Joël PANZU, the painter in love with ancient works.

GABON

It is in the town of Akanda north of Libreville that we went to visit Joël Panzu, one of the many craftsmen residing in the city whose priesthood is to promote African art. On a daily basis, he exhibits his works in his open-air gallery, Monday to Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., on the front of a hotel located in the neighborhood. And, it is customers, visitors and curious always as numerous and satisfied who contemplate his unique pieces.

For the past ten years, Joël has been getting up every day to go to the Okala district to exhibit his works. Which are composed of paintings, masks, raffia-based fabrics, statuettes, relics and jewelry. His passion for this activity is so great that it is rare to see him absent from this space where he and his refined products now adorn the landscape.

But who is Joel Panzu?

He is a young Congolese artist, born in Kinshasa on October 13, 1971 of Congolese father and mother. He is both a painter and a sculptor. For some time, he has also been passionate about African antique works of which he collects some pieces that he brings directly from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

It was in Kinshasa in 1990 that Joël started in the art sector after studying business at ITC Kusantu in the Bas Congo region. Indeed, as soon as he obtained his baccalaureate, he embarked on painting by enrolling at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kinshasa, the capital of the country. Joël is a brilliant student and is immediately noticed because he is very interested and motivated by everything related to art.

During this same period, he met an antique dealer in the city whom he frequented regularly. With the latter, he notes a strong demand for antique pieces from collectors. This observation gives him ambitions. This is how he became enthusiastic about collecting and selling antique pieces not only for the pleasure of working in this field but also in the hope of a better life.

So in 2009, he decided to settle in Libreville where he set up a workshop in his own home. He painted paintings including sand paintings, landscapes, canvases etc. He also sculpts wood and stone and creates masks, busts, statuettes...

But Joël, despite everything, prefers to travel the interior of Gabon in search of antiques or unpublished works. However, he kept in touch with his native country where he had a good network of collectors. It is also from his friends in the DRC that he regularly exports high-quality artisanal products to Libreville.

Only, in Libreville life is not as rosy as he thought. Although sales are generally good, they are unfortunately seasonal. Mixed with the current crisis in the country, revenues have suddenly fallen by half. Added to this is the isolation of which he thinks he is a victim. Indeed, the artist suffers from not being able to exhibit his products in the various socio-cultural events organized in Gabon. He remains convinced that his works are of good quality and would benefit from being more visible. This lack of collaboration with local artists regularly reminds him of his artist friends back home. There, at least, there are many opportunities to speak to a large audience.

Despite this, Joel is not discouraged. He still hopes to one day reach Europe where he hopes to exhibit his paintings internationally in major salons and at the same time meet great artists of world renown.