Mthobisi Maphumulo was born in the rural area of Imfume, South Africa.
Having had a passion for art in his youth he gave up a scholarship to study medicine overseas and concentrated on his art.
His work is a critique of modern society developed by industrialisation. He is interested in examining the deconstruction of family, community and environment through his works.
He also investigates identity transformation and its parallels. He has, for many years, been covering his subjects’ faces with masks and safety equipment. The traditional African masks are transformed into a symbol of modern-day industrial victimisation.
He is a master of printmaking and also works with oil pastels and paint.
Maphumulo is the founder of Amasosha Art Movement, a vibrant collective of South African artists which includes photographers, ceramists, musicians and performers. They work collaboratively in a spacious studio in central Durban which attracts much attention from curators, writers and art collectors.
