What are you looking for?
Suggested:
Art for Inspiring Business Beyond the Art Scene

  • Community Spotlight

Work, Passion, and Purpose: Being an Afro-Colombian Artist Today

By Eduardo Ojeda
Follow along this new series of blogs, born from conversation between our Chief Visionary Officer (CVO) and our amazing artists, filled with detailed questions tailored to each of their personal journeys in the world of art. To start this initiative, we enter the cinematic world of  Edgar Jiménez and his artwork, deeply rooted in his identity as a person of African descent in Colombia. 

Being an Afro-Colombian Artist Today

For Afro-Colombian artist Edgar Jiménez, art is a declaration of identity, memory, and resistance.
In this first entry of our new interview series, Edgar speaks about his roots, his inspirations, and the profound role of art as a tool for questioning history, society, and the spaces we inhabit.

 

For Edgar, being an Afro-Colombian artist is a constant affirmation of heritage and resilience. His paternal family traces back to Asnazú in Cauca, later moving to Cali—a city where Afro identity pulses through rhythm, labor, and everyday culture.

From music shared with his father to the visual poetry of painting, Edgar’s Afro heritage remains the foundation of his practice.

San Antonio Alto Cali neighborhood, 2024 - Edgar Andres Jimenez
Cali center building drawing, 2024
Cali center building drawing, 2024 - Edgar Andres Jimenez

From Play to Destiny: Cinema as Catalyst

Childhood summers in his aunt’s studio sparked his fascination with creation. Though he briefly pursued engineering, cinema became his gateway into art.

 

The precision of framing, color, and narrative in film shaped his approach to painting. His canvases, like good cinema, aim to confront issues society overlooks—from systemic racism to collective memory.

Memory, Territory, and Resistance in the Work

Across 16 years, Edgar’s art has evolved through stages:

 

  • Riots series: inspired by African-American cinema posters and U.S. racial struggles.

  • The Wire-inspired works: exploring gangs and ghetto life.

  • Discovery of Afro-Colombian figures like Pambelé, sparking a deeper engagement with neglected local histories.

Today, Edgar revisits Cali’s neighborhoods, studying republican architecture as symbols of forgotten power, and painting Pacific coast landscapes as spaces of memory and silence.

Who is Edgar Jiménez?

An Afro-Colombian painter whose 16-year career explores identity, memory, architecture, and resistance through cinematic and historical lenses.

How does The Art Dome support Edgar Jiménez?

Through curatorial support, exhibitions, and opportunities that connect his local narrative to international audiences.

I’m an artist. How can I join The Art Dome?

You can apply to our residency and acceleration programs. We guide artists with mentorship, visibility, and international connections

Learn More

Encounters with The Art Dome

Meeting Eduardo Ojeda and The Art Dome provided trust and vision. For Edgar, support of mid-career artists is rare in Colombia, where cultural projects often struggle for continuity.

 

The Art Dome’s international outlook allows local narratives to connect with global practices while remaining rooted in Colombia’s realities.

 

Edgar’s current practice embraces reduction and layering, influenced by medieval Chinese painters and film. His monochrome paintings invite viewers to trace lines slowly, experiencing intimacy and surprise.

 

 “If someone only had 30 seconds to view my work, I’d want them to feel something they can’t quite put into words.”

 

Art, for Edgar, mirrors memory: fragile, elusive, and fading if not confronted. His process oscillates between precision and improvisation—an act of searching that mirrors Afro-Colombian history itself.

Let’s create something extraordinary together

contact us
Share Work, Passion, and Purpose: Being an Afro-Colombian Artist Today

more insights