Stephen Mbatia
Untitled (Wildebeest Migration I); Untitled (Wildebeest Migration II); Untitled (Wildebeest Migration III), three
About the SessionNAIROBI – Following their successful collaboration in 2025, Strauss & Co, Africa’s leading auction house, and Danda Jaroljmek, Director of Art Auction East Africa, will present Art Auction East Africa | Strauss & Co, a 67-lot sale bringing together modern and contemporary art from East Africa and the wider continent. The live-virtual sale will be held at Circle Art Gallery in Nairobi on Wednesday, 28 October, 2026, 7pm EAT. The catalogue spans a diversity of East African countries, including Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Sudan and Uganda, alongside works by artists from Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique and Nigeria. Works on paper, photography and sculpture complements the strong painting consignment. “The selection invites collectors to discover East Africa’s diverse modernist histories, particularly those beyond the Anglophone world,” says Susie Goodman. “In recent years, there has been a resurgence of interest in East African modernists, with artists associated with the Khartoum School shown in museums and fairs globally. Our work as an auction house rooted in Africa is ensuring this rediscovery is not temporary. We are delighted to partner with Danda Jaroljmek in cultivating a sustainable secondary market for East African modernists active during the era of decolonisation and independence.” A preview exhibition will be held at Circle Art Gallery, Victoria Square, Riara Road, Nairobi, during the two weeks preceding the auction on Wednesday, 28 October 2026.
LOT 11
Stephen Mbatia
Untitled (Wildebeest Migration I); Untitled (Wildebeest Migration II); Untitled (Wildebeest Migration III), three
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
About this Item
each signed
Provenance
Private Collection.
Notes
Born in Murang’a, Kenya, Stephen Mbatia completed his Bachelor of Education in Fine Art at Kenyatta University in 1988. After graduating, he taught at Thogoto Teachers College in Kiyuyu, Kenya, for five years before establishing his own art studio in the Kenyan town of Ngong.
Stephen Mbatia’s love of his home country is palpable in his art. Mbatia frequently depicts wildlife and day-to-day life in Kenya in a variety of media, from watercolour and oil paintings to charcoal drawings and collage.
Mbatia has exhibited his artwork in Kenya, Japan and New York.