Pilipili Mulongoy

Pilipili Mulongoy (February 12, 1914–March 10, 2007), also spelled Pili Pili Mulongoy, was an artist from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He was raised in the Shaba Province of the Belgian Congo and worked as a plumber and building painter during his early adulthood. Following a drawing test at a studio in Élisabethville (modern-day Lubumbashi), Mulongoy honed his craft of painting nature scenes during the next several years. He later taught courses at the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Élisabethville. His work gained popularity in the Belgian Congo and especially Europe. Mulongoy's paintings were acquired by members of the Belgian royal family. Since his death in 2007, Mulongoy's paintings have been shown in several exhibitions in Africa, Europe, and North America.

Biography Pilipili Mulongoy, also spelled Pili Pili Mulongoy and whose birth name was Mulongoyi Nkulu Mitenga Philippe, was born on February 12, 1914, in Ankoro, a town in the Shaba Province of the Belgian Congo, now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). His father was a fisherman and Mulongoy initially worked as a plumber and building painter. After a drawing test in Élisabethville (modern-day Lubumbashi), French immigrant Pierre Romain Desfosses recruited Mulongoy in 1947. Following Desfosses' death, the artists moved to the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Élisabethville where Mulongoy began teaching courses. Among notable people that acquired Mulongoy's paintings were King Albert II, and his brother and sister-in-law King Baudouin and Queen Fabiola.

Mulongoy died on March 10, 2007, in the DRC. At the time of his death, he was 93 and had several unfinished paintings. The solo exhibition at Artcurial featured 15 previously unseen paintings.

Selected works