Vela Projects | Black and White Paradise

Vela Projects is pleased to introduce KHANYI MAWHAYI's inaugural solo exhibition, 'Black and White Paradise' as a proud showcase for the gallery.

The title, 'Black and White Paradise', reflects the artist's pursuit of simplicity - a desire to inhabit a 'black and white' world. In this collection, Mawhayi ventures into a new artistic realm by experimenting with black and white lines of woolen thread, complemented by striking bands of colour created with contours of oil stick - a notable departure for the artist.

Previously, Mawhayi employed soft pastels on black backgrounds to subdue the vibrant colours of Tsonga xibelani skirts, resulting in a series of painting that were simultaneously abstract and figurative. Capturing the movement of the dancer's hips in chords of turquoise, lilac, and mint, Mawhayi sought an intimate connection with the Tsonga heritage, from which she felt somewhat estranged growing up in an urban environment.

While the works in 'Black and White Paradise' maintain the same visual cues and thematic concerns, their use of colour is bold, their scale is daring, and their marks are assured. The hues resonate with the grace of pure colour, reminiscent of one of Mawhayi's inspiration, Howard Hodgkin, who used colour not merely to inform the eye but to enliven it.

Drawing inspiration from personal memories, Mawhayi uses circular and rippling gestures to create forms recalling burst of sun, blooming petals, rainbows, and ribbons in yellow and green. These colours are juxtaposed with alternating blocks of black and white, resulting in an almost musical effect: the monochrome bars conveying a bassline while the undulating oils offer a melody. Even the words she uses to describe her work – soft, safe, sentimental – mimic the tonality of a song.

In one painting titled 'Because I Know It's all for You', borrowed from a lyric by London Grammar, and others such as 'The Lovers' or 'We Are Held', the titles sound like love songs. At times, the works, with their sensual contrast between soft wool lines and creamy pigment waves, evoke an erotic quality. Here, the influence of another inspiration, Chris Ofili, and his body of work called 'The Seven Deadly Sins', is evident. Both artists explore erotics conveyed not by figures but by auras. For example, in 'Because I Know It's All for You', the convergence of thickly coated bars of orange and gold, thin chalky yellow lines, and the matte black background produces a vibrational effect, as if all visual elements in the composition are humming together.

The artist remarks, “territories of abstraction allow for more play, more opacity… more possibilities.” Although she acknowledges that, for her, the works are not abstract – the xibelani works depicted skirts, for instance, – she hopes that sometimes ambiguous forms allow space for the viewer to become “comfortable with complexity.” Each soft thread, playful remark, and vibrant colour is a note; together, they form a complex chord. Like any good love song, they find depth in simplicity.

This show runs from 9 December to 15 January 2024.