TSHAM, Raymond TSHAM, Tsham MATENG. (Lubunz, Kasaï Oriental, 1963. Lives and works in Kinshasa, DRC) Sans titre (les masques Teke, Songye Kifwebe, etc). Bic sur papier. 87 x 65 cm. Signée, datée 2022. Raymond Tsham Mateng graduated from the Kinshasa Institute of Fine Arts from 1989. This talented draftsman has made a name for himself working with a simple black or colored Bic pen. He uses this pen to draw masks and figures from the Congo and elsewhere on paper, which he often presents in profusion. The sculptures explore the Congolese statuary heritage and archive sequences of history. He boldly confronts ancient hieratic and sacrificial art with today’s European or American art. After working exclusively with black ballpoint pens for more than twenty years, Tsham reintroduced color into his work. Watercolors and colored pencils are used to shade the background or to highlight certain characters..