Page 65 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 4
P. 65
ART PERSONALITY ART PERSONALITY
Art from the heart
Skilled and talented artist,
painter, graphic designer,
photographer, film maker,
poet, writer, rapper and I'm from a really large family people speaking English all the
martial artist, Imor brings with only three girls and lots of time. In the first school I hung
a lot of experience and boys. I was raised a Catholic. out with people from mostly poor
knowledge to the table for I have loved art since I was and middle class backgrounds,
one yet to hit his thirties. He young. I grew up in a family that and in this school I got the
is creative director at Artiv experienced much violence, my opportunity to mingle with the
Hub and his life has been father beating up my mother; rich. It was all about having good
some of my brothers were phones and pretty girlfriends.
his training ground. He
stealing. It was lonely. I used The school helped me with
carries within him, wisdom
to be by myself - I can't say in speaking English and in terms of
beyond his years. This is a
another room because it was a discipline. I still kept on drawing,
part of his story. single room - and I'd just draw. I was always alone, quiet. From
No one really taught me how to there I went to a seminary school
Tell us a little bit about draw, apart from a guy in school in Nyanza, a boarding school.
yourself. called Phillip, he was very It was hard for me going there
My name is David Omondi talented. He introduced me to all alone. It was also the only
Owino, but people call me Imor art and a little bit of boxing and school I went to that really had
and three or four years ago, of course it got me into a little no serious activities apart from
people started calling me Imor trouble, picking fights with the drama festivals. There wasn’t
Pesa. Imor means happiness in older boys who were bullies. It much for me who was active in
the Luo language. Back in high was the only way to prove I was art. In that school, there were
school most of the time I was tough. I grew up in Nairobi, in three artists, including me, and
happy and when I was around Dandora Phase 3. At the time one was expelled after the first
people they always ended it was really rough, crime was two months of my being there. I
up laughing or smiling. Every always an issue and I wasn't just kept on sketching.
morning when I woke up, there allowed to go outside. I would I was introduced to computers
was this guy called Pascal who stay indoors doing my sketches, for the first time in that school.
used to tell me "Imor!" and guys the rest of the time I was either There were three computers
thought that was my name, so going to church or school. I that we shared and I had never
they started calling me Imor. rarely listened to mainstream used a computer in my life, or
With Pesa (money), I haven't music; my mother would play even touched a mouse. In my
had much money since I was traditional Luo music. I used to first year, I was not good at
young , but I never complained hear about rappers and poets computers, I had the interest but
about it because if I wanted to but I never liked them because I I was not good theoretically, so I
do something and there was thought they were drug addicts, failed, but I didn't mind because
a budget needed, I'd just say, criminals and thugs. I knew this is what I wanted to
"Money is not the problem, do. I was trying to figure out how
because you're talking to School and Life I could draw and transfer my
'money', I have the skill." People I went to two different primary images to a computer and make
would say, every time they schools. At my first school, I them beautiful, but no one ever
hung out around me they would learnt lots of things about the answered me because they
always get money because they society, governance and current never knew how. So every time
have ideas and I have the skills events. Later I went to a different I asked the question, I used to
and we would create things school with only 200 students. It be punished, saying that I asked
together and get paid. was the first place where I heard things that were not relevant. I
64 | heal . restore . rebirth . Afrika www.msingiafrikamagazine.com heal . restore . rebirth . Afrika | 65
