Bio
Will Raojenina, also known as WCMTL, is a Canadian/Malagasy self-taught multidisciplinary visual artist who engages with his experimental art to address and overcome emotional ramifications caused by miscommunication, a societal issue in today's world. His distinctive technique can be spotted instantaneously through his subtle positive messaging and his colorful, dimensional, and heavily mixed media textured work which he meticulously reinforces layer after layer.
His work leads with an emphasis on overcoming the fear of communicating and comprehending others as he seeks to place relevance, not on the differences but on the similarities between the people his work speaks to, in hopes that we can come together from a place of love and understanding. With immigrant parents from Antananarivo, Madagascar, Raojenina was born and raised in the French city of Montreal, Canada, where he honed his artistic style early while being amassed in his hometown's vast population of races, cultures, and ethnicities. Growing up, he had his fair share of struggles as his father had a mental illness which led him to become violent, forcing Raojenina and his family to leave.
Experiences of pain, poverty, and frustration created within him a linguistic barrier with others. This miscommunication and internal frustration led him to art as a catalyst for self-expression. That is where he began to sew and paint on clothing fabrics at 16 years old and earned his nickname WCMTL (Willis Couture Montreal). He befriended other children who immigrated to Montreal, hoping for a better life. Despite the different struggles, language barriers, and cultural differences, the array of perspectives and oral stories through effective communication fortuned him a positive point of view, which taught him to let go of his negative feelings, love others, keep pushing, and appreciate cultures that are different from his.
More than a decade later, he decided to pick up the painting brushes again and officially began to paint on canvas. He continues to use art as a catalyst to escape pain and emphasize to his audience the positive results of communicating without fear and understanding each other.
WCMTL's work has been seen in different art exhibitions across Canada and the United States, such as the "Les Fenêtres Qui Parlent" exhibit in Montreal and the "Resilience" exhibit at the renowned Brown University in Rhode Island U.S.A and many more. WCMTL recently relocated to Los Angeles. His art collectors can be found in different cities, including Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, New York, San Francisco, Washington DC, Los Angeles, and many more.
EXHIBITIONS
2023 - "The inspirations and joys of an immigrant child" solo exhibit - Feb 25 to March 12, 2023 - Gallery 90220 - 918 E 60th St, Los Angeles, 90001
2023 - Frieze LA - Gallery 90220 - Los Angeles, USA
2022 - “La Joie en tant que résistance” Exhibit - Montreal, Canada
2022 - “Solidarity” Exhibit - Brown University – Providence, Rhode Island, USA
2022 - “Melanin Deluxe” Exhibit - BG Gallery, Santa Monica, USA
2022 - “Shifting Dimensions” Exhibit - Art Space Warehouse Gallery, Los Angeles, USA
2021 - 11 Eleven Art Gallery, Washington, D.C., USA
2020 – “Resilience” Exhibit - Brown University – Providence, Rhode Island
2017 - “Les Fenêtres Qui Parlent“ Exhibit – Ville-St-Laurent - Montreal, Canada
2017 – “FM2MAG Exhibit” – OTH Gallery – Montreal, Canada
PRESS
Frieze LA 2023 (featured as one of the best artworks)
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CoyGoJroBNY/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
LA Times Art Exhibit recommendation
https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/newsletter/2023-03-01/what-to-do-this-weekend-lgbtq-art-show-l-a-goes-out
LA Times (Artwork feature)
https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2021-12-02/gallery-90220-david-colbert-jr
Shout Out Los Angeles
https://shoutoutla.com/meet-will-raojenina-wcmtl-contemporary-artist/
Voyage Los Angeles
http://voyagela.com/interview/check-out-will-raojenina-wcmtls-story/