Biography

Bongiwe (Bongi) Dhlomo-Mautloa is a creative director, independent arts consultant, curator, cultural activist and artist who grounds her art in the socialist-realist and the political. Her linocuts and woodcuts explore a wide range of issues, ranging from political events such as the 1976 Soweto uprising to portrayals of the daily life of working South African women. In the 1980s and 1990s, the artist was pivotal in the development of several visual arts projects, including the Thupelo Art Workshops, Alexandra Arts Centre, FUBA and later THUPELO art gallery.
She was appointed project coordinator of Metro Mall, Johannesburg (2000), and worked on the construction of the new Constitutional Court as part of the Integrated Architectural Artworks Program, Johannesburg (2001–2004). She was a member of the Johannesburg City Council (1993–1998) and founded Zakhe Arts in Alexandra, Johannesburg (1998). She served as the Outreach and Development Programme Coordinator for the 1995 Africus, Johannesburg Biennale. She was the Director for the newly established Africus Institute for Contemporary Art (AICA) (1996–1998), a Johannesburg project tasked with the staging of arts and culture projects, including the 2nd Johannesburg Biennale (1997). She serves as a board member on several arts committees and visual art selection panels, including the South African National Art Gallery and the Johannesburg Art Gallery.

Dhlomo-Mautloa co-authored Soweto: A South African Legend with Annette Braun (Arnoldsche, 2001). She also contributed to the Second Johannesburg Biennale catalogue titled Trade Routes: History and Geography (Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Council and Prince Claus Fund, 1997) and Africus: Johannesburg Biennale (Greater Johannesburg Transitional Metropolitan Council, 1995).

She holds a Fine Arts diploma in printmaking from the ELC Art and Craft Centre Rorke’s Drift, South Africa (1979).

Born in 1956 in Vryheid, Natal (now KwaZulu-Natal), she currently lives and works in Johannesburg.

SAF participation:
March Meeting 2021

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