Picture perfect: Woza Moya supports local artist
Sculptor Sibusiso Mthembu's work is featured for the month of February on the Woza Moya Artists’ Wall.
SIBUSISO Mthembu is the 29th artist showcasing his work on the Woza Moya Artists’ Wall, and his work is being featured for the month of February.
The concept behind the Woza Moya Artists’ Wall and Artists’ Cards is to create and showcase work for artists who have been hard hit by Covid. Each month, a different artist is paid to paint a 1.2m x 1.2m wall panel which is displayed on the wall outside Woza Moya, the Hillcrest AIDS Centre shop. Woza Moya assists the artist by marketing their work for the entire month their work is on display. A greeting card is made of the painted wall panel and sold in their shops so that artists can earn an ongoing passive income.
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This has worked well with artists earning from R200 to R1 000 a month from the sale of the cards. Woza Moya’s Paula Thomson said they are delighted to be featuring Sbusiso Mthembu as the artist for February.
“We visited his studio to commission soap dishes and saw these delightful hand-carved ceramic birds and commissioned 100 for our bird tree for the artists’ wall. The Woza Moya Artists’ Wall would like to thank the 100% Foundation for coming on board for ongoing sponsorship and making this monthly event possible,” she said.
About the artist
Mthembu was born and grew up on the South Coast of Durban, in a community called uMthwalume Cabhane location. He finished high school in 2005 and migrated to Durban in 2006 to look for better opportunities. He did several jobs for survival, until 2021, when he met Clive Sithole, a local ceramic artist who took him under his wing and taught him about ceramics. Sithole and Mthembu share a studio at the Phansi Museum and work with other visual artists. He is still working as an apprentice to Sithole and is currently still learning about pottery, sculpturing and all things ceramics.
Mthembu said he loves nature and celebrating his culture, and this is translated into his work.
“I love carving texture into my work, and these become beautiful patterns and act as contrasts to the smooth, burnished places in my work. The birds are made from terracotta clay, which is bisque-fired and then smoke-fired. Each bird is unique.”
Shop opening times:
Woza Moya is based at the Hillcrest AIDS Centre Trust, 26 Old Main Road, in Hillcrest, and is open from Monday to Friday from 08:00 to 16:00, and from 09:00 to 17:00 at Woza Moya Windermere Centre. On Saturdays, the HACT shop is open from 08:00 to 14:00, and from 09:00 to 14:00 at Windermere. Woza Moya is the economic empowerment project of the Hillcrest AIDS Centre Trust.
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