Velma Rosai-Makhandia (b. Nairobi, Kenya) is a student of the stars. Her effervescent paintings and textile works draw on numinous, dreamlike imagery to evoke celestial and otherworldly realms, where figures converge in scenes of whimsical flight, enigmatic fellowship, and journeys through subterranean worlds. Rendered in vibrant, translucent washes of colour, her practice influences are situated in African mythology, superstitions , elemental forces, and personal narrative—threads she weaves into expansive visual ethereal worlds that transcend the boundaries of reality.

Rosai-Makhandia is currently in a residency in Monaco (2025-2026) following others, including residencies at dot.ateliers, Accra, Ghana (2024), 50 Golborne Art Artist Residency, London, UK & Lamu, Kenya (2022-23), Poco a Poco, Oaxaca, Mexico (2021) . Selected solo exhibitions include: Union Pacific, London (upcoming, 2026), This is not a human being, and she’s not a spirit, UNREPD Gallery, Los Angeles (2024) and The Ways of My Serpent Mother Are Strange, Sarah Brook Gallery, Los Angeles (2023). Recent group exhibitions include: CONDO London 2025, Union Pacific, London (2025), ever so present, Amoako Boafo Gallery, Accra (2024) Handmade Gallery, Grand Bassam, Ivory Coast (2024) and Love Song, Sarah Brook Gallery, Los Angeles.