{"id":1373,"date":"2025-08-15T17:36:01","date_gmt":"2025-08-15T17:36:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/?p=1373"},"modified":"2025-08-21T09:15:46","modified_gmt":"2025-08-21T09:15:46","slug":"sthenjwa-luthulis-spiritual-paintings-excise-intricate-patterns-in-bold-color","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/15\/sthenjwa-luthulis-spiritual-paintings-excise-intricate-patterns-in-bold-color\/","title":{"rendered":"Sthenjwa Luthuli\u2019s Spiritual Paintings Excise Intricate Patterns in Bold Color"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Sthenjwa<\/p>\n

Through swirling ribbons of color, headless figures dance among densely patterned backdrops, their hands grasping and open. Dressed in tight, form-fitting costumes, these anonymous protagonists are bound by their elaborately carved environments, a metaphor for the experience of South African communities that artist Sthenjwa Luthuli<\/a> (previously<\/a>) finds fruitful.<\/p>\n

Luthuli is known for his wood-block paintings brimming with vibrant color and texture. Through a meditative, meticulous process of gouging small pieces of MDF, he renders dense, intricate motifs that envelop his figures in a swath of markings. The artist is particularly interested in African spiritualism and the tenuous relationship between freedom and control for minority communities.<\/p>\n

\"An
\u201cReborn\u201d (2025), hand-carved super wood block mix media and paint, 138 x 184 centimeters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Next month at Norval Foundation<\/a> in Cape Town, Luthuli with present a collection of works made between 2010 and 2015. His first institutional solo exhibition, Umkhangu<\/em> uses African cosmology and symbolism as its guide, considering how a birthmark can be seen as an ancestral presence or a sign of one\u2019s destiny. <\/p>\n

Umkhangu<\/em> opens on September 11. Find more from the artist on Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"An
\u201cThe Genetics\u201d Ulibofuzo (2025), hand-carved super wood block mix media and paint, 138 x 184 centimeters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"An
\u201cUnfinished Business\u201d (2025), hand-carved super wood block mix media and paint, 136 x 92 centimeters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"An
\u201cStories We Wear\u201d (2025), hand-carved super wood block mix media and paint, 136 x 92 centimeters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"An
\u201cPalmistry\u201d (2025), hand-carved super wood block mix media and paint, 136 x 92 centimeters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"An
\u201cInner Spark\u201d (2025), hand-carved super wood block mix media and paint, 136 x 92 centimeters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"An
\u201cReincarnation\u201d Ukphinda Uzalwe (2025), hand-carved super wood block mix media, and paint, 138 x 184 centimeters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"An
\u201cNature\u2019s Unique Signatures\u201d (2025), hand-carved super wood block mix media and paint, 185 x 185 centimeters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"An
\u201cPast Life Origins\u201d (2025), hand-carved super wood block mix media and paint, 138 x 184 centimeters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"An
\u201cDiverse Nations, Different Calling\u201d (2025), hand-carved super wood block mix media and paint, 275 x 184 centimeters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"An
\u201cContinuous Legacy\u201d Ukuqhubeka Kwefa (2025), hand-carved super wood block mix media and paint, 138 x 184 centimeters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member<\/a> today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Sthenjwa Luthuli\u2019s Spiritual Paintings Excise Intricate Patterns in Bold Color<\/a> appeared first on Colossal<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Through swirling ribbons of color, headless figures dance among densely patterned backdrops, their hands grasping […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1375,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1373"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1373"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1373\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1388,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1373\/revisions\/1388"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1375"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1373"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1373"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1373"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}