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Mmakgabo Mapula Helen Sebidi |
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South Africa
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Title: Sharing/Spirits together
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Endpaper
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| Mmakgabo Mapula Helen Sebidi was born in 1943 in Marapyane ( Skilpadfontein), in the Hammanskraal area of the Northern Transvaal. Her first teacher in art was her grandmother, a traditional artist who passed on to her the vernacular aesthetic which has such a strong presence in Sebidi's work. They lived a rural life, using mud to construct and decorate walls and floors and Helen stresses the importance of acquiring these traditional skills in order to be an artist versed in a vital culture. |
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| In 1959 Sebidi moved to Johannesburg, studied in the seventies under John Koenakeefe Mohl and in 1985 improved her clay technique at Katlehong Art Centre. She also worked at the Johannesburg Art Foundation under the guidance of Bill Ainslie and taught at the Alexandra Art Centre. In 1988 she was awarded a Fullbright scolarship to travel to the US and worked at the Millay for the Arts, New York. |
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| She travelled to the United States, Europe, Sweden, Holland, Chile and Portugal from 1990 to 1995. She has exhibited her work extensively in South Africa as well as internationally and her artworks are included in many collections locally and overseas. During 1989 she was awarded the Standard Bank Young Artist Award for Fine Art and the AA Vita Award. |
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