Rakajoo: The Three Castles

In 2017 Rakajoo took part in the group exhibition Des Gosses at BAB’s gallery, an exhibition of young Afro-descendant artists. The opportunity to shed light, away from the clichés, on the self-questioning of a generation "both lost and moulded in this double culture" that is Afro-Europeanity.

In 2020, the artist graduated from the Art & Image department of the Kourtrajmé School founded by JR and director Ladj Ly. The same year, he and his schoolmates showed their work at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris in the group exhibition Jusqu’ici tout va bien, a show that took the form of a workshop and explored the relationship between the films La Haine (Mathieu Kassovitz, 1995) and Les Misérables (Ladj Ly, 2019). Specially produced for the event, the works were ranging across various mediums, including video works, and were directly inspired by scenes of the two films, but also by stories from the daily life of the artists. It resulted in a series of poignant and socially-committed works that questioned the worldview of the media and the political world, as well as "pointing the appropriation of street cultures by fashion brands [...] denouncing the under-representation of women in society" and addressing strong themes such as machism and homophobia, not forgetting the solidarity that can emerge from these social contexts.

In 2021 was held the collective exhibition Transport Commun, exploring "our increased fragility to others, to ourselves and to the environment", with artworks from the Société Générale art collection in La Défense, Paris, including photographs, paintings, sculptures, lithographs, etc. As a young talent, Rakajoo was invited to join the show. At the same time he continued to work on the making of an animation series, Kaname, as a writer and content designer. 

Rakajoo uses mainly oil painting. His artistic territory borrows from animated movies, comics, but also other painters, with references to the big names who inspired him - Vermeer, Whistler, Freud - while introducing his own variations. He likes to start each of his works on a red painted background, as was common in the past in classical painting.

The artist confides that he was certainly influenced in his choice to become a painter by his family environment, and especially his grandfather, an architect whose first name he bears (Baye-Dam), or his mother who used to sketch clothes. From an early age he developed strong skills and a taste for drawing.

 “I learned to draw because I love to tell stories,” he says.

In 2009-2010, he created the animated series Fish ‘n Chips, Gnark and Scary Larry for Timoon Animation, as drawing artist and content designer.

“I had stories to tell, I was someone who lived a lot in his head,” he says.

Not restricting his field of practice, Rakajoo also creates sculptures. And he likes to accompany his paintings with sound or audiovisual installations to better enable the viewer to immerse himself or herself in the stories he tells.

 "It's a way of capturing the gaze of the viewers and making them dive into the world of the paintings. This is also why I use large focal lengths: to compel us into the heart of the paintings. "