Notes

Helen Sebidi is one of the most important South African painters of her generation, and has had a long and sustained career producing a large body of work. Her art making is informed by her traditional Venda background and she uses traditional imagery in a complex manner, making her palette very much her own. Her work is a colourful and vibrant fusion of the physical and the spiritual world, which she skillfully morphs in her images. In the present lot, Sebidi’s religious and cultural affinities, as well as metaphysical forces and ancestral reverence, are made manifest, but perhaps the most strikingly beautiful aspect of the work is its intricately textured surface of power-exploded colour.

There is a resurgence in interest in Sebidi’s work. She recently had an important solo exhibtion at a a landmark Johannesburg gallery, and was invited to participate in the 32^nd Biennale de Sao Paulo in May this year. She has also been awarded The Order of the Baobab in Gold by the Presidency of the Republic of South Africa for her excellent contribution in the field of visual and traditional arts and crafts.

Literature

Juliette Leeb-du Toit.(ed). (2009) Mmakgabo Mmapula Mmankgato Helen Sebidi, Johannesburg: David Krut. Illustrated in colour on page 79.