Collen Maswanganyi was born in 1977, in the rural village Noblehoek near Giyani, Limpopo Province, South Africa, where wood carving is a traditional practice. His father, Johannes Maswanganyi, was a well-known sculptor who was, in turn, taught by his father, Piet Maswanganyi. Collen’s mother, Annah, does beadwork, a passion shared by one of his two wives, Esther, who also makes clay pots and embroidery, and has displayed her work in a number of exhibitions. His younger sisters and brothers are also learning these creative and artistic skills. 

He completed a Fine Arts Diploma at the Technicon Witwatersrand from 1996 to 1999, after which he worked as a full-time artist. He works with wood, sometimes crafting life-size sculptures, and he paints most of them. "My art is about the old and the new. I look at life generally where I make sculptures dressed in African and modern ways. I look at technological development. My most popular works involve people or couples speaking on phones or people dressed modestly".

Images below with permission from Collen Maswanganyi The artist’s opinions are their own. Audio edits by Dan Dewes. “East West Village” by Tim Garland & Asaf Sirkis.