Sam Nhlengethwa

Born in the township community of Payneville near Springs, Nhlengethwa grew up in Ratanda in nearby Heidelberg before moving to Johannesburg in the 1980s. There he honed his practice at the renowned Johannesburg Art Foundation under its founder, Bill Ainslie. At its core, his work reflects a deep desire to honour Johannesburg and its people. His collages, prints and figurative paintings explore the role of jazz as a form of resistance alongside intimate domestic scenes, vibrant fashion and dynamic urban environments. He describes his practice as consistently engaging with the movement of people. Printmaking has remained central to his work, particularly through a collaboration with The Artists' Press that began with a suite of jazz-themed lithographs in 1994 and has continued for more than three decades.

Nhlengethwa was a founding member of the Bag Factory Artists' Studios in Newtown, Johannesburg, where he collaborated closely with artists including David Koloane and Pat Mautloa. In 1994, the year of South Africa's first democratic elections, he received the Standard Bank Young Artist Award. His work featured in the South African Pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 2013 and is held in public collections including Johannesburg Art Gallery, Durban Art Gallery, Iziko South African National Gallery, Standard Bank and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.