Dathini Mzayiya
Untitled I, 2011.
About:
Born in 1979, Dathini Mzayiya attended formal art classes in 2001 at the Community Arts Projects (CAP) in Woodstock, Cape Town, and has since followed his vocation which has seen him working as an artist all over the globe. He has showcased his work at Iziko South African National Gallery, Association For Visual Arts and Bag Factory Arts Studios, among many others. He has worked extensively throughout Southern Africa and has also had artist residencies and exhibitions in Kenya, Liberia, Ethiopia, Germany, Austria and Holland. Dathini Mzayiya is a founding member of art organizations and collectives, including Visual Arts Network South Africa (VANSA Western Cape), Africa South Arts Initiative (ASAI) and Gugulective. He has served on artists’ committees, and has been a mentor for children’s art in schools and at Santam‘s Children Art Competition. He is passionate about social work and spends a significant portion of the year on imparting his skills at various community interventions.
The Radio, 2013.
Armed Response, 2012.
Farham Commission Marikana, 2013.
A Portrait Study of a Colonialist, 2013.
Statement:
“My work draws on my experiences and surroundings in South Africa, and also on the experiences of others in the everyday. Political circumstances affect all of us, directly or indirectly, and I view my work as a way of interacting with, and intervening in, social and political life, and as a way of making sense of what is happening around me. The art market has very particular tastes and doesn’t take too kindly to political art. Justice, peace, development – I question these in my work. For me, making art is a way for me to think about, and to come to term with, these issues. My painting and drawings are outcomes and translations of my thinking and grappling with these matters.”