Zana Masombuka

Zana ‘Ndebele Superhero’ Masombuka is a 25-year-old Johannesburg-based creative director who draws inspiration from her upbringing in rural KwaNdebele, in a small town called Siyabuswa. She is an International Studies graduate from Stellenbosch University, where she learnt the art of critical thinking, as well as the importance of globalisation and how it continues to impact Africa.

Masombuka's art speaks to Africa’s active role in the next wave of this global phenomena and how African artists aim to pioneer the stories being written about their continent and its people, which is fundamental to the preservation of its heritage. In “The Re-Invention of Africa: Edward Said, V.Y Mudimbe and Beyond”, Mazrui states that "Africans need to interpret their history themselves and seek to re-invent Africa on their own terms".

Artist Statement

This project aims to explore the politics of “a seat at the table” and how capitalism and inequality inform the dynamics and rules of engagement within this institutional paradigm. It takes us on a journey, following a subject through their navigation of their conscious and subconscious life and the fears that exist in both realms. Secondly, the project aims to explore the complexities of indigenous cultures paralleled with the modern world; and how this impacts the post-colonial world of the African in the 4th wave of globalisation . Thirdly, the project aims to explore the price of representation and the importance of recognising Africa’s heterogenous nature in the call for unity through representation. Lastly the project acts as an invitation of a new idea of being, beyond the existence of current schools of thought and institutions.