Justice Mathonzi

Justice Mathonsi is from Limpopo, South Africa where he was born  in the rural Ribungwani area. Despite these humble beginnings, he has rapidly developed a profile that has seen him feature in leading local, and international shows.

After completing his high school career at Akani High School in 2008, Mathonsi completed a one-year higher certificate in architecture and draughting at Intec college in 2011. Not long after, he attended visual art and printmaking classes at Artist Proof Studio in Johannesburg where he completed his course in 2016.

He has garnered interest and success since his first Exhibition with Artist Proof Studio. Since then, he has exhibited at Strauss & Co, the Cape Town Art Fair, the University of Johannesburg FADA gallery, Johannesburg Art Fair, MMArthouse in Johannesburg, as well as Munich and Hildesheim in Germany with the Traveling Art Gallery.

"My inspiration comes from the people of my family, friends, and community as a whole, through the values my grandmother and grandfather, shared with me," he says. "It gave me the confidence to follow my dreams.

"Through my works, I am portraying old people and young children who play a role in my life. I was not raised by my parents, but only by people from the community and family who was there for me. In my work, I am portraying both old and young images captured from my village to pay homage and respect to them. 

"I have learned a lot from them, which is why I am using them in my work to show how much they mean to me and how grateful they are. I use different techniques like linocut, etching, charcoal, and painting, and I use different colours, cross etching, and stippling in my mark-making."