experiences and places he's been to. A big part of his production digs deep into his personal life experience. The fil rouge is the Mangbetu people, a Central Sudanic ethnic group present in the Democratic Republic of Congo that has a strong connection with various forms of art. Mangbetu people are also characterized by elongated heads, that derive from a traditional practice done to babies.