David Mbuyi

Born 1997 in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Lives and works in Paris.

Born in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, in 1997. Lives and works in Paris. Trained at the Beaux-Arts de Paris, where he completed his course in Djamel Tatah’s studio, David Mbuyi has established himself as one of the most singular voices of the young contemporary painting scene. He attended the Via Ferrata preparatory class before entering the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris in 2020.

More about the artist →

His painting, resolutely figurative, unfolds as a sequence of snapshots of daily life, so many fragments of humanity caught in their bare truth. It testifies to a sharp gaze on social realities, on the micro-gestures of the ordinary, and on the forms of escape from confinement, physical or mental, that punctuate our lives. Each canvas is at once archive, visual notebook and support for a thought in movement, making the work a space of reflection, even of meditation.

Winner of the Prix François Dujarric de La Rivière in 2020, David Mbuyi has shown his work in several group exhibitions, among them the Indian Summer festival in Arles (2020), Ô Boulot at the MAIF Social Club in Paris (2018), and the 7th gathering of artists in residence at the Cour des Arts in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence (2018).

Education 3→

2023: Diplôme de l’École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris, atelier Djamel Tatah
2020: Entrée à l’École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris
: Classe préparatoire Via Ferrata

Awards and residencies 3→

2024: Résidence, La Cour des Arts, Saint-Rémy-de-Provence
2020: Bourse François Dujarric de La Rivière, Beaux-Arts de Paris
2018: Résidence, La Cour des Arts, Saint-Rémy-de-Provence

Solo exhibitions 2→

2024: David Mbuyi, La Cour des Arts, Saint-Rémy-de-Provence
2023: Landmarks, Galerie Camille Pouyfaucon, Paris

Group exhibitions 5→

2026: L’Esprit de l’atelier, MO.CO. Panacée, Montpellier
2025: Les images ne dorment jamais / Imago numquam dormit, avec Maria Adjovi, Galerie Nathan Chiche, Vantoux
2020: Festival Été indien, Arles
2018: Ô Boulot, MAIF Social Club, Paris7e rencontre des artistes de la résidence, La Cour des Arts, Saint-Rémy-de-Provence