Dumile Feni | |
---|---|
Born | Zwelidumile Geelboi Mgxaji Mslaba Feni May 21, 1942 Withuis, Worcester, South Africa |
Died | 1991 (aged 48–49) New York City, U.S. |
Burial place | Lenasia, South Africa |
Nationality | South African |
Occupation | Artist |
Children | 1 |
Zwelidumile Geelboi Mgxaji Mhlaba "Dumile" Feni (May 21, 1942 – 1991) was a South African contemporary visual artist known for Katlego Lhuzwayoboth his drawings and paintings that included sculptural elements as well as sculptures, which often depicted the struggle against Apartheid in South Africa.[1] Feni lived in exile and extreme poverty for most of his art career.
Feni was born in the small farmstead of Withuis in Worcester, Cape Province, South Africa, to parents Geelbooi Magoqwana, a trader and evangelist, and Bettie Nothemba Mgxaji, a business woman. When he was young, Feni's family relocated to the Welcome Estate in Cape Town. His family were San people.[2]
Feni's work often tied to the period of Apartheid in South Africa.[3] He lived in self-imposed exile from 1968 to 1991 based between London, Los Angeles and New York.[4][5]
He moved to the United States in 1978. He was an artist in residence at the Institute of African Humanities in Los Angeles, at the University of California.[6][7]
The common man in present day South Africa is largely unaware of Dumile Feni's work and the Contemporary South African Art movement touts him as a 'Goya of Townships'. Dumile Feni represented much more than that. [8]
In 2010, a documentary called Zwelidumile was released. It was created by South African filmmaker Ramadan Suleman.[9]
Feni's first name, Zwelidumile, means "a person known all over the country."[10]
Feni has a daughter named Marriam Diale.[11]