Tafadzwa Masudi

20 September 2022

Tafadzwa Masudi (b. 1988) started painting at an early age in Harare while assisting a family friend who introduced him to the visual arts. In 2010 he moved to South Africa and started working in a clothing factory until 2020 when he waslaid off. He took the opportunity to start painting full-time and soon his work featured in group exhibitions at galleries in Cape Town. “Circumstances forced me to leave my country of birth and become a migrant. I relate to people who had to travel elsewhere to create a better life and this is what I currently paint. Images that show their sense of self, their dreams and their aspirations.”
His brightly coloured paintings depict scenes filled with balloons, people and patterns. Observed through the lens of a migrant person existing in a foreign land, the works reflect on optimism and the pursuit of a better futu