Francesco Mbele
Francesco Mbele is a multimedia artist based in Johannesburg, South Africa that continuously defies any description as an artist, creative director, DJ, designer – model, photographer, culture archivist and so on – and in all these varying roles, Mbele has created a visual world that evolves in colour, texture and expression; while this aesthetic is abundant and rich, it also is very difficult to pin down – herein lies, then, its brilliance; Mbele’s world is digital yet organic, vivid yet simplistic – hyper-realistic, hyper-nostalgic and able to be dismantled at any moment he decides. In a few short years, Francesco has become one of the leading cultural and creative instigators in South Africa, from his contribution to youth platform Ebumnandini, to his work with Rich Mnisi, Thebe Magugu, - to installations like that one he did for Shelflife Joburg earlier in 2022 (and so much more) and then – Franasonic, the home that probably comes closest to a framework for Francesco to weave all these threads together. Franasonic’s digital portal is an ode to Windows ‘95; well, a version of this, distilled through Francesco’s untamable lens, one that captures Y2K nostalgia perfectly – that sense that was felt as the onset of the millennium brought humanity towards a totally new frontier of global, cultural and aesthetic exchange with the rise of the internet.
Francesco has shown at Fede Arthouse Cape Town (2022) ‘Exhibition’ Group Exhibition And BKhz Johannesburg (2022) ‘Prelude ‘Group Exhibition.
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