About The Artist
Mokgabudi Amos Letsoalo was born in 1969 in Molepo vilage, Lompopo Province.
He claims that he was inspired by his mother's decorave, traditional
African paintings done with earth pigments on the walls of their house.
He use to help with these paintings.
"My work is mostly inspired by indigenous people (in Africa) and their lifestyle. I find the household of the indigenous people in Africa very interesting, the objects/still lifes that one finds in every household. You either find objects like clay pots, some old bottles (which in many case are inherited from our ancestors to store traditional medicines and herbs).
I have my own perspective of what still life looks like to me as an African.
I am appropriating indigenous vocabulary, in imagery, use of colour and language in my painting. I am at the same time not doing realistic images, but I am trying to create the realistic feeling. You will always find images of bottles, pots, cups, etc. I call this process 'painting and looking at the still life from an African perspective'."
Workshops attended
Thupelo International Artists' Workshop - 1995 (Cape Town)
Thapong International Artists' Workshop - 1996 (Gaborone)
The Gas Works art studios. (London - UK)
Major exhibitions
Hong Kong 1997 - Group show
Germany (Munich) 1997 - Group show
New Signatures 1996 - Pretoria and Johannesburg
Future Prospects 1996 - Newtown Gallery
Trans Figurative 1998 - AVA Gallery, Cape Town
Botswana National Gallery - Group show
The Royal Festival Hall (London, UK) 1998 - Group show
AVA Gallery 2000 - Group Show
The Bill Ainslie Gallery (Johannesburg) 2000 - Two-man show
Washington DC 2001 - Group show
Major collections
The Nelson Mandela Foundation.
The Polokwane Art museum (Limpopo Province)
South African National Gallery, Cape Town
South African High Commission, London, UK
Botswana National Art Gallery, Gaborone
South African Embassy, Berlin, Germany
and many more in private collection around the world.
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