White Teeth; A portrait of Abuse of Humanity

Makano works with witty artistic imagery in his new body of work to elicit his audience’s attention to the suffering and brutality in his motherland.

ART | DOMINIC MUWANGUZI | Abstract paintings hanging on the white washed walls immediately grip your attention as soon as you make your entry into Umoja art gallery. Like a performance of a poem with powerful themes where the poet plunges into expressive language to elicit the emotions of their audience, the artist Makano behind these paintings on display, washes his artworks in an expressive palette to touch the emotions of his audience. The connection is real and it is difficult to turn a blind eye to the depth of his creativity where he deploys thick- bold brush strokes- a metaphor for intense expression- and caricature like human figures on canvas. At once, the paintings are infused with a sense of mystery and suspense which further draws in the viewer through the process of questioning what message is behind the art. The deliberate choice of the title White Teeth for this exhibition is symbolic to how far the artist wishes to engage with his audience. Like is with the imagery in the paintings, the title incites our curiosity about this new body of work.

White teeth is a body of work which exposes the artist’s personal experiences. Makano, is a refuge from Democratic Republic of Congo and like many of his contemporaries he has encountered more pain than joy in his life. At his young age he has already lost his parents and been homeless so many times because of the war in his country. As is the norm with many Congolese, he’s bitter about this unending suffering. “My art is born out of depression and frustration and this is why I paint a crying eye in all my works,” he says softly trying so hard to hide his frustration and bitterness. In the painting Leopold Effect, the artist depicts an abstract image of a human figure with white teeth and gun. The painting is an allusion to the genesis of brutality in DRC. “When Zaire was still a colony of Belgium during the rule of King Leopold II, he gave his army guns to kill those who resisted his rule. He also commanded his soldiers to not waste bullets on Africans but use dogs on those who tried to resist his inhumane policies,” Makano explains. Next to this painting is Waste which is a continuation to the subject of suffering and exploitation. The painting depicts a dog wearing gold chains and gold enameled teeth a figurative representation to human exploitation. Congo has arguably the largest deposits of rich minerals in the world but most of these are used to produce expensive jewelry for the rich people while the young Congolese people who mine them are paid a pantry $2 per day for their hard labour.

The paintings on showcase have a white background as an allusion to the concept of how history has been white washed to favour those who write it. “You never hear about these things because those who write our history don’t want us know about them,” asserts the artist. With this body of work, the artist certainly is not solely interested in drawing our attention to the anguish and frustration his people are going through but also to challenge the status quo. He honestly believes that art has the power to speak louder than any voice and by doing so, compel those in positions of power to change their attitude towards the people they govern. In light of this conviction, the exhibition becomes a critique of the frequent power excesses witnessed n many parts of the continent. White teeth to this end, is a mockery performed on the perpetrators of human vices in Congo. While these personalities and their cronies have the power to exterminate life and pillage the country, the artist on behalf of his countrymen expresses his contempt for their action through this witty artistic expression.

Makano may have triumphed over the effects of war in his country with his now new identity as an emerging artist with exceptional talent. Nonetheless, he still feels deeply connected to the suffering of his people because he believes it is absolutely inhumane and needs to be stopped. Through his work, he’s able to advocate for a return of peace to his country and in many part of Africa where war and human exploitation by western governments is the order of the day. With witty imagery, he succeeds in opening up this delicate conversation and hopefully the world will listen and act this time.

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The exhibition White Teeth is showing now at Umoja Art Gallery, located on Mukalazi Road Bukoto next to Kampala International School. Images are courtesy of the Artist.