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Sinalo Ntuli
Sinalo Ntuli
Thembinkosi Sinalo Ntuli was born in 1977 in Stanger, Groutville, where he studied at Aldenville Primary. In 1988, he went to Boschkloof Intermediate boarding school. There, he met Mlungisi Mfek, a senior at the school who was into art, rt and this inspired and fuelled Ntuli’s love for art. In 1,992 he attended Estcourt High School and studied art before leaving in grade 11 due to an accident. He attained an N2 Certificate in Fine Arts in 1997 at Durban Central College. He then moved to Johannesburg in 1999 to further his studies at Dobsonville College, where he attained a N3 Certificate in Fine Arts. Sinalo did Printmaking at Artist Proof Studio and attended Funda Centre College, where he graduated with a Diploma in Fine and Visual Arts in 2003. He initially worked with oil paint, depicting South African people; however, during his residency at The Bat Centre in 200,3 his theme changed after noticing that artists in KZN focused their works on their surrounding rural life. This inspired him into painting the Reed dance maidens, whose cultural values appealed to him and thus the use of real beads in his work. He won the Thami Mnyele Art Competition in 2013. He co-curated the Ubuhle Bobuntu
Group exhibition at the Africa Museum. Sinalo has participated in group exhibitions at the University of Johannesburg Gallery in 2015 and Spring Gallery in 2021. He draws his inspiration from Mbongeni Buthele,zi a visual artist who tutored him at Funda Centre College.
Artist Statement: Sinalo Ntuli-The Zulu Maiden Reed Dance
The concept of culture and diversity,ity as well as embracing the construct of how culture moulds individuals,uals especially the girl child within the African communities underpins the traditional beaded Zulu Maiden artworks that are Sinalo Ntuli’s artistic journey. For S,inalo, the idea of preserving and sharing the beauty of the Zulu culture with the wider world audience propels and motivates his creation of these masterpiecescaptureptures the essence of purity and preserving oneself. Umkhosi Womhlanga, or the Zulu Reed Dance as it is known to the Zulu nation, is a centuries-old tradition that takes place in September, at the eNyokeni Palace in Nongoma, Zululand. This important tradition celebrates a young girl’s purity while preparing her for womanhood. According to Zulu tradition, the original ancestor emerged from a reed bed, so the laying of reeds at the king’s feet symbolises respect for the Zulu culture. The reeds are also used to build traditional Zulu huts and to craft the mats and baskets for which the Zulu people are famous. The artist’s fondness for the Zulu culture is intrinsically captured in his handiworks as he individually selects the beads that make up the final masterpieces, celebrating the culture and the values that are handed down from one generatto anotherherr.
