WonderBuhle South Africa, b. 1989
Wonder Buhle Mbambo is a South African visual artist from kwaNgcolosi in Kwazulu-Natal. Mbambo received his formal training in 2010 at the BAT Centre in Durban, South Africa, where the artist currently lives and works. He studied Fine Art, under the mentorship of Themba Shibase at the Velobala Apprenticeship Program at the Durban University of Technology (2011-2013).
Mbambo’s portraits depict spiritually layered visions of Black bodies in restful and contemplative poses, rendered in charcoal and acrylic against flat planes of colour. His signature motif is a gold flower-shaped pattern, which he overlays on top of his figures’ skin. Poetic and personal, this recurring symbol references a native flower used for ancestral practices in Mbambo’s rural South African village, serving as a reminder of the artist’s strong ties to his community.
Solo exhibitions by the artist include at the Durban Art Gallery in 2018. He has also been included in numerous group shows at Unit, (London, 2020); The Art House (Wakefield, 2018); Michaelis Gallery (Cape Town, 2017); KZNSA (Durban, 2015) and the African Art Centre (Durban, 2014). In 2016, he was the recipient of Bremer Kunststipendium Art Grant (three-month residency) and in 2020; he took part in the La Brea Studio Artists Residency in L.A.
Solo exhibitions by the artist include at the Durban Art Gallery in 2018. He has also been included in numerous group shows at Unit, (London, 2020); The Art House (Wakefield, 2018); Michaelis Gallery (Cape Town, 2017); KZNSA (Durban, 2015) and the African Art Centre (Durban, 2014). In 2016, he was the recipient of Bremer Kunststipendium Art Grant (three-month residency) and in 2020; he took part in the La Brea Studio Artists Residency in L.A.
