This month we proudly present
Mfuno Mthiyane
Please click here for Mfundo Mthiyane’s artist page
All artworks displayed in this edition are available for purchase.
Please contact us at foundation@saffca.com if you would like to make a purchase.
Mfundo Mthiyane is a South African born artist from Durban who is currently based in Johannesburg. His medium of work is painting, figurative and portraiture, taking a critical view on social and spiritual matters. He graduated with a Diploma in Multimedia Studies, through the Centre For Fine Art, Animation and Design College, in Durban. He has varied experience and knowledge in design, having worked for few advertising agencies in Johannesburg.
In his emerging art career, he has exhibited in spaces like the African Art Centre in 2012 and 2014. In 2019 he exhibited at the Station House in Flordia, USA for a show titled ‘Emerge’. Mfundo has also exhibited his work at the Everard Read Gallery in Johannesburg in the 2020 ‘Portrait Show’.
Mfundo is currently working on a series titled: “In search of the miraculous”. The title is inspired by a book of P. D. Ouspensky. The artist associates miracles with God hence the doves which frequently appear in this body of work. The doves also denote peace, love and harmony.
I believe that doing my passion (painting) is how I thank God for this precious gift called life and also it’s a medium that helps me discover a way of life to be a better person. I use people that I know as models sometimes I am a model. Symbols and totems from around the globe are included in these pieces. It is influenced by surrealism, classical paintings and old masters like Rembrandt and Caravaggio. I take inspiration from books, allegories, mythology, philosophy and everything that resonates with me I try to interpret that through my work.
– says Mfundo
“An Ode To The Classics”
Unpacking Mfundo Mthiyane’s Contemporary Approach to Classical Painting
If we consider the historical narrative of Art and painting in particular, one is immediately overwhelmed by the pantheon of Old Masters that form the canon of what we recognise today as “traditional painting”. The position of the contemporary African painter in the wake of this foreshadowing is intriguing as it is complex, moreso when that African artist is one who boldly subscribes to the techniques seen in the works of Western titans like Rembrandt, Caravaggio, Da Vinci and Dali.
Mfundo Mthiyane’s work displays an authentic love for painting as a discipline leaving one with undeniable sense of hope as he represents a visual relationship of African and European painting in blissful harmony.
‘Sleep State’
2020
R14 500
This piece is inspired by the following lines from Robin Sharma’s book The 5 a.m. Club: “You live as if you were destined to live forever, no thought of your frailty ever enters your head, of how much time has already gone by you take no heed. You squander time as if you drew from a full and abundant supply, though all the while that day which you bestow on some person or thing is perhaps your last.” The melting watch with a golden frame is inspired by Salvador Dali. The clouds or mist on the figure’s face denotes sleep and unawareness and the dove represents hope
Mfundo shares in his artist statement
We are made painfully made aware of the concept of slumber and inactivity through this image. This moment is perfectly set in the background of a sombre, and very dramatic lighting seen in many of the classic paintings of the Baroque era. A technique known as ‘chiaroscuro’ that 16th century artists like Caravaggio used to depict an intimate setting, an ideal setting for a ‘sleeping state’. Depicted, is a moment we all fear, and the image painfully reminds us, this is one that can happen far too often – a moment lost to nothingness. The renowned melting clock, that was made famous by Dali, reminds us of the imminent passing of time – days, weeks, month or even years that could fade if we do not seize them.
The semi-seated, semi-reclining figure in the painting who is both pictorially and symbolically clouded holds the lethal smartphone in hand. Seemingly this speaks to the contemporary era and how devices like this can function as a doorway to aimless squandering precious time.
The abyss of lost time is not the only message relayed in this work. Hope enters in the bottom right corner through the motif of the dove, that sits humbly and unimposing, reminding us that hope is constantly there, perched and ready for us to eventually ‘wake up’.
“The Goddess of peace, love, and harmony”
2020
R18 600
This piece was inspired by Velasquez’s “The Immaculate Conception” painting. Created this painting during the time where so many bad things were happening in the world such as Covid-19 pandemic, police brutality and gender-based violence. I named the piece of a figure praying for the world to heal after the Goddesses: Oshun, Aphrodite and Venus.
– Mfundo shares
The image we are presented with here has the purest intentions. It is an honest work with the singular objective of expressing a wish for harmony during a time of global turbulence. Like Velasquez, Mfundo creates a simple beacon for viewers to look towards, who feels trustworthy and good-willed. Her spirituality appears in her immaculate clothing and hands of prayer. Her gentle nature is confirmed by the multitude of doves that she is surrounded by, giving viewers the necessary reassurance that she will care for those around her.
The simplicity of the message in this work reveals an earnest quality in the artist behind it, as there is no trickery or ‘trojan horse’ within the painting.
“Hair Beauty”
2020
R13 200
The composition of this artwork was inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa”. And was also inspired by these lines from Ours Magazine: “The natural hair movement can go beyond the trend and find a permanent place in our societies, as we continue to combat the silent rule of beauty standards. We must keep feeding and nurturing black women with positive messages regarding their hair and overall beauty. Women should avoid dividing themselves according to how each chooses to style their hair.” On this piece I was trying to make the doves resemble the symbol of yin and yang to denote balance and I added a malva flower to symbolise love, protection and health as a reminder to always love and protect our women.
-Mfundo
Beauty is complicated because of how differently we define it as individuals. The perceptions we attach to beauty ensure that it will always be a subjective matter. It is well known that global standardisation of beauty however, does not give much room such individuality.
In challenging the image of Mona Lisa, a portrait that held a position as a benchmark for the representation of beauty in portraiture, Mfundo finds a way to reclaim the beauty standard for a South African narrative, placing a natural haired black woman as an option for iconic in her own right.
Art has always been a reflection of a society throughout history. Showing imposing landmarks as a way to claim their small corner of the world, in order to say: “We are here”. It was no different for the artists of Renaissance like Da Vinci, who shows this by including the grandeur of the Italian landscape that sits int the background of the Mona Lisa. It was no different for Monet, who painted multiple versions of the impressive Notre Dame Cathedral, which was a Catholic monument in France, which still has a resounding global presence.
We see the same in Mfundo’s work as he carefully selects the Johannesburg Skyline to tell us a story about a contemporary African society. The Ponte Tower, which sits on the right of his ‘Mona Lisa’, is a building that holds an immense history in housing many immigrants who first move to Johannesburg, and still continues to do so today. It is a symbol of migration into the city. It is topped by a ‘Vodacom’ banner- which is the largest mobile network in South Africa. The Sentech tower on the left, marks one of the two telecommunications towers in Johannesburg. In this subtle manner, Mfundo reminds us of a diverse, interconnected society that is the heart of metropolitan South Africa. Telecommunications appear in the background as the main power of the era, in the same manner churches or castles would have appeared at the horizon line of paintings in the past. Technology has taken today the position of the representation of our society, this being true for so many of us in South-Africa, Africa and worldwide.
It is no doubt that Mfundo Mthiyane displays himself as a true scholar when it comes to painting, who not only pays close attention to the practice of painting and finding ways to reinterpret it within the contemporary African artspace.
What a pleasure it has been to travel through the histories of art and well into its future by interacting with the work, of such notable talent.