Maus Contemporary
TAJ MATUMBI
"History, pop culture, urban folklore, and improvisation drive my work as an image maker. I’m interested in how this source material translates to shape, text, and color that coalesce into meaning within abstract fields. In recent paintings, I blend formal abstraction with poorly rendered figures that recall my primary school days - an intentionally naive and self-taught drawing approach that allows my subject matter to more fluidly inhabit both real and imagined worlds.
Westword comprises a selection of paintings that evolved amidst Trump’s rise to power, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the explosive civil rights protests that emerged in the wake of George Floyd’s murder by the Minneapolis Police in May of 2020. This period of turmoil prompted a reflective turn inward in my studio practice, resulting in more overt exploration of my identity as an African American through kindred themes of isolation, otherness, trauma, and rites of passage."
- Taj Matumbi
Taj Matumbi "Profiteers"
Taj Matumbi
Profiteers
2023
acrylic and flash on canvas
36 by 72 in. (diptych, two individual elements of 36 by 36 in. each)
91,4 by 182,9 cm (diptych, two individual elements of 91,4 by 91,4 cm each)
Taj Matumbi "Alter-ego"
Taj Matumbi
Alter-ego
2023
acrylic, flash, and graphite on canvas
72 by 48 in. (182,9 by 121,9 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Pyramid Scheme"
Taj Matumbi
Pyramid Scheme
2023
acrylic and graphite on canvas
36 by 36 in. (91,4 by 91,4 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Clown Ville"
Taj Matumbi
Clown Ville
2023
acrylic and cardboard on canvas
36 by 48 in. (91,4 by 121,9 cm)
permanent collection of the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Montgomery, Alabama
Taj Matumbi "After Hours"
Taj Matumbi
After Hours
2023
acrylic on canvas
32 by 42 in. (81,3 by 106,7 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Late for Skool"
Taj Matumbi
Late to Skool
2023
acrylic and graphite on canvas
36 by 36 in. (91,4 by 91,4 cm)
Taj Matumbi
Scene Change
2023
acrylic on canvas
36 by 48 in. (91,4 by 121,9 cm)
permanent collection of the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Montgomery, Alabama
Taj Matumbi
MIngled
2023
acrylic and flash on canvas
60 by 40 in. (152,4 by 101,6 cm)
private US collection
Taj Matumbi "Prince Uhuru"
Taj Matumbi
Prince Uhuru
2022
oil stick and acrylic on canvas
42 by 32 in. (106,7 by 81,3 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Dirt Rich Prince"
Taj Matumbi
Dirt Rich Prince
2022
acrylic on canvas
42 by 32 in. (106,7 by 81,3 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Sucker Punch Prince"
Taj Matumbi
Sucker Punch Prince
2022
acrylic, enamel, flash, and oil stick on canvas
42 by 32 in. (106,7 by 81,3 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Dirt Rich Prince and His Royal Court"
Taj Matumbi
Dirt Rich Prince and His Royal Court
2022
grid of twelve works on paper
alcohol- and oil-based markers and ballpoint pen on paper
each 12 by 9 in. (ca. 30,5 by 22,9 cm)
as installed approx. 42 by 45 in. (ca. 106,7 by 114,3 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Food Bank"
Taj Matumbi
Food Bank
2020
acrylic and oil pastel on paper on canvas
41.25 by 55.25 in. (104,8 by 140,3 cm)
permanent collection of the Paul R. Jones Museum, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Taj Matumbi "Camouflage Cowboy"
Taj Matumbi
Camouflage Cowboy
2020
acrylic and oil stick on fabric
approx 54.5 by 54.5 in. (138,4 by 138,4 cm)
permanent collection of the Wiregrass Museum, Dothan, Alabama
Taj Matumbi "Red Rover"
Taj Matumbi
Red Rover
2020
acrylic and oil stick on paper on canvas
approx. 61 by 63 in. (155 by 160 cm)
private US collection
Taj Matumbi "Cage Free vs. Free Range"
Taj Matumbi
Cage Free vs. Free Range
2020
acrylic and oil stick on paper on canvas
approx. 59.5 by 60.5 in. (151,1 by 153,7 cm)
permanent collection of the LSU Museum of Art, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Taj Matumbi "The Therapist"
Taj Matumbi
The Therapist
2019
acrylic, oil stick, spray paint, and found materials on canvas
60 by 48 in. (152,4 by 121,9 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Florida Swamp"
Taj Matumbi
Florida Swamp
2019
acrylic, spray paint, oil stick, enamel, collaged skirt fragment, and found fabric on canvas
60 by 48 in. (152,4 by 121,9 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Bodacious"
Taj Matumbi
Bodacious
2019
acrylic, enamel, collaged canvas, and denim on canvas
48 by 48 in. (121,9 by 121,9 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Construction Boot"
Taj Matumbi
Construction Boot
2019
acrylic, acrylic ink, oil-based marker, and graphite on canvas
60 by 48 in. (152,4 by 121,9 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Southern Sun"
Taj Matumbi
Southern Sun
2019
acrylic, spray paint, presto whiteout, vinyl, and felt on canvas
48.25 by 48 in. (122,6 by 121,9 cm)
private US collection
Taj Matumbi "Cologne"
Taj Matumbi
Cologne
2018
acrylic on canvas
48 by 48 in. (121,9 by 121,9 cm)
Taj Matumbi - installation view of Self-Portrait within Parallel Planes at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2021
Taj Matumbi - installation view of Self-Portrait within Parallel Planes at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2021
Self-Portrait within Parallel Planes
My identity forces me to live in between place and space where the imaginary and the real collide. In this series Self Portrait within Parallel Planes, I paint interlocking and overlapping figures that draw into question the boundaries between individual and collective space. Over the last four years, I have developed a painting vernacular made up of iconography that falls between these two junctions.
In exploring inbetweenness, duality of self and the multiple emerged as conceptual parameters for this exhibition. The multiple is a constant change that affects us all, but on a more personal level as a biracial person, I subconsciously and consciously project a version of myself that is fitting to the context of a space. Some refer to this as code-switching or even “passing” which leaves the individual between a space of reality and fiction.
In this body of work, I delve into repetition, motif, and movement through the framework of the multiple to explore narratives surrounding my biography, shadows of myself, and inbetweenness. I grew up skateboarding from a young age in Northern California. Skateboarding was one of my first forms of self-expression. It taught me skills and gave me tools that would later transfer to my painting process. As a skater, I learned the importance of commitment, style, and speed. I approach painting the same way I approached skateboarding, but instead of doing a hundred kickflips, I make multiple versions of the same painting, striving for consistency while embracing variation, in the way each landed kickflip looks both different and the same.
I often feel othered in any given space due to my background and identity, which often contradict assumptions. While I’ve enjoyed many privileges like studying abroad in India or going to grad school for fine art, I also grew up on welfare, and would sometimes busk by doing skateboard tricks for people at my local farmers’ market so my brothers and I could scrounge up enough money for burritos. These are a few biographical examples that highlight the paradoxical nature of my existence.
These contradictions often make me think about possible versions of myself that I am not aware of, and how feeling in between reality and fiction can give airtime to darker aspects of myself often manifesting in forms of self-doubt and sometimes masochism. Carl Jung speaks of shadows as being an unconscious aspect of yourself that can be harmful when left unchecked or ignored. I titled this series of paintings Self Portrait within Parallel Planes to acknowledge my fragmented self and to find healing.
- Taj Matumbi
Taj Matumbi "Self-Portrait with Parallel Planes (Beverly Hills Hunting)"
Taj Matumbi
Self-Portrait with Parallel Planes (Beverly Hills Hunting)
2021
acrylic and oil stick on canvas
installed approx. 72 by 98 in. (ca. 182,9 by 248,9 cm)
diptych, each individual element approx. 72 by 48 in. (ca. 182,9 by 121,9 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Self-Portrait with Parallel Planes (North West Pacific)"
Taj Matumbi
Self-Portrait with Parallel Planes (North West Pacific)
2021
acrylic and oil stick on canvas
installed approx. 72 by 98 in. (ca. 182,9 by 248,9 cm)
diptych, each individual element approx. 72 by 48 in. (ca. 182,9 by 121,9 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Self-Portrait with Parallel Planes (Miami Vice)"
Taj Matumbi
Self-Portrait with Parallel Planes (Miami Vice)
2021
acrylic and oil stick on canvas
installed approx. 72 by 98 in. (ca. 182,9 by 248,9 cm)
diptych, each individual element approx. 72 by 48 in. (ca. 182,9 by 121,9 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Self-Portrait with Parallel Planes (Rights of Passage)"
Taj Matumbi
Self-Portrait with Parallel Planes (Rights of Passage)
2021
acrylic and oil stick on canvas
installed approx. 72 by 98 in. (ca. 182,9 by 248,9 cm)
diptych, each individual element approx. 72 by 48 in. (ca. 182,9 by 121,9 cm)
Taj Matumbi "Self-Portrait with Parallel Planes (Grey Scale)"
Taj Matumbi
Self-Portrait with Parallel Planes (Grey Scale)
2021
acrylic and oil stick on canvas
installed approx. 72 by 98 in. (ca. 182,9 by 248,9 cm)
diptych, each individual element approx. 72 by 48 in. (ca. 182,9 by 121,9 cm)