Two of ceramicist Zizipho Poswa’s sculptures are to feature in Terra Recognita: A Ceramic Story, an upcoming summer group show at Mariane Ibrahim, in Chicago, USA. This will be the gallery’s first exhibition dedicated solely to ceramics, and alongside Poswa, will present new works by fellow female ceramic artists Nadira Husain, Jennifer Rochlin, Leena Similu, and Shafei Xia. The body of work boasts large, hand-coiled sculptures, reflective pieces, and painted works.

Terra Recognita refers to the idea of exploring uncharted territories and discovering new lands. The exhibition will display a broad stroke of diverse cultures and ceramic practices through the works of the exhibiting artists. As vessels, often incorporating symbols, each of the works’ complexities of the present, past, and future highlight the artists and their individual cultural identities, stories and histories. Making is the artist’s mode for storytelling, exploring various themes through the lenses of race, gender, and personal identity.

Poswa’s two glazed earthenware forms expand on the conceptual interests of her first series of major hand-coiled ceramic sculptures, titled Umthwalo. The works honour the traditional practice of ‘umthwalo’ – the isiXhosa word for ‘load’ – whereby women transport heavy items on foot by carrying them on their heads for long distances, often in support of the livelihood of their communities. These works elevate the daily labours that rural women perform across the African continent.

The pieces have been named after two significant women from the artist’s home village of Holela in the Eastern Cape, a province of South Africa. The titles have been formed by blending the word Mama (abbreviated to ‘Mam’, the traditional honorific when referring to an older Xhosa woman) and the respective name of each celebrated woman. The prefix ‘No’ before each name is an abbreviation of the Xhosa word ‘uNina’, which denotes femininity and motherhood. These women – mothers, nurturers, breadwinners and healers – bear the symbolic weight of African womanhood with an unyielding generosity of self.

The show’s curatorial statement explains: “Ceramics—despite being one of the world’s oldest art forms—have been discovered and rediscovered time and time again and with the work of these five artists, the medium is once again being challenged in both form and function.” It continues: “In an inherently human artistic practice, these women form carriers of their stories and lives, expressing to the world an undying loyalty to themselves and their desires.”

The exhibition opens on 15 July and will run until 26 August 2023.

LOCATION: Mariane Ibrahim | 437 N Paulina St, Chicago, IL 60622, United States

Read more about Poswa’s first solo exhibition in the States titled iiNtsika zeSizawe.

UPDATE: Following the show, Mam’uNoPhumzile was acquired by The Art Institute of Chicago.