Jean Katambayi Mukendi

Exhibition catalogue for Jean Katambayi Mukendi’s solo exhibition RATIO at KW Institute for Contemporary Art (Berlin, 21 February – 10 May 2026) and M HKA (Antwerp, 6 June - 20 September 2026).

Jean Katambayi Mukendi: Circuits is the first comprehensive monograph dedicated to the Congolese artist, published on the occasion of his solo exhibition RATIO at KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin, and M HKA—Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp. Spanning his career from its inception to the present, the volume combines richly illustrated pages with insightful texts that situate Katambayi’s work within contemporary art history, African thought, and the cultural context of present-day Lubumbashi. It includes interviews, two texts written by the artist, and a multidisciplinary exploration of his installations, performances, and drawings.

This book is published in partnership with the Contemporary Art Committee KU Leuven, KW, and M HKA.

"Jean Katambayi Mukendi" was written by Sandrine Colard, Simon Delobel, Nadia Yala Kisukidi, Alexandre Mulongo Finkelstein, Julie Mukendi and Jean Katambayi Mukendi.

Sandrine Colard is curator and assistant professor of African Art History at Rutgers University, Newark.

"Jean Katambayi Mukendi" was edited by Johannes Muselaers, Stéphane Symons, Anne-Claire Schmitz and Emma Enderby.

Johannes Muselaers is a doctoral researcher at the Institute of Philosophy of KU Leuven.

Stéphane Symons is Full Professor of Aesthetics and Philosophy of Culture at the Institute of Philosophy of KU Leuven.

Anne-Claire Schmitz is a senior curator at M HKA – Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp.

Emma Enderby is Director of KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin.

Yes, "Jean Katambayi Mukendi" is part of the "KU Leuven A.R.T.S.S. Series" series.

“We must necessarily think of science as art if we expect to derive any kind of wholeness from it.”
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

The KU Leuven Art Research on Technology, Science, and Society  series is an initiative of the KU Leuven Committee for Contemporary Art encouraging close collaboration between leading scientists and contemporary artists. Each volume is the result of an ongoing dialogue in which international researchers from various disciplines engage with artists working across a wide range of media. These encounters  actively shape the questions, methods, and forms of presentation developed in each publication, going beyond mere illustration.

While contemporary societies have reached unprecedented levels of complexity, scientific responses to their most pressing issues are all too often overly diversified and fragmented. The KU Leuven A.R.T.S.S. series explores the common ground between art, science, and technology, approaching urgent societal challenges and global problems in a more integrated manner. By foregrounding processes of exchange, translation, and critical reflection, the series provides alternative frameworks for thinking across disciplinary boundaries and for articulating forms of knowledge and imagination that transcend established academic or artistic categories.

Series Editor

Stéphane Symons

Editorial Board

Sandrine Colard
Catherine de Zegher
Ute Meta Bauer
Michael Newman

For more information about the KU Leuven Committee for Contemporary Art, please visit https://www.kuleuven.be/english/committees/contemporary-art

Proposals

Proposals and enquiries can be sent to Stéphane Symons.
Please make use of the submission form to present your manuscript or proposal to our board.
Authors interested in Open Access can consult the available funding options.

Links & Resources

Yes, "Jean Katambayi Mukendi" is published Open Access. It is available under a BY-NC-ND license.

Publication of "Jean Katambayi Mukendi" was funded by KU Leuven Fund for Fair Open Access
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7 FOREWORD Johannes Muselaers, Stéphane Symons, Anne-Claire Schmitz, and Emma Enderby

9 THE POWER OBJECTS OF JEAN KATAMBAYI MUKENDI Sandrine Colard

19 RATIO Jean Katambayi Mukendi, Emma Enderby, and Anne-Claire Schmitz in conversation

24 I HOPE YOU’RE DOING WELL Simon Delobel

37 REINVENTING THE SUN: ENERGY, JUNCTION, LIMIT IN THE WORK OF JEAN KATAMBAYI MUKENDI Nadia Yala Kisukidi

46 CIRCUITS Johannes Muselaers and Stéphane Symons

57 PICHA-LUBUMBASHI Jean Katambayi Mukendi and Alexandre Mulongo Finkelstein in conversation

65 MEMORIES OF A SHARED LIFE Julie Mukendi

67 IMAGES INVENT THEMSELVES Jean Katambayi Mukendi

69 SINUETTE Jean Katambayi Mukendi

73 WORKS

149 BIOGRAPHY

150 COLOPHON

The Digital Object Identifier (DOI) for "Jean Katambayi Mukendi" is 10.11116/9789461667472.