Edition September 2025

Dr Esther Mahlangu, one of South Africa's most celebrated cultural ambassadors and renowned visual artist, will turn 90 in November and the global artistic fraternity is preparing to honour her extraordinary talent and creative legacy. 

In celebration of Heritage Month, Public Sector Manager (PSM) magazine is shining a spotlight on this cultural icon and her internationally acclaimed artwork. Although Mahlangu is advanced in years, she is not showing any signs of creative fatigue or pullback. Instead, the selfless octogenarian has opened herself up to arts connoisseurs, scholars and up-and-coming visual artists all over the world to continue drawing from her well of wisdom and savour her phenomenal talent.

As she inches closer to earning the nonagenarian status, the world’s arts and culture spotlight has been firmly trained on her. This Heritage Month, Mahlangu will be honoured through a variety of innovative projects both locally and internationally.

These include the publishing of the Ester Mahlangu Handbook, edited by Ghanaian-American curator and art critic Larry Ossei-Mensah to be released under the No Rulers label, and the unveiling of an Esther Mahlangu online Retrospective by Google Arts and Culture.

Renowned South African curator Nontobeko Ntombela, who has for many years collaborated with the highly acclaimed international cultural icon, is currently working on an Esther Mahlangu monograph that will also feature essays from experts in the visual arts sector.

Mahlangu’s studio in her home province of Mpumalanga is about to begin work on a mural for Fonds Yavarhoussen in Madagascar as part of the latter’s efforts to forge partnerships with globally acclaimed institutions to promote that country’s rich artistic and cultural heritage.

Honouring the legend 

Melrose Art Gallery Director, Craig Mark says as part of celebrating Mahlangu, Nigerian art curator and National Geographic explorer at large Azu Nwagbogu will, in November, present a Mahlangu solo exhibition, curated by Nkhensani Mkhari, a South African multidisciplinary artist and curator, in Lagos, Nigeria. This will be followed by another Mahlangu solo, curated by Ossei-Mensah, across several US museums in conjunction with the American Federation of Arts from early 2026.

These are an indication of how the artistic world is enriched by Mahlangu’s incredible artistic contribution. In October 2024, London’s Serpentine contemporary art gallery unveiled her monumental mural titled Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu (I am because you are), her first public mural in the United Kingdom. 

The historic year-long exhibition was supposed to run until the end of September 2025, but due to popular demand, the gallery’s curators have asked to extend the hosting of the artwork to well into 2026.

In 2019, the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture published a book titled Esther Mahlangu: Indigenous Lines, to tell her extraordinary story. The book forms part of the department’s project to indentify and document “South Africa’s living human treasures”.
In an interview with PSM, Sport, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie described Mahlangu as “a living embodiment of artistic excellence and heritage preservation”.

“South Africa is fortunate to count among its citizens many who are extraordinarily gifted in the realm of social and cultural traditions”.  

Despite her outstanding work being steeped in the rich Ndebele cultural heritage, Mahlangu has been a unifying personality in this culturally diverse country.
 

Unifying force

Mahlangu, who has had no formal education, was taught Ndebele painting by both her mother and grandmother from a young age. 

Paying homage to her, curator Nontobeko Ntombela told PSM that the international icon's artistic genius is in her ability to take her culturally rich geometric patterns and apply them to new and non-traditional mediums such as canvases, cars and other everyday objects.

"This adaptation not only preserves her cultural heritage but also challenges the perception of African art, positioning it within the contemporary art world. Her work is celebrated for its intricate designs, mathematical precision and vibrant colours," Ntombela said.

“For many years, I have had the immense privilege of working closely with Dr Mahlangu. It is a relationship built on years of research and a deep admiration for her as both an artist and a person,” added Ntombela.

Former Cabinet Minister, Dr Naledi Pandor, a big fan of Mahlangu, described Her as “a pioneering creative artist who has brought innovation and imaginative expression to South African art”. 

“Through her incredible integration and synthesis of indigenous art and modern expression, she has created unforgettable images of Ndebele artforms and opened these to the world.  Her most significant contribution is the development of young artists in South Africa,” said Pandor.

International collaboration

Mahlangu’s career-defining moment came in 1989 at the Magiciens de la terre exhibition in Paris, France, which led to her becoming the first-ever woman and the first non-Western artist to create a BMW art car in 1991.

This collaboration, among others with major brands, elevated her status to a global icon. She has received numerous awards and three honorary doctorates for her contributions and commitment to cultural preservation.

For three decades, she effectively turned the world into her own back yard canvas. Armed with chickens’ feathers, she visited major capitals on invitation to create colourful, eye-catching and memorable artistic images for the world to marvel at.

Passionate about imparting her skills to the next generation of local artists, Mahlangu established an informal art school in the backyard of her home. An art studio in honour of her work was later opened in the province.

Asked about what should be done to preserve culture and pass it on to the new generation, Mahlangu said she has always wished “to see a quality school being built in Mpumalanga with a focus on arts and sciences. This school would continue teaching Ndebele arts and culture to ensure that our culture lives on for future generations and to provide them with work and entrepreneurial opportunities”.v