Celimpilo Mthembu

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Celimpilo Mthembu is a South African artist born on the 20th of April 1998 in Newcastle, KwaZulu Natal. He now resides in KwaMashu township just north of Durban.

His work celebrates and looks into the social life of black bodies in the African communities. He depicts portraits of African people with different personalities and backgrounds from his township. Some of these characters he meets at family gatherings and ceremonies. His use of the feather of a bird called igwalagwala, native to Southern Africa, symbolises a bright future and honour for all Africans who are surviving in the modern world. The feather is also an important signifier for royalty and nobility, as observed in Eswatini. His work is a window to a new perspective about the African people and their stories in the post-modern space.

Email: mpilokrazy@gmail.com