Preview: Nicholas Hlobo in Season 9 of Art21 "Art in the Twenty-First Century" (2018)

[NICHOLAS HLOBO]
Even though I come from a culture
where men are very important,

I grew up in a household
where there was no male figure.

I was brought up by my maternal grandmother.

She was a tough cookie,
and I'm grateful to have had her.

"All forces, good or bad,
or somewhere in between,"

"will be anxiously awaiting
for the daring fool"

"that hopes to venture onto the new land."

"Don't be scared. Just enjoy the cruise."

I think in English,

which was the reason
I found myself trying to

go into using the Xhosa language--

to remind myself of where I come from.

I decided that the title of the exhibition
should be "Zawelela ngale,"

which is two words that refer to
going to the other side.