Congolese painter Zemba Luzamba interrogates and satirizes social and political power structures in Africa. A contemporary realist, Luzamba’s paintings hover on the border of satire, at once appearing to mimic the colonial lifestyle of the post-colonial elites while simultaneously bringing it into question. Is this pure observation, aspiration or critique?

Although born and raised in the DRC, Luzamba moved to South Africa to pursue his career as an artist and this experience of migration has allowed him an intimate and sympathetic view of migrant communities which has informed many of his works over the past 15 years.

Situating his subjects in bold fields of colour which disassociate them from concrete spaces and times allows Luzamba to portray certain situations as universal ideas, giving the viewer the freedom to interpret these scenes within a way that is relevant to their own contexts. This combined with his skilful observation of body language emphasizes the immediacy and proximity occupied by the viewer to his work.

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2025
'Angalia Kwa Karibu (Look close)', Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, London, United Kingdom

2023
'Folk Ritual', Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, Berlin, Germany
'Kitendi', Galerie Studer, Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
‘TOTEM’, EBONY/CURATED Cape Town, South Africa

2022
‘In The Name Of…’, Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, London, England

2019
‘Connexion’, EBONY/CURATED Cape Town, South Africa

2017
'Deja Vu' at the 5th Picha Biennale de Lubumbashi, DR Congo
'In The South', Paintings from 2004-2017’, Stellenbosch University Museum, Stellenbosch, South Africa

2016
‘Genesis’, EBONY/CURATED, Franschhoek, South Africa

2015
‘It Is What It Is’, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa

2012 - 2013
'LA SAPE', AVA Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa

2005
'Hope for Refugees', Rome, Italy

2004
'Untitled', AVA Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa


GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2025
EXPO Chicago, EBONY/CURATED, Chicago, United States of America
Investec Cape Town Art Fair, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa

2024
'A Very Loop Street Summer III', EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa
'WEST PALM BEACH | SALON', Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, Florida, United States of America
Investec Cape Town Art Fair, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa

2023
'AKAA (Also Known As Africa), EBONY/CURATED, Paris, France
‘Africa Supernova’, Museum Kade, Amersfoort, Netherlands
Knokke Art Fair, Galerie Studer, Belgium
Caribbean Revels, Jupiter Contemporary, Florida, United State of America
'Where the Wild Roses Grow', Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, Schloss Görne, Germany
'Print Co-Lab', Michaelis Galleries, Cape Town, South Africa
EXPO Chicago, EBONY/CURATED, United States of America
'If You Look Hard Enough, You Can See Our Future', Selections of Contemporary South African Art from the Nando’s Art Collection, African American Museum, Dallas, United State of America
Investec Cape Town Art Fair, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa
'Tomorrow is Tomorrow is Tomorrow', Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, London, United Kingdom

2022
'When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting’, Zeitz Mocaa, Cape Town, South, Africa
‘Shout Plenty’, African Artists’ Foundation, Lagos, Nigeria
AAGA annual African Galleries Now (online edition powered by Artsy), Africa

2021
‘In [the] Loop’, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa

2020
FNB Art Joburg (online edition), South Africa
Intersect Chicago (online edition of SOFA Expo), United States of America

2019
‘AKAA (Also Known As Africa)’ 2019, Paris, France
‘A Smaller Scale’, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa
Investec Cape Town Art Fair, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa

2018
‘The Summer Exhibition’, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa

2017
'From the Horse’s Mouth', EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa

2016
‘Beyond Binaries, Durban Art Gallery, Durban, South Africa

2015
That Art Fair, Cape Town, South Africa
'In Print/In Focus’, Michealis Galleries, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

2014
‘Inner Nature’, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa
‘Emergence’, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa

2013
'Perspectives and Dramascapes' with Wycliffe Mundopa, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa
1:54 Contemporary African Art, EBONY/CURATED, London, United Kingdom
Cape Town Art Fair, EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, South Africa

2011
Art for Africa, Sotheby’s New York, New York, United States of America

2008
'Hifa', National Gallery of Zimbabwe, Harare, Zimbabwe

2007
‘Africa South’, AVA Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa
Blank Projects, Cape Town, South Africa
Sanlam Gallery, Baxter Theatre, Cape Town, South Africa

2006
Xcape Art Circuit, Voyage: Scalabrini, Cape Town, South Africa
Picasso and Africa, Alliance Francaise, Cape Town, South Africa

2005
Piacenza, Italy
Iziko South African National Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa

2003
Xenophobia, Alliance Francaise, Cape Town, South Africa

1996
P.E.L.Group of Artists, Lusaka, Zambia

1995
Visual Art Council, Lusaka, Zambia

COLLECTIONS

Zeitz MOCAA Collection, Cape Town, South Africa
Fondation H Museum, Antananarivo, Madagascar
Jorge M. Pérez Collection, Miami, United States
Durban Art Gallery, Durban, South Africa
Irma Stern Museum, University of Cape Town, South Africa
Nandos, London, United Kingdom
Nandos, South Africa
Scalabrini House, Bassano Del Grappa, Italy
Cultures Inc, California, United States of America
Kilbourn Collection, Cape Town, South Africa
The Spier Art Collection, Cape Town, South Africa
Arak Collection, Qatar
The Bunker Art Space, United States of America
UTA Artist Space Collection, United States of America

PUBLICATIONS

2023
Africa Supernova. 2023. Kunsthal Kade, Amersfoort. ISBN 978 9 490153 38 0

PRESS

Cockerill, K. (2019) Dress Code: the politics of dress, oppression and self-determination in the works of Zemba Luzamba [Online] Available at:https://asai.co.za/dress-code-zemba-luzamba/#more-18711

The Guardian. (2015) From giants to heavy metal: contemporary African art - in pictures.[Online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2015/mar/25/african-contemporary-art-in-pictures

Stielau, A. (2015) ‘It is what it is:’ Zemba Luzamba at EBONY [Online] Available at: https://artafricamagazine.org/it-is-what-it-is-zemba-luzamba-at-ebony/

Shorkend, D. (2015) 'Luzamba’s ‘inexpressive disutopia,’' [Online]. Available at: https://www.iol.co.za/capetimes/arts-portal/visual-arts/luzambas-inexpressive-disutopia-1925976.

Mario Pissarra, ‘Zemba Luzamba; Migrant Perspectives’, Critical Interventions: Journal of African Art History and Visual Culture, NYC, USA.

DOCUMENTARIES

2018
‘Zemba Luzamba’, CNN African Voices

2015
‘Zemba Luzamba’, Directed by Beki Boneni, Uvimba Media