Métamorphose, 2019, Alain Nsenga (Democratic Republic of Congo)
Through his series of photographs Métamorphose, Alain Nsenga questions and challenges certain aesthetic canons imposed in the public space, to which is subjected or submits a part of the female population of Lubumbashi. In Réflexions, the artist is interested in the many billboards about cosmetics articles made to whiten the skin, wondering why no one disputed their growing presence in Lubumbashi, and to whom these products were actually intended, conveying an image of women unrelated to the physical appearance of those of Lubumbashi women. Façades looks at the haircuts painted on the front of Lubumbashi hair salons. All of them offer different hairdressing techniques aimed at modifying the hair (straightening, etc.) or adding capillary devices to them (weaving, wigs, etc.) testifying, according to Nsenga, of a non-acceptance of the self. Intérieurs completes this series and shows interiors of hair salons.
Alain Nsenga lives and works in Lubumbashi where he works as a graphic designer and photographer. It produces presentation works for local artists and companies. He studied Design & Multimedia at the Higher School of Computer Science Salama (ESIS) where he teaches. His pictures are a permanent quest for originality and authenticity. His meeting with Picha and his activities as a graphic designer for the association led him to participate in several workshops and to work with the Biennale de Lubumbashi team since the 3rd edition in 2013. Currently, his work is focused on identity issues and self-affirmation outside the artifices imposed by the gaze of others.
