Observe
A memory, gesture, or mood becomes the first point of attention.
A quiet moving portrait of the artist and the surroundings that inform her studio practice.
Studio fragment · 00:27
The artist
Feeling,made visible.
Born in Mwanza, Tanzania, in 1991, Kyunyu Pauline Makala began drawing and painting at an early age. A 2023 artist residency at Forster Gallery in Zanzibar marked a turning point toward a life fully dedicated to art.
Her expressive practice brings acrylic together with sand, seashells, glass, hair, tiles, polystyrene, and glitter—materials that carry themes of female perspective, creative freedom, and self-determination.
Artist statement
“Through painting, I can express myself, reach many people, and share positive feelings.”
Practice
Acrylic · Sand · Found materials
Born
1991 · Mwanza, Tanzania
Themes
Memory · Nature · Female perspective
Residency
Forster Gallery · Zanzibar · 2023
A practice of transformation
Material carriesits own memory.
Sand, glass, shell, tile, and painted gesture meet on the surface—not as decoration, but as traces of places, bodies, and lived experience.
From feeling to form
Compose
Colour relationships establish the emotional direction of the work.
Layer
Material, texture, and marks build movement across the surface.
Release
The piece is complete when the feeling can travel beyond the artist.
Continue the story