Penciling humour

The face and name of Bryan Harris is one which is not easily relatable to many, but certainly not his artistic works.

The 31-year old creative has for years made people laugh with his exceptional skill of doing caricatures of different public personalities. The outrageous manner and excessive exaggerations, which his drawings come with, is simply beyond any reasonable imagination.

There have been fewer celebrities who have escaped the unforgiving hand and wrath of the pencil of Ryan Arts.

The Lilongwe-based artist has recreated faces of personalities such as Phyzix, Gwamba, Piksy, businessperson Triephornia Mpinganjira, Zambian Yo Maps, Onesimus, comedians Mr Jokes and Ching’aning’ani, Prophet Habakkuk, among others.

In an interview with Chill, Harris said he started his art in 2017 to keep himself busy after he sat his Malawi School Certificate of Education.

“Drawing is a talent I was born with. But when I went to secondary school the passion and interest somehow waned. It was only in the latter years that I rediscovered my mojo to reawaken that side of me,” he said.

The artist said he started following tutorials online on how to perfect his art until he acquired adequate skill to start sharing his works publicly. He says he has always been in awe of the reactions his drawings receive from the people he features.

Harris said: “They are some drawings that are commissioned and people pay for them. But there are other works which I just do out of my will because I like those personalities. Sometimes it is also just my way of showing that I do follow the developments in the arts industry.”

But what trick does Harris use to ensure his caricatures retain such a degree of humour? The artist, who is also a photographer, videographer and graphic designer, said he strives at creating a distinction between comic creations and normal drawing. 

“When I am doing comical creations I make sure I emphasise on the humour elements. I add things that are not present on the reference pictures and sometimes I can bring a hilarious caption to accompany the drawings,” he said.

The magic that his drawings possess has enchanted most of the characters that he has featured.

Rapper Phyzix said the content is exciting as it provides an alternative and lighter escape moments during these tough times.

He said: “I know the artist is capable of drawing very precise images, but he had to change his style and approach to be more artistic and attract people’s attention. He adopted this approach for him to stand out.”

Phyzix said no matter how contorted his image comes out, he does not take any offence. The singer said he normally reposts the images on his pages to facilitate a lighter engagement with his fan base to create a bond with them.

Fellow musician Piksy said Ryan Arts works is necessary to bring about lighter moments within the creative space.

“I don’t take offence at all. It is a welcome art which has so many enriching effects for our industry. After everything else people need something to laugh about,” he said.

Blantyre-based Ntchindi Mzumara also recently found himself on the receiving end of Ryan Arts creative instincts. He said for him it is just about relieving stress.

“In fact, we have people who pay him to do such drawings. If the cartoon characters were bad in any way people would never have such interest in them,” he said.

In 2022/23, Harris was one the creatives who underwent a training in digital marketing and arts entrepreneurship at the University of Malawi under the Sula Creative initiative.