Ndebele

Courtney-Clarke's classic photographic work is the result of five years spent visiting the Ndebele of the southern Transvaal and recording their art. The people were violently treated and forcibly resettled so that, in many cases, these pictures are the only surviving documents of their work. For generations, the women of the Ndebele of Southern Africa have produced an art of remarkable richness and vitality. In their ceremonial beadwork and in large murals that cover the exterior walls of their mud dwellings, the Ndebele women have created designs that are both ancient and modern in their simplicity, bright colours and bold, abstract patterns. For the first time, these works have been captured in photographs that show the full range of their amazing skill and invention.