Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence
July 17–October 23, 2022
Docent Gallery
Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence showcases a new form of bead art, the ndwango (“cloth”), developed by a community of women living and working together in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The six artists featured in the exhibition call their paintings in beads ndwangos, which translates as “cloth” or “rag.” The black fabric on which the Ubuhle women work is reminiscent of the Xhosa headscarves and skirts which many of them grew up wearing. By stretching this textile like a canvas, the artists transform the flat cloth into a contemporary art form with colored Czech glass beads.
Using skills handed down through generations, and working in their own unique style “directly from the soul,” according to artist Ntombephi Ntobela, the women create abstract as well as figurative subjects for their ndwangos.
Ubuhle means “beauty” in the Xhosa and Zulu languages and it describes the shimmering quality of light on glass that for the Xhosa people has a particular spiritual significance. From a distance, each panel seems to be formed from a continuous surface, but as each tiny individual bead catches the light, the viewer becomes aware of the meticulous skill that went into each work and the scale of ambition: a single panel can take more than 10 months to complete.
Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence was developed by the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum, Washington, DC in cooperation with Curators Bev Gibson, Ubuhle Beads, and James Green, and is organized for tour by International Arts & Artists, Washington, DC.
Supporting Sponsors Rubens Family Foundation
Associate Sponsors
Paul Marc and Pamela Miller Ness Marion Swett Robinson
Contributing Sponsors
Caitlin and Benn Kireker
Fellow Sponsors Mary Ellen Burris Mary Goldman Crow The Rochester (NY) Chapter, The Links
Friend Sponsors Dr. Mattie Alleyne Carolyn Ettinger Barbara, Daniel, Lisa, and Susan Hoffman Mark and Mona Friedman Kolko Theta Alpha Zeta Chapter of Zeta Phi Beta
Additional Sponsors Joyce Boucher Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. Marilynn Patterson Grant and David Grant Dr. Karal Ann Marling
Memorial Art Gallery Endowed Fund Support Thomas and Marion Hawks Memorial Fund Robert L. and Mary L. Sproull Fund Nancy R. Turner Fund for Special Exhibitions
