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Limited Editions

Zizipho Poswa

Straddling figuration and abstraction, Zizipho Poswa creates anthropomorphic totems characterized by an elliptical approach to form and bold color choices, often in ceramic and bronze. Her work is a deep invocation of her personal journey and an homage to the spiritual traditions and matriarchal stewardship of her Xhosa culture. Born in 1979 in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, Poswa studied surface design at the Cape PeninsulaUniversity of Technology. Her work has examined different aspects of her culture, heritage, and identity, such as Xhosa marriage rituals, historical and contemporaryAfrican hairstyles from across the continent, the practice of ‘umthwalo’(whereby rural women carry heavy loads on their heads), and African cultures of bodily adornment. Poswa’s work is in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Los Angeles CountyMuseum of Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, and Art Institute of Chicago, as well as important private and corporate collections such as the LOEWE Foundation, Schulting Art Collection and the collection of HRH Franz, Duke of Bavaria.

 

 

 

“…I wanted the carpet to recreate the sense of community and sisterhood that I—and so many women across the continent—have experienced in hair salons and in their homes.”

THE PROJECT
Woven Forms 2 – uNomnyamazana – Black Princess