South Africa
Zama Mwandla is absolutely unapologetic about her focus: the murderous revenge fantasies of rape victims in search of “heinous means to heal from a traumatic past”. Her paintings introduce a panoply of human-animal hybrids which reappear in the series, each character carrying particular signification.
These surreal creatures manifest in playful, seductive, rich colours – a means to entrap a male audience into confronting her graphic and gruesome subject matter. In her bold re-tellings of violence, rumination, psychopathic imagination, rage and grievance, she makes her characters relatable. Mwandla suggests, however, that attempts at revenge are ultimately futile; they are relegated to the world of fantasy, scenes on repeat. Mwandla graduated recently from Wits University with a BAFA (with Honours), achieving multiple awards during her studies under the tutelage of artist and scholar Professor Sharlene Khan. Her work was shown at the African Feminisms (Afems) exhibition in 2019, as well as by She Impressions and Joburge Fringe in 2021.
You can view Mwandla’s debut group exhibition with Guns & Rain in the Fresh Voices 2022 catalogue.
Paradise: Two Peas in a Pod
2022 Oil on canvas 109 x 200.3 cm
Paradise: Family Portrait
2022 Oil on canvas 147.1 x 119.5 cm
Man Obsolete: Caught-off-guard
2022 Oil and Acrylic on canvas 59.2 x 84 cm
Man Obsolete: Ambush
2021 Oil and Acrylic on canvas 121.9 x 64.6 cm
Paradise: Forest of deceit
2022 Oil and Acrylic on canvas 149.7 x 149.7 cm
Man Obsolete: Indulge in shame
2022 Oil and Acrylic on canvas 80.3 x 120 cm
Man Obsolete: Virgin balls
2021 Mixed media 59 x 33 x 27 cm
Man Obsolete: Untitled
2021 Oil and Acrylic on canvas 151 x 246 cm
Man obsolete: Seamen milk
2021 Mixed media 50.5 x 13.9 x 9.8 cm
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