MBOISA 2018: Mighty Ndebele

Merging completely contrasting elements of African and Western culture can yield beautiful results, says interior design guru Aidan Bennetts. He’s talking about the DNA of Mighty Ndebele, the handmade sculpture of South African artist Justine Mahony, that he nominated for Most Beautiful Object In South Africa.

It is a static sculpture of clay cast in gold. All about representing powerful women through art, Mahony imagined a powerful woman of the Ndebele tribe who carries qualities of science fiction in her character. The sculpture’s joints are rounded like large bubbles grouped together and its space-age smooth texture is offset with gritty imperfections left behind deliberately by Mahony. Bold, disc-like ears serve as a nod to Mickey Mouse, one of the most iconic characters of Western animation.