Simphiwe Buthelezi
South Africa
Bio
Simphiwe Buthelezi (b. 1996, Benoni, South Africa) is an installation artist and sculptor whose work is rooted in material exploration, cultural continuity, and spiritual inquiry. She works primarily with traditional Zulu materials such as *icansi* (handwoven reed mats), *tankrali* (Zulu seed beads), and glass beads, engaging in the practice of *ukubuyela e masisweni*—“returning to the source.” Through processes of cutting, folding, sewing, and bonding, she reshapes and reimagines materials passed down through generations, extending their form and meaning.
“My work is always in dialogue with the sacredness of the reed mat,” she says. “It fascinates me how a single object can unravel and transform into many forms—just like the people to whom it belongs: boundless, adaptable, enduring.”
While her practice draws from African spirituality and cultural dynamics, it is equally defined by her commitment to rigorous craftsmanship and the poetic potential of form. Her sculptures are meditations on transformation—simultaneously material, personal, and ancestral.
Buthelezi holds a National Diploma in Fine Art from the University of Johannesburg (2017) and received the 2018 Blessing Ngobeni Art Prize, including a residency at the Bag Factory Artist Studios. She has exhibited at Paris+ par Art Basel, the Investec Cape Town Art Fair, and in solo exhibitions at SMAC Stellenbosch and The Bag Factory. Her work is held in prominent collections, including Fondation H (Madagascar), SAFFCA, the Bonanate Collection (Italy), and the University of Cape Town. In late 2024, she will undertake a residency in Brussels with SAFFCA and ENSAV La Cambre.