Artist: Kiure Francis Msangi

Circle presents a major retrospective for Kiure Francis Msangi in Nairobi on behalf of the artist’s family. This exhibition brings together a collection of paintings, prints, drawings and archival material spanning more than four decades of Msangi’s artistic career.

Msangi was an accomplished artist whose influence extended across the East African region. Working across painting, printmaking and mixed media, Msangi explored the social, political and cultural realities of post-independence East Africa. His work moves seamlessly between intimate portraits, landscapes and scenes of everyday life, while confronting broader themes of identity, justice, migration and nationhood. Characterised by expressive colour, confident brushwork and technical versatility, his practice reflects deep humanism and a lifelong commitment to the role of art within society.

Although widely respected during his lifetime as an artist and educator, opportunities to experience Msangi's work have remained remarkably rare. This retrospective offers an opportunity to reconsider his contribution to the development of modern East African art, placing his practice within the wider history of the region while introducing his work to a new generation of audiences.

The exhibition arrives at a particularly significant moment. Interest in East African modernism has grown considerably in recent years, with collectors, museums and scholars increasingly recognising artists whose practices shaped the visual culture of the region during the decades following independence. Msangi's paintings achieved record prices at the 2025 Art Auction East Africa, underscoring renewed appreciation for his work and the importance of preserving his artistic legacy.