Announcement of the 2025 African Artist Residency Program Recipient
Kenyan-born, Nairobi-based artist Thandiwe Muriu has been selected for the 2025 KYOTOGRAPHIE International Photography Festival African Artist Residency Program.
During her residency in Kyoto this autumn, Muriu will collaborate with local artisans and immerse herself in the city’s culture to create a new body of work inspired by Kyoto’s rich traditions. The resulting works will be presented in the Main Program of KYOTOGRAPHIE 2026, alongside a selection of her other works.
ABOUT THANDIWE MURIU
Thandiwe Muriu is a Kenyan artist who examines themes of identity, culture, and female empowerment through her works. Her pieces are deeply inspired by African textile narratives, primarily the Ankara (wax) and the East African kanga fabric, which she uses as a canvas to redefine, celebrate, and remember.
ABOUT KYOTOGRAPHIE’S AFRICAN RESIDENCY PROGRAM
Artists from the African continent have always had a strong presence in KYOTOGRAPHIE’s history, beginning with Malick Sidibé’s exhibition in the festival’s first edition in 2013.
Co-founder and co-directors of the festival, Lucille Reyboz and Yusuke Nakanishi, have long valued the continent’s rich and diverse photographic culture and are driven to share awareness with photography fans in Japan.
The residency serves as a bridge between Japan and the African continent — connecting cultures that are varied and geographically distant, yet ultimately united through a shared human experience.
Each year, the African Residency Program invites one artist to stay in Kyoto, create new work and exhibit as part of the main program in KYOTOGRAPHIE the following year.
- Past artists have included:
- Omar Victor Diop (Senegal) 2019
- Ngadi Smart (Sierra Leone) 2020
- Prince Gyasi (Ghana) 2021
- Joana Choumali (Côte dʼIvoire) 2022
- Yoriyas (Yassine Alaoui Ismaili) (Morocco) 2023
- Laetitia Ky (Côte dʼIvoire) 2024