Meet Sheillah Charles, The 9-Year Old Kenyan Artist Impacting Lives With Her Talents
- Ebun
- August 30, 2018
- Cover, Featured, News
- Sheillah Sheldone Charles, Sheillah Sheldone Charles Kenyan Artist, Sheillah Sheldone Charles Kenyan Artist BBC Africa
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Most adults do not know what to do with their lives, let alone children. But nine-year-old Sheillah Sheldone Charles is not most people.
Sheillah is a nine-year-old Kenyan artist and designer who, even at such a tender age, knows that her talent is her lifelong path.
This young artist is fully aware of what she wants to pursue and already excels at it. Speaking to BBC Africa she says’
“I don’t actually know why I draw. It’s just God-given; it’s something in me. I will be doing this forever.”
Sheillah is not only a gifted painter, but she also models and is a designer. Currently, in lower primary school Sheilah has earned nationwide praise for her realistic and well-executed portraits.
Her subjects have included Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and, according to a UReport interview with her mother, Vivian Adhiambo, other prominent Kenyans who include Nairobi governor Mike Sonko, comedian Daniel Ndambuki, aka Churchill, and TV journalist Lofty Matambo.
Her mother went on to elaborate that Sheillah started drawing when she was only four years old and her talent did not go unnoticed.
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“Her teachers once called me to school, saying my daughter had something special in her. I did not believe them. They proceeded to show me her drawings and I was impressed. A job transfer forced me to look for another school to nurture her talent but most of the schools I came across were too costly.”
Speaking to BBC, Sheillah talked about her preferred subject matter:
“My favourite drawing is a lion. Most tourists come to Kenya to see lions.” The blooming feminist added, “I draw women because they suffer a lot. I draw them because they are the most important people in our family”.
Watch her speak below:
