Episode 89: Charlene Komuntale: Thinking outside the box and beyond...

In this special episode of the David Krut Podcast, David Krut called from the Investec Cape Town Art Fair in February 2022 to host a live interview with Uganda born artist Charlene Kumantale. Charlene was showing her work with AfriArt Gallery owned by Daudi Karungi - long term friend and collaborator of David Krut. 

Charlene Komuntale is a digital artist and illustrator based in Kampala, Uganda. She holds a BA in Animation from Limkokwing University, Malaysia. In her recent series-in-progress (some of which were included at the Investec Cape Town Art Fair, 2022) “Not Fragile” and “No Fake News”, Komuntale portrays women - mostly black African women. The subject matter is personal yet presented in a relatable way as inspiration is drawn from her own experiences but also informed by the experiences of other women around her.

The heads of the women she portrays are covered by different elements, which create poetic yet striking narratives around a broadly relatable figure. At first sight, the works evoke a dreamy, peaceful, and quiet atmosphere, whereas at a closer look powerful, empowering and unapologetic messages come to the fore. Dominant, male-centered perspectives on women’s roles and supposedly nature-given capabilities and constraints attached to female bodies are being evaluated and re-examined. The juxtaposition of different elements creates an interesting asymmetry between awareness of self and the (male-centered) gaze of others. Intimacy, tenderness, vulnerability, and female beauty do not suggest fragility. Instead, it is related to strength and unapologetic confidence. Komuntale’s digital paintings deconstruct patriarchal narratives as shaped by culture, religion, and politics and provide a ground for inquiry and interrogation, and for visions of different futures.

Her compositional choices create a space at the edges of reality – moments frozen in time and filled with surreal elements and metaphorical and symbolical references. Taken from https://afriartgallery.org/artists/charlene-komuntale