Ivar Zanzibar

urban , to draw , to paint , printing (2D) , Figurative , Diaspora , Decolonization

I embrace an unpolished way of creating. Polish comics character from a composition. Coming from a background where perfection is the norm, I actively work against that mindset. Instead, I let layers of imperfections blend together into an engaging image or print.

My conviction has been strengthened by the rise of generative artificial intelligence. AI has slowly created an expectation that artworks should be ultra-polished, instantly available, and free for anyone to use. I counter this zeitgeist by making unpolished work that belongs only to me. I distribute it only as myself. No middleman, no machine.

The work I make is shaped by the music and media I consume. Namely music of my cultural heritage that is Surinam's Kawina and Kaseko, but also HipHop, Funk and Soul that I grew up with. Visual media includes storybooks that inspired me as a child or West-African diaspora related art objects including the stories that belong to them. Periodically, my influences shift, and so does my subject matter. I don't stick to one theme. But I do allow myself to introduce familiar elements that reappear across different pieces. Those repetitions, a texture, a gesture, a way of breaking an edge are what hold my collective work together. They are the signature beneath the rawness.

GO West Visual and Urban arts Delfshaven 2026

Date:
Location: Mathenesserdijk 272B
In association with: Schiezicht

I had the opportunity to participate in the Schiezicht exhibition, which was part of the art route for Go West Delfshaven. I was allowed to hang my recent work in the Dijkdok space to be seen by the visiting public of Schiezicht.

https://www.schiezicht.com/ruimtes/

Willem de Kooning Graduation Show 2022

Date:
Location: Willem de Kooning Academie Wijnhaven-gebouw

Final exhibition for the fourth-year students of the Willem de Kooning Academy (technically Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences), where each student may present their final project to visitors of the building.

https://www.wdka.nl/news-events/graduation-show-2022
This artist has no awards yet.