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Masotsa
Mopane Worms

Item date(s): 2007

Lenny Motsoko
Ester Makgato
Sina Matikitela
Selina Phukela
Paulina Makobela


Medium: Textile
Pages: unpaged
Size: 325mm
Technique: Embroidery

Theme(s): Insects; Worms; Food

Place publication: Mogalakwena, RSA
Publisher: Mogalakwena Craft Art Development Foundation [MCADF]
Cat. 232-C8 ZA
Exhibition 2017; 2019

Additional notes:
Fabric book with embroidered illustrations and text.

"There are many mopane worms at Mesina Farm. When they finished mopane leaves they go to another one. The people who stay near that farm, they going to catch the mopane worms. Funekas Family they also go to catch with others. Now everybody she sitting with their worms to cleaning. Funekas child she clean, but she afraid. Funeka cooking mopane worms for her parents. She bring everything near her to pour in the worms."

During 2000 Mogalakwena Craft Art commenced with a research project on the Documentation of Northern Sotho (Bapedi, Bahananwa, Batlokwa and Babirwa) culture in the Blouberg area of Limpopo Province, South Africa. As a result of the low levels of functional literacy, orality is translated into images that are hand drawn on cloth and then hand embroidered. A selection these hand embroidered panels is hand-bound into books.

This book on Masotsa forms part of the above research project. Researchers from the University of Pretoria, the South African Museum (Cape Town), University of Bath (UK), Humboldt Institute (Berlin, Germany) are involved in this project.

Textiles, embroidery cotton, beads.

Matsotsa is also filed in the Health Care slipcase.

Exhibition notes:
Item 0232 - C8 ZA on Booknesses: Artists' books from the Jack Ginsberg Collection

UJ Art Gallery, University of Johannesburg

25 March to 5 May 2017

Samplings: South African Artists' Books

Basement Gallery, WAM

26 March to 6 July 2019

Ref: GB/12903













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