Naomi Wanjiku Gakunga is a Kenyan sculptor and artisan. Her work combines the traditions of African craftsmanship, classical art history, and contemporary approaches to experimentation. She is guided by a passion for telling visual stories that reflect the authentic past, acknowledge the current situation, and speculate on the journey ahead. Her artistic practice commemorates experiences lived outside the Western canon and worldview, and she is determined to maintain a place for African women in contemporary society.
Born in Gacharage Village, Kenya, Wanjiku was nurtured in the arts of jewelry making, braiding, and weaving by her grandmother. She mastered the unique technique of creating yarn, known as migiyo, by twisting and braiding straws and shrubs. By infusing natural colors and beads into the yarn, she started redefining traditional weaving techniques, yielding fresh interpretations of jewelry, baskets, and textiles.
Wanjiku holds an MA in Design from the University of California, Los Angeles and a BA in Design from the University of Nairobi, Kenya. Her work is included in the permanent collections of several institutions, including the San Antonio Museum of Art (US), National Museums of Scotland (Scotland), Museum of Textile (Latvia), Vehbi Koç Foundation Contemporary Art Museum (Turkey), the US Embassy of Nairobi (Kenya), Henry B. Gonzales Convention Center (US), Tulsa Bank (US), and The World Bank (Ghana).
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