Photos: Galerie Malabo\Milano Kanku\YouTube Screenshots\Wikimedia Commons
It’s been 50 years since “Rumble in the Jungle” put the country on the world stage under the dictator Mobutu Sese Seko but there was not a major official commemoration. However, local artists have taken it upon themselves to do so. “From a political perspective, celebrating ‘Zaire 74’ is awkward because it would mean celebrating the peak of Mobutu’s era,” Patrick Mudekereza, director of the Waza Art Center in Lubumbashi, told Semafor Africa.
Across Goma, Kinshasa, and Lubumbashi, galleries and art centers are preserving this bit of history. In Kinshasa, the Malabo Gallery showcases Patrick Lomalisa’s works in an exhibition titled “Beyond the Ring” (pictured). Inspired by Rumble in the Jungle, Lomalisa’s 20 paintings capture the spirit of the legendary fight while drawing “a connection to the daily struggles that everyone faces,” said Joseph Darchy Mayunga, of Malobo Gallery.
In Lubumbashi, the country’s second-largest city, photographer Sikasso Kazadi is showcasing archival photos over a month, from Ali’s arrival to the excitement in Kinshasa and the fight with Foreman, with free public access. Other artists, like Colin Delfosse from Belgium and Kakudji, are also drawing on this history to “keep it alive.”
“This is our identity, and these exhibits keep the flame alive for current and future generations,” says Yvon Edoumou, a local art critic.
— Elisha Iragi in Lubumbashi, DR Congo
