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Aimé Mpane

Aimé Mpane

  • Biography
  • Works
  • Exhibitions
  • News
  • Press
  • Congolese, b. 1968 Lives and works in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Brussels, Belgium Working primarily with wood...

    Congolese, b. 1968

    Lives and works in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Brussels, Belgium

     

    Working primarily with wood and an adze — a traditional African woodworking tool that dates back to the Stone Age — Belgium-based Congolese artist Aimé Mpane creates sculptures, mosaic-like wall hangings, and portraits carved on wood that explores the fundamental connection between place and personal identity. His practice points to the aesthetic and cultural character of contemporary Congo, while demonstrating a deep understanding of its history. 
     
    Mpane’s sculptures and installations often address the aftermath of colonialism and the Mobutu regime in Congo; while his rough-hewn, brightly painted portraits on wood panels of the men, women, and children he meets on the streets of Kinshasa give insight into modern Congolese identity. Carved “masks” from is Le Demoiselle Pende/Masque Bi-face series resemble African masks while referencing the work of Pablo Picasso, whose imagery was influenced by an influence in Primitivism. 
     
    Mpane has been the subject of solo exhibitions at the Royal Museum of Fine Arts of Belgium, Brussels (2021); Mill—Musée Ianchelevici, La Louvière, Belgium (2017); University of Wyoming Art Museum, Laramie, WY (2016); Museum of Katanga, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo (2011); and Station Museum of Contemporary Art, Houston, TX (2007). He has been included in significant group exhibitions including the 60th Venice Biennale (2024); Seeing Differently, Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C (2021); Amsterdam Sculpture Biennial, Netherlands (2019); Black Models: From Gericault to Matisse, Musée de Orsay, Paris, France (2019); Posing Modernity: The Black Model from Manet to Matisse to Today, The Wallach Art Gallery at Columbia University, New York, NY (2018); Sanctuary, FOR-SITE Foundation, San Francisco, CA (2017); Double Take: African Innovations, Brooklyn Museum, NY (2016); and Shaping Power: Luba Masterworks from the Royal Museum for Central Africa, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, CA (2013). In 2018, Mpane was commissioned to create a sculpture for permanent display at the Africa Museum in Tervuren, Belgium. His work is additionally collected by institutions including the National Museum of African Art, Washington, D.C; Brooklyn Museum, NY; Detroit Institute of Art, MI; Microsoft Art Collection, Redmond, WA; Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C; and the Embassy of Belgium, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo.
     
    Artist CV (PDF)
  • Works
    • Aimé Mpane L'envie, 2013 Mural on pieces of wood 70 x 78 x 7 inches
      Aimé Mpane
      L'envie, 2013
      Mural on pieces of wood
      70 x 78 x 7 inches
      Inquire
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    • Aimé Mpane X, 2014-2019 Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel 12.5 x 12 inches
      Aimé Mpane
      X, 2014-2019
      Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel
      12.5 x 12 inches
      Inquire
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    • Aimé Mpane XI, 2014-2019 Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel 12.5 x 12 inches
      Aimé Mpane
      XI, 2014-2019
      Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel
      12.5 x 12 inches
      Inquire
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    • Aimé Mpane XIV, 2014-2019 Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel 12.5 x 12 inches
      Aimé Mpane
      XIV, 2014-2019
      Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel
      12.5 x 12 inches
      Inquire
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    • Aimé Mpane Kinoct #56, 2011 Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel 12.5 x 12 x 2 inches
      Aimé Mpane
      Kinoct #56, 2011
      Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel
      12.5 x 12 x 2 inches
      Inquire
      %3Cdiv%20class%3D%22artist%22%3EAim%C3%A9%20Mpane%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22title_and_year%22%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22title_and_year_title%22%3EKinoct%20%2356%3C/span%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22comma%22%3E%2C%20%3C/span%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22title_and_year_year%22%3E2011%3C/span%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22medium%22%3EAcrylic%20and%20mixed%20media%20on%20wood%20panel%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22dimensions%22%3E12.5%20x%2012%20x%202%20inches%3C/div%3E
    • Aimé Mpane Kinoct #58, 2011 Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel 12.5 x 12 x 2 inches
      Aimé Mpane
      Kinoct #58, 2011
      Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel
      12.5 x 12 x 2 inches
      Inquire
      %3Cdiv%20class%3D%22artist%22%3EAim%C3%A9%20Mpane%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22title_and_year%22%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22title_and_year_title%22%3EKinoct%20%2358%3C/span%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22comma%22%3E%2C%20%3C/span%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22title_and_year_year%22%3E2011%3C/span%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22medium%22%3EAcrylic%20and%20mixed%20media%20on%20wood%20panel%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22dimensions%22%3E12.5%20x%2012%20x%202%20inches%3C/div%3E
    • Aimé Mpane Icôno-Jérémie #01, 2013 Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel 12.5 x 12 x 2 inches
      Aimé Mpane
      Icôno-Jérémie #01, 2013
      Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel
      12.5 x 12 x 2 inches
      Inquire
      %3Cdiv%20class%3D%22artist%22%3EAim%C3%A9%20Mpane%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22title_and_year%22%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22title_and_year_title%22%3EIc%C3%B4no-J%C3%A9r%C3%A9mie%20%2301%3C/span%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22comma%22%3E%2C%20%3C/span%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22title_and_year_year%22%3E2013%3C/span%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22medium%22%3EAcrylic%20and%20mixed%20media%20on%20wood%20panel%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22dimensions%22%3E12.5%20x%2012%20x%202%20inches%3C/div%3E
    • Aimé Mpane Icôno-Jérémie #10, 2013 Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel 12.5 x 12 x 2 inches
      Aimé Mpane
      Icôno-Jérémie #10, 2013
      Acrylic and mixed media on wood panel
      12.5 x 12 x 2 inches
      Inquire
      %3Cdiv%20class%3D%22artist%22%3EAim%C3%A9%20Mpane%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22title_and_year%22%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22title_and_year_title%22%3EIc%C3%B4no-J%C3%A9r%C3%A9mie%20%2310%3C/span%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22comma%22%3E%2C%20%3C/span%3E%3Cspan%20class%3D%22title_and_year_year%22%3E2013%3C/span%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22medium%22%3EAcrylic%20and%20mixed%20media%20on%20wood%20panel%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv%20class%3D%22dimensions%22%3E12.5%20x%2012%20x%202%20inches%3C/div%3E
  • Exhibitions
    • Likenesses

      Likenesses

      July 9 - August 31, 2019
      Haines Gallery proudly presents Likenesses , a group exhibition bringing together works by seven contemporary artists from around the world to explore the conventions, possibilities, and limits of portraiture. The...
      Read more
    • Aimé Mpane: A Dual Perspective

      Aimé Mpane: A Dual Perspective

      July 9 - August 31, 2013
      Haines Gallery is pleased to present the first West Coast solo exhibition of multidisciplinary Congolese artist, Aimé Mpane . While he was raised and received his BFA in his native...
      Read more
  • News
    • Aimé Mpane Biennale, Vibranium National Pavilion of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Venice Biennale, Italy May 17 - November 24,...
      News

      Aimé Mpane
      Biennale

      Vibranium
      National Pavilion of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Venice Biennale, Italy
      May 17 - November 24, 2024
      Vibranium , presented at the national pavilion of the Democractic Republic of Congo at the 60th Venice Biennale, is a thematic exhibition titled featuring work by seven artists and collectives...
    • Aimé Mpane Museum Exhibition, Europa, Oxalá AfricaMuseum, Tervuren, Belgium October 7, 2022 - March 5, 2023
      News

      Aimé Mpane
      Museum Exhibition

      Europa, Oxalá
      AfricaMuseum, Tervuren, Belgium
      October 7, 2022 - March 5, 2023
      Europa, Oxalá at the AfricaMuseum in Tervuren, Belgium features works by 21 European artists with African origin. Born and raised in a post-colonial context, these artists reflect on their heritage,...
  • Press
  • Rebecca Anne Proctor, "Democratic Republic of the Congo scrambles to salvage its Venice Biennale show," The Art Newspaper, June 11, 2024

    "RE/STORE: Aimé Mpane & Jean Pierre Müller," TL Magazine, May 5, 2023

    Brenda Cronin, "The Pioneering Phillips Collection Turns 100," The Wall Street Journal, February 12, 2021

    Racehl Ozerkevich, "Seeking Sanctuary at the Aga Khan Museum of Islamic Art," Art & Object, September 1, 2020

    Sarah Johansson, "Brussels' Africa Museum reduces colonial references," The Brussels Times, March 1, 2020

    Aruna D'Souza, "Posing Modernity," 4 Columns, January 18, 2019

    Alex Marshall, "Belgium's Africa Museum Had a Racist Image. Can It Change That?," The New York Times, December 8, 2018

    Kate Brown, "With a $84 Million Makeover, Belgium's Africa Museum Is Trying to Appease Critics of the Country's Colonial Crimies," Artnet News, December 8, 2018

    Victoria Stapley-Brown, "Show turns a spotlight on the black female figure in Modern art," The Art Newspaper, October 23, 2018

    Joanna Kakissis, "Where 'Human Zoos' Once Stood, A Belgian Museum Now Faces Its Colonial Past," NPR, Sember 26, 2018

    "Belgium Museum Looks At Country's History of Colonialism And Racism," NPR , September 2, 2018

    Lise Corier, "Aimé Mpane — Between shadow and light: sculpting and painting humanity," TL Magazine, June 30, 2018

    “UW Art Museum Hosts Summer Exhibitions Opening Reception June 14,” University of Wyoming, June 8, 2016

    "Intimate Encounter: Aimé Mpane at Haines Gallery," Art Observer, June 19, 2014

    Alicia Sontag, "UCLA Professor Brings African Art to LA Community," UCLA Daily Bruin, July 15, 2013

    Marina Cashdan, "Liverpool Beinnial Director Lewis Biggs on Why Conceptualism Is Out and Materiality is In," Huffpost Arts & Culture, July 2, 2013

    "VOLTA NY: Impressive New Works by Emerging Artists," Arts Observer, March 11, 2013

    Rozalia Jovanovic, "Congolese Artist's Work Wins Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Award, Is Acquired by the Philips Collection," Observer, October 8, 2012

    Antony Pickthall, "Touched 'Human Stain' Artist Aimé Mpane," The Biennial Blog, February 25, 2011

    Robert Shuster, "Aimé Mpane: 'Face/Recent Works,'" The Village Voice, February 18, 2009

    Michael O'Sullivan, "Artists in Dialogue: Antonio Ole and Aimé Mpane," The Washington Post, February 13, 2009

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