Noria Mabasa South African , b. 1934
"I started because of a dream. It took a very long time, because I didn't understand it well. This was in 1965 and in 1974, I started the work"
Noria Mabasa is the celebrated Venda sculptor who typically works in wood or clay. Her works are inspired by dreams, visions and daily life and contemplate the feeling of social rejection, censure, and disapproval that comes with diverging from the established guidelines of accepted and expected behaviour.
She is the only female artist in South Africa to have become globally renowned for wood carvings.
Noria Mabasa is considered to be a South African living treasure who has been practicing and perfecting her artistic practice as a sculptor since 1974.
She is a custodian of indigenous knowledge and is a respected teacher who willingly shares her knowledge and skills.
Known for her pottery and wood sculptures, she is a recipient of the 2002 Silver category of the Order of the Baobab, also receiving several other national and international accolades and awards for her outstanding artistry and creativity.
Motivated by a series of dreams in which her ancestors spoke to her, she turned to wood as her chosen medium. Making her the first Venda woman to work in wood, she broke cultural and gender stereotypes with the material having been the preserve of male sculptors.
Mam Noria’s carvings depict Venda mythology and spirituality, as well as portraying traditional ceremonies and the daily lives of those in her community: women, children and babies. She explores the hardships women suffered under apartheid: violence, loss and displacement, while dealing with themes of race and gender. Her artworks depict the harsh realities of life in rural areas and work towards social transformation.
Mam Noria currently resides at the Tshino village in the Vuwani area of Venda, where she runs an art school in which she instructs her students in the art of clay-pot and sculpture making.
Numerous articles have been written about her and are in circulation both locally and internationally including a recent book published and released by the Department of Arts and Culture in 2019.
Her artworks have been exhibited extensively both locally and internationally and grace numerous important private, corporate and public collections.
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84-year-old sculptor Noria Mabasa receives honorary doctorate
Written by Anita Nkonki 25 Apr 2023Johannesburg - World-renowned sculptor Noria Mabasa, 84, is brimming with pride after being conferred with an Honorary Doctorate in Art and Design by the University...Read more -
Q&A | Craig Marks, founder of SculptX still set on carving out a niche
arts 24 3 Sep 2021What was the motivation for starting a sculpture fair? Craig Mark: We noticed the growing interest in sculpture with the opening of a large number...Read more -
Annual sculpture fair returns for its fourth edition at Melrose Gallery: Craig Mark
SculptX 2021 3 Sep 2021The annual sculpture fair returns for its fourth edition. The largest of its kind in South Africa, this year it will present over 200 works....Read more -
Oliewenhuis Art Museum permanent collection exhibition
Noria Mabasa 18 Mar 2020Selected artworks are displayed from Oliewenhuis Art Museum’s Permanent Collection to contemplate and converse on themes associated with gender, identity, mysticism and land discourses. Some...Read more
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Madiba: a life reflected
In collaboration with the Nelson Mandela Foundation 1 Jul - 3 Aug 2026This Mandela Month, The Nelson Mandela Foundation and the Melrose Arch Gallery invite you to visit Madiba: A Life Reflected – Art, Memory and the Human Legacy of Nelson Mandela, a moving exhibition that reflects on Nelson Mandela not only as a global icon, but as a deeply human presence whose life continues to inspire connection, gratitude, imagination and action.Read more
Presented at The Melrose Gallery, Melrose Arch, the exhibition forms part of the broader Mandela Month 2026 programme and opens to the public from 13 July. Curated by The Melrose Gallery, the exhibition brings together works from the Nelson Mandela Foundation's Archive Repository and Gifts Collection alongside selected works from the Gallery's own collection, reflecting a shared commitment to preserving and celebrating Mandela's enduring legacy. It offers visitors an opportunity to encounter Mandela's legacy through art, archival material, personal tributes, cultural objects, and creative responses from South Africa and around the world.
Rather than focusing only on Mandela as a monumental historical figure, Madiba: A Life Reflected explores the relationships, gestures of admiration, acts of gratitude and artistic responses that emerged around him throughout his life and beyond. At the heart of the exhibition are works and objects drawn from the Nelson Mandela Foundation’s archives and Gifts Collection. These include portraits, artworks, personal tributes, cultural objects, and expressions of respect presented to Mandela by individuals, communities, artists, schoolchildren, world leaders, and ordinary citizens.
Together, these works tell an intimate story. Not only who Mandela was, but what he meant to others.
The exhibition brings together three connected ideas: The Man Before the Icon, Gifts of Gratitude and Shared Values. Through lesser-known photographs, letters, personal moments, gifted objects and contemporary artworks, visitors are invited to encounter a more personal and layered reflection of Mandela’s life.
Contemporary works by Dr Esther Mahlangu, Dr Noria Mabasa, Dr Willie Bester, Clint Strydom and Moses Mahlangu extend the conversation, offering reflections on dignity, identity, memory, resilience, culture, community, and nationhood – values that continue to shape South Africa’s understanding of itself. -
Afropop | Celebrating the multiplicity of Pan-African Art
19 Feb - 29 Mar 2026Art of Contemporary Africa Opens in San Francisco with Inaugural Exhibition,Afropop, a Celebration of African ArtistsRead more
Rather than proposing a singular narrative, Afropop embraces multiplicity, much like the continent of Africa -
The Light We Carry
A group exhibition celebrating Pan African voices 5 Nov 2025 - 15 Jan 2026Pan-African art exhibition, Esther Mahlangu, Ayanda Mabula, fine-art, photography, contemporary art, sculpture, paintingsRead more -
The Alchemy of Colour
A Winter Group Exhibition at The Melrose Gallery 10 Jun - 18 Aug 2025In The Alchemy of Colour, The Melrose Gallery presents a selection of colour-driven works by bold voices in contemporary African art.The exhibition presents a large number of artists from The...Read more
