The eldest of nine children of Congolese academics, Moridja studied in the 1990s at the renowned Academy of Fine Arts in Kinshasa. In 2003, he continued his studies in France. He discovered photography in Nantes and developed a style and language based on areas of interest such as identity, history, politics and religion.
In 2010, he won the Léopold Sédar Senghor Grand Prize at Dak’art, the biennial of contemporary African art, with two creations evoking slavery, Union of States from 1848 to the present And Hymn to us or Eldoradopresented at the Phi Foundation last year.
Moridja could have stayed in France. “I loved Jack Lang and politics. I met Jean-Marc Hérault [maire de Nantes devenu premier ministre en 2012]. He advised me to do training in cultural policy. I could have become director of a cultural center or embassy attaché. I followed this master’s degree then applied for French citizenship. France refused it to me. I pulled out the world map and chose Canada. »
Arriving in Quebec in 2011, he integrated himself by engaging in community activities and discovering the artistic world. First represented by gallery owner Joyce Yahouda, it has been represented since 2019 by Hugues Charbonneau.