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Born in Nairobi, Kenya in 1975, Jacob Njoroge Wachira cannot recall a time he was not drawing or painting. One of his favorite things to do was to create brightly colored murals on the sides of the houses in Mathare. Mathare is a gigantic slum in Nairobi where Jacob was born and spent his childhood. Jacob has traveled about the world yet he has chosen to return to Mathare where his lives today. Jacob adopted the name Ezigbo (ezigbo- meaning “the good one” from the Ibo community of Nigeria) he signs all of his painting Jacob W. Ezigbo.
After completing primary and secondary school Ezigbo went on to study graphic design at The Kenya Polytechnic in Nairobi. In 1998 Ezigbo made the decision to become a full time painter and joined the Kuona Trust, which opened up his world to many new challenges and experiences.
In 2002 Ezigbo won “The Best Artist Award” in Kenya under the Ruth Hunt Wood Foundation. In 2006 this prestigious award provided Ezigbo an opportunity to spend a semester studying and instructing at the University of Kentucky and Somerset Community College. Ezigbo’s time in the US was time well spent, supporting his growth as an artist through his interaction with artists and faculty of the both the Institutions. At the end of his stay Ezigbo had a solo show at the John Tuska Gallery in Lexington, Kentucky.
