Freddy Tsimba
Sculptor | DR Congo
Freddy Tsimba (1967) is a sculptor and multidisciplinary artist known for creating powerful works that go beyond traditional art forms. Using discarded materials like bullet casings, metal fragments, and everyday objects, Tsimba’s art explores resilience, memory, and the impacts of human conflict. His sculptures address themes of life, death, and hope, turning objects of destruction into symbols of renewal and humanity’s strength to rebuild.
Portrait
Freddy Tsimba (1967) is a renowned sculptor whose artistic practice bridges tradition and innovation. Growing up in a lineage of master smiths dating back to the age of copper, Tsimba was drawn to the transformative power of metal from an early age. He studied monumental sculpture at the Académie des Beaux-Arts de Kinshasa, graduating in 1989. He later refined his skills through years of training with master founders in Kinshasa, Kongo Central, and Bandundu.
Tsimba’s art, steeped in the ancestral legacy of his craft, reimagines discarded materials—bullet casings, machetes, and scrap metal—into sculptures that confront the complexities of human existence. His works reflect a deep concern for the fragility and resilience of life, exploring themes of war, oppression, and the enduring strength of women.
Tsimba highlights human rights issues, particularly those affecting mothers and children, by transforming instruments of violence into symbols of hope, reflecting the tragic history and resilience of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
His work critiques systems of control, such as religion and neocolonial exploitation, while honoring those who are often overlooked and oppressed.
Internationally recognized, Tsimba has exhibited widely, including at the Biennale de Dakar and major group exhibitions in the USA, France, Belgium and more.
Freddy Tsimba (1967) is a renowned sculptor whose artistic practice bridges tradition and innovation. Growing up in a lineage of master smiths dating back to the age of copper, Tsimba was drawn to the transformative power of metal from an early age. He studied monumental sculpture at the Académie des Beaux-Arts de Kinshasa, graduating in 1989. He later refined his skills through years of training with master founders in Kinshasa, Kongo Central, and Bandundu.
Tsimba’s art, steeped in the ancestral legacy of his craft, reimagines discarded materials—bullet casings, machetes, and scrap metal—into sculptures that confront the complexities of human existence. His works reflect a deep concern for the fragility and resilience of life, exploring themes of war, oppression, and the enduring strength of women.
Tsimba highlights human rights issues, particularly those affecting mothers and children, by transforming instruments of violence into symbols of hope, reflecting the tragic history and resilience of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
His work critiques systems of control, such as religion and neocolonial exploitation, while honoring those who are often overlooked and oppressed.
Internationally recognized, Tsimba has exhibited widely, including at the Biennale de Dakar and major group exhibitions in the USA, France, Belgium and more.
Works
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Credentials
2024
- Au-delà de la matière, Galerie Angalia, Paris, France
2023
- Mosika, pembeni, Espace Magh, Brussels, Belgium
2022
- Lignes de vie / Lifelines, Cultural Center of Maasmechelen, Belgium
2020–2021
- Mabele eleki lola! La terre, plus belle que le paradis, Museum Africa, Tervuren, Belgium
2020
- L’immortel, hommage à Ousmane Sow, Abbaye de Fontfroide, Narbonne, France
2018
- Porteuse de vie, inauguration of the work acquired by the Palais de Chaillot, Paris, France
- Out of Chaos, Beaux Arts Gallery, London, United Kingdom
2016
- Au-delà de l’extrême, Institut Français, Kinshasa, DR Congo
2014
- 9-6, Code de la démence, Institut Français, Halle de la Gombe, Kinshasa, DR Congo
2012
- Maison Machettes, performance, April 12, Marché de la Liberté, Masina/Kinshasa, DR Congo
- Extrême limite, Residence Delegated by Wallonia-Brussels, Kinshasa, DR Congo
2010
- Nuit africaine, outdoor sculpture installation, Bois des Rêves, Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
- Renaissance. Congo 2010, Tourism House of the Pays de Herve, Belgium
2007
- Freddy Tsimba, l’esprit guerrier, Fondation Jean-Paul Blachère, Apt, France
- Au-delà de l’espoir, inauguration of the monumental sculpture, Chaussée de Wavre, Matonge, Brussels, Belgium
2004
- Freddy Tsimba : un sculpteur, un regard sur le Congo, Parliament of the French Community, Atrium of Hôtel de Ligne, Brussels, Belgium
2003
- Formes et Sculptures, La Chapelle, Hôtel de Ville de Vesoul, France
- Au-delà de la matière, Espace bibliothèque, Coucouron, France
2002
- Regard des Autres, monographic exhibition, Dijon, France
1999
- Solo exhibition at the Wallonia-Brussels Center of Kinshasa, DR Congo
1997
- Solo exhibition, Galerie Giga, Kinshasa, DR Congo
2025
- Mwana Congo, OpenArtExchange, Schiedam (Rotterdam), Netherlands
2023
- CONGO / Passé composé, Galerie Angalia, Paris, France
- A corps pluriels, Galerie Palanca and Espace Culturel Bilembo, Kinshasa, DR Congo
2022
- Doxantu, Dakar Biennale, Dakar, Senegal
- Cartographie des Possibles, Galerie Delphine Courtay, Strasbourg, France
2019
- Congo Biennale, Art Biennale, Kinshasa, DR Congo
- BISO, International Sculpture Biennale of Ouagadougou, Conference and exhibition residency, French Embassy, Burkina Faso
- Les archives suédoises, Länsmuseum Jönköpings, Sweden
- Prête-moi ton rêve, International Exhibition, Casablanca, Morocco
- Les archives suédoises, Kalmar Museum, Sweden
2018
- Kunst Uit Afrika, De Directeurs Woning, Roeselare, Belgium
- Private Choices, La Centrale, Brussels, Belgium
- Afriques, artistes d'hier et d'aujourd'hui, Fondation Clément, Le François, Martinique
2017
- Les archives suédoises – Part 2, Museum of Contemporary and Multimedia Art, Kinshasa, DR Congo
- Congo visits Rhine, Exhibition with S. Baloji, Museum der Kulturen, Basel, Switzerland
- Afriques Capitales, Lille, France
- Les archives suédoises – Part 1, Exhibition with A. Ekman and C. Järdemar, Centrum för fotografie, Stockholm, Sweden
- Congo en marche, part of YAMBI!, Le Botanique, Brussels, Belgium
2016
- Congo Art Works, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels, Belgium
- Afriqu’Expo, Libreville, Gabon
- Tours et taxis, European Development Day, Brussels, Belgium
2015
- One in Three, World Bank, Washington DC, United States
- Lumières d’Afrique, Ministry of Finance, Bercy, France
- Lumières d’Afrique, Théâtre National de Chaillot, Paris, France
- Stories Tellers, Bandjoun Station, Exhibition and Artist Residency, Cameroon
- La Divine Comédie, Collective Exhibition, Museo Reina Sofia, Madrid, Spain; Correo, Venice, Italy
2014
- Yango Biennale, International Biennale of Kinshasa, Kinshasa, DR Congo
- La Divine Comédie, Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, Washington DC, United States; MMK Museum für Moderne Kunst, Frankfurt, Germany
- Afrique multiple: Visions multiples de l'art africain, Casablanca, Morocco
- Coup Fatal, Opera-rumba world tour, scenographic realization
2013
- Rencontre d’Art Afrique et de Moyen-Orient, Former Sacré-Cœur Church, Casablanca, Morocco
- Totem, Fondation Blachère, Apt, France
2012
- Création émergente, Guillaumin & Kauffer, Péniche La balle au bond, Pont des Arts, Paris, France
- Sixième Sens, Kinshasa, DR Congo
2011
- Résidence HTP 40, Hautepierre, Strasbourg, France
- Art for Peace, Pygma Group & AngloGold Ashanti, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Wote Pamoja/Tous Ensemble, TMT/Trust Merchant Bank, Kinshasa, DR Congo
2010
- Un giorno di felicità, International Contemporary Art Exhibition, Museo Civico Archeologico, Como, Italy
- Matonge (Kinshasa)-Matonge (Ixelles), Portrait by Jean-Dominique Burton, MRAC Tervuren, Brussels, Belgium
- Bakeyi na biso wapi, Outdoor Installation, Ghent Festival, Belgium
- Brave New Worlds (Guangzhou-Kinshasa), Investigation Between Congo and China, Theater der Welt, Mülheim an der Ruhr, Essen, Germany
- Indépendance cha cha, Sculpture Installation for the 50th Anniversary of Congo's Independence, MRAC Tervuren, Belgium
- Réalisation du trophée Le Tsimba, 'Artiste du Cinquantenaire' Award, Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles, Kinshasa, DR Congo
- La RDC en 2060, Sanaa Sasa Association, Mercedes House, Brussels, Belgium
- AFRIfestival, Gallery @Kultuurkaffe, VUB Campus Etterbeek, Belgium
- Voies de la liberté, Exhibition with photographer Bruno Stevens, Cultural Centre of Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
2009
- Panaf 2009, 2nd Edition of the Panafrican Festival, Collective Exhibition La Modernité dans l’art africain, Palace of Exhibitions (Safex), Algiers, Algeria
- Persona, Masques rituels et œuvres contemporaines, Museum of Tervuren, Belgium
2008
- Africa Now, World Bank Headquarters, Washington DC, United States
- Semaine africaine au Parlement européen, Brussels, Belgium
- Miroirs, 8th Biennale of Contemporary African Art, Museum Théodore Monod, Dakar, Senegal
- 5th Festival du Recycl’Art, Contemporary Art Centre of Outaouais, Quebec, Canada
2007
- Terre noire, Ousmane Sow and Trends of Contemporary African Sculpture, Maurice Denis Departmental Museum, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
- Lelo Lobi (Aujourd’hui Demain), Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles, Paris, France
- Freddy Tsimba et Kura Shomali, L’arthothèque, Château Malou, Brussels, Belgium
- Congo en marche, Yambi Congo, Centre culturel Le Botanique, Brussels, Belgium
- Congo contemporain, Monos Art Gallery, Liège, Belgium
- Œuvres au Théâtre de Poche, for the performance of Verre Cassé by Alain Mabanckou, Bozar/Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels, Belgium
2006
- L’homme est un mystère #2, Museum of Art and History, Saint-Brieuc, France
- Afrique Europe: rêves croisés, European Commission, European Development Days, Les Ateliers des Tanneurs, Brussels, Belgium
- 1er Festival des États ACP, Collective Exhibition at Museo de Arte Moderno, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
- Afrique: Entendus, sous-entendus et malentendus, Dak'Art 2006, 7th Biennale of Contemporary African Art, IFAN Museum, Dakar, Senegal
- Cris d’Afrique, Château Malou, Brussels, Belgium
2005
- Congo-Haïti, Fête de la Sculpture, Institut Français d’Haïti, and AfricAméricA Foundation, Fosaj (Sant d’A Jacmel Foundation), Port-au-Prince, Haiti
- Arroyo, Saint-Remy Hospital Centre, Faverney, France
- Puissance 4, Sainte-Marie Hospital Centre, Le Puy en Velay, France
- Pas de quartier pour le rêve, City Hall of Paris 19th, France
2004
- Routes et couleurs de la pierre, with Jean-Claude Saudoyez, Maison Folie, Tournai, Belgium
- Exposition with Philippe Tallis, Conseil Général de la Haute-Loire, Le Puy-en-Velay, France
- 48e Salon international des arts plastiques de la Ville de Béziers, France, Honorary Diploma
- Adai, Voyage dans l'Art contemporain, Château d’Alba La Romaine, Ardèche, France
2003
- XIIe Festival de la Francophonie métissée, Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles, Paris, France
- Love Zones, Galerie Barnoud, Dijon, France
- L’Europe fantôme, Espace Vertebra, Brussels, Belgium
- Africa for Africa, Palais des Beaux-Arts de Bruxelles, Belgium
- 47th Salon international des arts plastiques de la ville de Béziers, France
2002
- Couleurs de la francophonie, International Itinerant Exhibition, Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles, Paris, France
- Expression, Franche-Comté, France
- Remember 11 Septembre, Palais du Peuple, Kinshasa, DR Congo
- Semaine de la Solidarité Internationale, Parc Gendrey Jura Nord, France
2001
- Exposition Sculpture, Montauban, France
2000
- Exposition, French Cultural Center of Kinshasa, DR Congo
- Exposition, Hôtel Memling, Kinshasa, DR Congo
1999
- Art et Paix, Ateliers Botembe, Kinshasa, DR Congo
1998
- British Embassy, Kinshasa, DR Congo
- Centre culturel français, Kinshasa, DR Congo
1997
- With Daniel Kambere Tsongo, Franco-Zairoise Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Centre Culturel Français, Kinshasa, DR Congo
- With Aubin Disundi, Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles, Kinshasa, DR Congo
1995
- Centre Kimbanguiste de Conférence, Kinshasa, DR Congo
- 50 ans de l’UNESCO, Centre Kimbanguiste, Kinshasa, DR Congo
1994
- 5e Biennale de l’art contemporain Bantu, International Centre of Bantu Civilizations (CICIBA), Brazzaville, DR Congo
- Hôtel Memling, Kinshasa, DR Congo
- Solidarité sans frontière : aujourd'hui Rwanda, Intercontinental Hotel, Kinshasa, DR Congo
1992
- Academy of Fine Arts, Kinshasa, DR Congo
2021
- AKAA, Carreau du Temple, Galerie Angalia, Paris, France
2019
- AKAA, Carreau du Temple, Galerie Angalia, Paris, France
2018
- AKAA, Carreau du Temple, Galerie Angalia, Paris, France
2017
- AKAA, Carreau du Temple, Galerie Angalia, Paris, France
- Salon Zürcher Africa, Galerie Angalia at Galerie Zürcher, Paris, France
2016
- AKAA, Carreau du Temple, Galerie Angalia, Paris, France
2008
- Art Brussels, Contemporary Art Fair, Belgium
2023
- Masterclass by Freddy Tsimba, Espace Magh, Brussels, Belgium
- Interdisciplinary Conference "Mémoires blessées, promesses inachevées: Ricœur’s Thought and African Horizons," Institut Français, Kinshasa, DR Congo
- Artistic Research Project on Colonial Archives Reframing the Encounter, Seminar, Konstfack University, Stockholm, Sweden (March)
2017
- Residency at Nordic Guest Studio, Stockholm, Sweden (March)
2011
- Residency http 40, Hautepierre, Strasbourg, France (August-October)
2007
- Artist Residency at Fondation Blachère, Apt, France, followed by an exhibition (November)
2006
- Artist Residency at the Office Départemental de Développement Culturel des Côtes d’Armor, Saint-Brieuc, Brittany, France (October 1 to 20), followed by an exhibition at the Musée d’Art et d’Histoire de Saint-Brieuc
2005
- Artist Residency at the Institut Français d’Haïti, Port-au-Prince and Jacmel, Haiti (April to May)
2003
- Artist Residency at Bag Factory, Johannesburg, South Africa, sponsored by the Ford Foundation (January to March)
2002
- Haute-Saône, France, Stage Director: Teaching Bronze Casting Technique (February-December)
2025
- Mwana Congo, OpenArtExchange, Schiedam (Rotterdam), Netherlands