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ARTIST PROFILE
Based at the Nairobi Railways Museum, Bebeto Ochieng’ is a young artist
who has allowed his paintings speak for him and bring out his feelings.
He does both canvas and wall paintings, and has steadily been gaining
recognition and clientele from his work.
Artist: Bebeto Ochieng Thufu
BSQ
When did you start painting
and what motivated you to get
into the art?
I started painting three years ago. I would
pinpoint my getting into painting to a
certain motivation; to me, it is a calling. It
is my purpose in life and without art I’m not
sure of what else I would be doing.
How would you describe your
paintingS?
My paintings are mostly monochrome
(using one colour), mostly purple. I focus on
human figures because that is where I find
myself comfortable. People ask me, “Why
purple?” To me, it is as simple as ‘African
black’. If you have seen someone so dark
they either have purple lips or a shade of
purple in their skin.
You mentioned that you do
wall and canvas painting.
Describe how you go about
painting projects for the two.
I enjoy working on canvas paintings and
them being small pieces for home interiors.
My wall work is more of graffiti. I also like to
play with colours on a large scale surface.
At times I work on the wall pieces I have
the opportunity to place more focus or
emphasis on the colour as opposed to the
painting surface as is the case with canvas.
Where do you get the
inspiration for your pieces?
Along the streets of Nairobi are beautiful
ladies, and their poses count as inspiration
for some of my pieces. I am also fascinated
by the rural settings.
Which paints do you use for
your work? If you’ve used
Crown Paints products, what
aspects did you pick out from
these products?
I have used Crown Paints for priming
my canvases (Silk Vinyl) and also for the
back coat during wall preparation (Matt
Emulsion). For canvas works I use acrylics
and spray cans for the wall graffiti.
Are you contracted to paint a
piece customised to the client
or sell your own creations?
I doboth; but I prefer sellingmyowncreativity.
How much do you sell your
paintings for and which is the
most expensive piece you’ve
sold so far?
It depends on many factors. These include
the size of the piece and the time taken to do
the piece. On average, most of my paintings
go for not less than Ksh6,000 and can go to
as much as over Ksh100,000.
Which challenges have you
encountered in the course of
your career?
People look down upon artists, with the
notion that it is not a paying career. They
think art is just paint on a piece of cloth.
They ignore or maybe, do not know that art
is everything. From the shoes they wear to
the cars they drive. On canvas art is more
of an expression of feelings; sad, happy,
warm, cool or cold. People who buy art will
tell you this. That is why I love art. Whenever
I look at it especially when sad or bored, I
feel happy.
What next for your career?
I am still exploring more on art. Bigger things
are coming up next year.
