Imvelo Studios Showcases the Next Generation of Zambian Artists

A group show at Imvelo Studios in Zambia brings together emerging artists across multiple mediums and styles. The exhibition reframes youth as the present energy of the country rather than a future demographic benefit. The works draw on abstraction in different degrees, alongside figurative, gestural, and sculptural approaches. Jeremiah Ludaka combines representation, abstraction, and fantasy, keeping faces and hands detailed while reducing backgrounds and objects to saturated color planes. Boyd Bishonga uses Neo-Expressionist methods, with gestural, impasto paint that suggests forms could extend into space. Kaluba B. Chilawa’s sculptures use refined lines and polished surfaces to examine cultural identity, heritage, family, and changing roles of women across Zambian history.

"“In Zambia, youth is often discussed as a 'demographic dividend.' This exhibition shifts this perspective, asserting that the youth are the current pulse of the nation. By dedicating this space to the young creatives, the exhibition honors their role as social commentators and cultural custodians.”"

"“In compositions like Ninvela nsoni Kutaya Chemba , while the portraiture is legible and the representational details of the face and hands are attended to with meticulous care, the background, subject's garb, and details like the small table are reduced to saturated planes of color.”"

"“Contrary to Ludaka's refined linework, Boyd Bishonga's paintings are highly gestural, and leveraging Neo-Expressionist techniques the impasto quality of his paints convey a sense that the elements of the painting, such as in Time to Sleep (2025), might just fall out into the third dimension.”"

"“Elsewhere, the lithe lines and polished surfaces of Kaluba B. Chilawa 's sculptures provide a powerful entrypoint to explore and reflect on cultural identity and heritage. Through their figuration, they further unpack ideas around family, the evolving roles of women, and identity across Zambian history and”"

Read at Artnet News