Jonathan Gathaara Sölanke Fraser
Nairobi, KENYA
Website
jonathan-fraser.com
Instagram
@jonathanfraser
How would you describe your work?
I am a multidisciplinary artist primarily using drawing as a means for paying careful (and caring) attention to my environment. I work to generate novel relationships and interesting interactions so that drawing may take on a double meaning. As in “to pull in towards an axis” so as to possibly envelope amateur science, play, poetry, and outdoor exploration into an embodied artistic praxis. Often, my work will involve a mixed media approach so that different materials such as paper, cloth, inks and charcoal are integrated into an artwork through various technical applications.
What inspires you?
I would say instead that overlapping lines between nature, material, philosophy and poetry occupy my interest. My focus presently centres upon the relationships between dream and consciousness, intuition and uncertainty, context and form.
Can you speak about your process?
Lately, my process has become more codified so that I can develop a layered, process informed composition. Working primarily with cloth, I will wash, dry and iron it before cutting it down to size. It is then treated with a fluid pigment (be it ink, tempera or a mixture of the two) and once that dries, a solid pigment layer follows(charcoal, pastel). Subsequent layers are steps of integrating form, pattern and developing connections between elements so that through simpler layers, complex compositions may emerge.
How did you become interested in art?
I’ve got the usual story of being a curious child with a keen interest in drawing, painting and just making things with my hands. I was lucky enough to go to schools with an arts program all through my primary and secondary education that nurtured that innate curiosity which eventually led to my enrollment in the Fine Arts Bachelor program in university. It was in my 2nd year of school that I decided to not just study art but pursue it as my life’s work; as both a creative endeavour and a way to understand the world around me.
I took a semester off to focus on generating a body of work that led to my first exhibition in a gallery space. It was an invaluable experience that taught me a lot and introduced me to the local artistic community in Nairobi.
Do you have any favorite artists, movies, books, or quotes?
There are several artists whose work and process deeply influence the way I think of the world and look at art. Among them are Otobong Nkanga, Charles Gaines, Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum, Mary Oliver, Toni Morrison and Andrei Tarkovsky.
Adam Neely is an American musician with a Youtube channel wherein he explores musical theory and a recurring phrase of his - one that I have integrated into my own practice - is “Repetition legitimises”. What could possibly be considered a mistake in one instance is solidified as intentional with repeated effort.
