‘Ndwango’ painting finds a permanent home at Bowers Museum

Last summer, Bowers Museum in Santa Ana debuted “Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence,” a show featuring the beaded artwork developed by a community of women living in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

Now, one of the exhibit’s exquisite beaded pieces has been acquired for the museum’s own permanent collection. “Dressed for the Dance,” by South African artist Zondlile Zondo, features a vibrant scene of a red and white cow standing in a mesmerizing background of colors, flowers and patterns, made entirely of tiny glass beads hand-sewn onto black fabric.

“Amidst a sea of dazzling beadwork, ‘Dressed for the Dance’ stood out as a highlight of Bowers’ 2023 ‘Ubuhle Women’ exhibition,” said chief curator Dr. Tianlong Jiao.

Cattle hold cultural significance in eastern South Africa, and cows and bulls are a popular subject for “ndwango” or beaded artwork. While it may be easy to mistake the cow for a bull in “Dressed for the Dance” due to the large horns, specific details included in the image by Zondo indicate the animal is female. Drawing inspiration from the matric dance, a graduation celebration that marks the end of school for South African girls, the colors swirling around the demure cow signify the joy and excitement of such an event and all the potential that can lay before the girls.

“Its central figure, an Ankole-Watusi cow with horns wrapped in gold and flowers, represents a young, rural South African woman poised to take on the world,” said Jiao.

“Dressed for the Dance,” by Zondlile Zondo, 2023.

(Courtesy of Bowers Museum)

“Ubuhle Women” founder and curator Beverly Gibson and artist Ntombephi “Induna” Ntobela teamed up in 1999 to establish “Ubuhle” (also the Xhosa and Zulu word for “beauty”) as a way for the rural women of South Africa to gain financial independence. The bead work on black fabric utilizes a skill many South African women learn as young girls, adorning headscarves and skirts with Czech glass beads, in childhood. Stretching the fabric like canvas over a frame turns the intricate bead work into contemporary art.

Originally commissioned for the Smithsonian, the collection found its way to Bowers in July 2023, thanks in part to sponsorship from PNC Bank, part of an initiative to help close the gender pay gap.

“We partnered with Bowers to help them bring the ‘Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence’ exhibit to the museums because the work that Ubuhle is doing in their community mirrors the work that we are doing in our community,” client and community relations director at PNC Bank, Denise Scott told TimesOC in July 2023.

“Dressed for the Dance” is now on view at the Bowers Museum in the Dorothy and Donald Kennedy Wing.

“The purchase of this stunning artwork by Zondlile Zondo of the women’s art group Ubuhle International represents a renewed commitment to Bowers’ mission of sharing the poignant and diverse stories of international contemporary artists with our visitors,” said Jiao.

Bowers Museum is located at 2002 N. Main St. in Santa Ana and is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.