SOLOMON BOBELA (b. 1950)
Township Scene
1993
mixed media on paper
66 x 99 cm
BIOGRAPHY
Solomon Bobela was born in Alexandra Township.
He studied alongside the late John Muafangejo at the Rorke’s Drift Art and Craft Centre in Natal (now KwaZulu-Natal), where he was awarded his diploma.
Bobela works primarily in woodcut, linocut, oils and pastels.
He first exhibited at Artists Under the Sun in 1970.
In 1971, Bobela had a one-man show at the prestigious Carlton Hotel – an event almost unheard of at the time, due to the extreme segregation imposed by apartheid. In the same year, he participated in a group show at the Shell Galleries in Johannesburg and Cape Town.
In 1972, he had a one-man show at Gallery 101, Johannesburg. The following year, he was invited to exhibit in Oslo, Norway.
In 1975, he held his third solo exhibition at the Africa Centre in King’s Road, London.
In 1978, Bobela’s works were purchased by the University of California (UCLA) and, the following year, he had a solo exhibition in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States.
The 1980s were difficult years as the notorious States of Emergency were declared, restricting freedom of movement. The illegitimate Bophuthatswana ‘homeland’ regime persecuted the Bobela family, making life intolerable and harming Bobela’s career. In 1988, he was offered a position as a junior lecturer at UCLA, which he was unable to accept due to the political turmoil.