iLobola

Southern Guild presents iLobola, ceramic artist Zizipho Poswa‘s debut solo exhibition – including 12 iconic sculptures made from hand-coiled clay combined, for the first time, with cast bronze.

In the traditional practice of lobola, a groom’s family gifts a certain number of cows to his bride’s family after a process of negotiation between the two parties. Surviving modernity, the customary offering of cattle is now often replaced with a monetary payment – leading the practice to be viewed as more commercial in nature. But this obscures the primary purpose of lobola, says Poswa – that of ukwakhiwa kobuhlobo: the building of relations between the two families.

“During the negotiation process, the families really get to know each other. They talk about what bonds the couple together and even identify potential pitfalls to the marriage. When the couple faces problems down the line, they have this safety net to turn to. I think it’s a really beautiful structure that brings stability,” she says.

Lobola also raises questions that it disempowers and objectifies women, but Poswa unapologetically overrides this perception, choosing to celebrate both strength and sensuality in her work. The 12 sculptures in iLobola reach up to two metres high – her largest sculptural undertaking yet – each emblazoned with a pair of massive bronze horns that pierce the air. Their voluminous bases take the form of huge conical teardrops, undulating gourds or giant barrels that invite anthropomorphic associations.

Like some of Poswa’s earlier works, this series walks the boundary wall of figuration and abstraction, employing her intuitive vocabulary of shape, colour and texture. Her practice revolves around Black female identity in present-day South Africa, paying homage to the sacrifices of mothers, positing the importance of sisterhood, and celebrating intact cultural spaces – such as the traditional African hair salon – where Western influence has remained at bay.