Kum Cletus

Elizabeth

2023

Born in 1993 in Cameroon, Kum Cletus Ngum is an African artist, who has gained considerable popularity over the last few years. He belongs to the town of Beau in the southwest region of Cameroon. Retaining the local experiences through the format of visuals, they juxtapose with the urban sensibilities developing a plethora of figurative imageries. His paintings reflect a deep sense of concern, emotional empathy, and pain. Kum’s oeuvre is replete with female portraits placed on the intense stage of tonal values. They reflect expressionist tendencies that look back at the master artists. Bringing a wide range of palettes to the audience, the portraits seep, drown, and swim in cultural memories. The women in Kum’s representations are in reality the ones who have suffered mentally or physically. The young girls and women, who he knew or had known through mutual sources had been either exploited or treated unfairly. A method of releasing the deep-rooted angst, the colors become a path toward redemption. More importantly, the theme has been specifically addressed in his current series called Small Miami+ Black Therapy. The same women express confident, proud, and victorious body language. Subverting the existing oppression, his art hence weaves a new format of visual language. He remarks upon the hopeful desire for a utopian world for the oppressed gender. Hence, his portraits an emblems of affection and compassion.