Keya Tama

Keya Tama is a South African artist based in the United States, between Los Angeles and New York. Inspired by pastel colour palettes, pattern, and symbolism, Keya Tama has been a practicing artist and muralist since the age of thirteen. His style can be describe as ancient contemporary minimalism; by processing and refining images into minimalistic forms while maintaining their essence, his works aim to reunite old and new through contrasting yet unified iconography. The artist uses visuality from the storehouse of art history and references and remixes their recurring themes to create stark contrasts and discover unexpected commonalities which produce unusual, arresting, yet strangely familiar works. Working primarily in acrylics to create his pieces, there is a strong graphic feel to each piece. This highly individual style naturally lends itself to collaborations with other makers and craftspeople such as embroiderers and weavers. Across the artist’s practice, there are recurring themes of contrasting ancient and contemporary iconography, family and community, monomyths, and minimalism.

2020 – Untitled, group exhibition, Talon Gallery, Portland, USA; Vanguard, group exhibition, Outre gallery, Melbourne, Australia; Modern Folk, group exhibition, Outre Gallery, Melbourne, Australia; Decalcified, group exhibition, Superchief Gallery, Los Angeles, USA. 2019 – Mortal Machine gallery, group exhibition, Art Basel, Miami; Superchief Gallery, group exhibition, Art Basel, Miami, USA; BDSM, group exhibition, Superchief gallery, Miami; Fall group exhibition, Superchief gallery, Miami; Ashes street project charity auction, Los Angeles, USA; Paper Tiger, solo exhibition at Cartoon Network Studios, California. 2017 – Untitled, solo exhibition, Artist Republic, Orange County, California

AS FAR AS FOREVER WILL TAKE US

09.06 - 10.07.2021

Paul Senyol, Elléna Lourens & Keya Tama

As Far as Forever Will Take Us is an intimate group exhibition featuring the works of Paul Senyol, Elléna Lourens, and Keya Tama.

The Artists, each in a different stage of their career, have a visuality strongly rooted in the language of graphic street art and urbanism. As Far As Forever Will Take Us brings the artists together to collaborate and converse, through painting, the strange concept of forever. For Paul Senyol, the exhibition title calls to mind larger questions about how far is forever, when would this eternity begin, and whether it is a communal or individual journey. The concept of forever, for Elléna Lourens, takes on a soft romantic meaning which suggests young love, promises made and broken, and the way in which intimate moments can make time feel irrelevant. This contrasts with the exuberance and nostalgia of the scenes depicted by Keya Tama; where forever seems to collapse in upon itself and the past, present, and future are all occurring at the very same moment.

Paul is an abstract painter who reflects the details of everyday life, paired down to an empathy with colour, line, and form. The colours and textures of urban and natural environments inform his spontaneous practice in the studio where every material he uses is chosen for the particular mark it can contribute to a finished composition. Elléna’s work often has a soft ephemeral feel which creates a delicate contrast between her subject matter and graphic style of the painting. Her use of reduced colour palettes and bold shapes creates a dynamic conversation between her depiction of human connection and the emotive qualities of colour. Keya’s style can be describe as ancient contemporary minimalism. The artist uses iconography and symbolism from the storehouse of art history and remixes their recurring themes to create stark contrasts and discover unexpected commonalities which produce unusual, arresting, yet strangely familiar works.

ARTWORKS

ELLÉNA LOURENS

PAUL SENYOL

KEYA TAMA

A HAZY SHADE OF WINTER

08.08 - 05.09.2020

A Hazy Shade of Winter is a salon-style group show including works by represented, associated, and exciting new artists. Exhibiting Artists include Adele Van Heerden, Alexia Vogel, Amber Moir, Andrew Sutherland, Black Koki, Elléna Lourens, Keya Tama, Ello Xray Eyez, Emma Nourse, Gabrielle Raaff, Heidi Fourie, Jade Klara, Jeanne Hoffman, Jessica Bosworth Smith, Joh Del, Katrin Coetzer, Katrine Claassens, Keneilwe Mothoa, Kirsten Beets, Kirsten Sims, Laurinda Belcher, Lené Ehlers, Lili Probart, Linsey Levendall, Mareli Esterhuizen, Marolize Southwood, Matthew Prins, Mona Haumann, Natasha Norman, Nicole Clare Fraser, Nina Torr, Paul Senyol, Sarah Pratt, Tara Deacon, and Zarah Cassim.

The group exhibition inspired by the Simon and Garfunkel song of the same name, seeks to explore subject matters, palettes, and imagery which capture and express the varied emotions, colours, memories, and atmosphere, which this season brings. For some artists, winter evokes icy vistas, cool palettes of blues and whites, and the change to colder and shorter days. For others, the changing season elicits a longing for warmer times, the comfort of staying indoors close to the fire, the use of warm and jewel tones, and the desire to capture nature in full bloom.

Winter provides a milestone for the passage of time through the year. For many, 2020 has felt somewhat surreal; time has moved on and the seasons have changed and yet there is a feeling that normal life was a lifetime ago.

Throughout the collection, the viewer is invited to contemplate the artists’ relationship with the season of winter and how something as simple as a change in weather can have a profound impact on the kinds of work they produce.

ARTWORKS:

ADELE VAN HEERDEN