“Londoloza means to keep, preserve, guard and protect. Drawing on my relationship with my father, which has inspired this body of work, ‘Londoloza Njalo’ was the title of a solo exhibition for my MTech Visual Arts Degree at the University of Johannesburg. It explores how embodiment, self-representation and cultural disobedience are used as strategies to challenge and interrogate Nguni cultural views of the female body, as understood in the context of the custom of kuhlonipha. By disobeying cultural norms through photography, I take ownership of how my body is viewed.”

“The title of the work is inspired by a siSwati wedding song, sung by the bride. The bride acknowledges her father’s role in her life and how she has had to represent him throughout her life. Most importantly, she declares how her father is the protector and the guardian of her words, thoughts and actions.” “My father has not only been my protector and my keeper, but he has also taught me to keep, protect and guard my siSwati traditions and culture emphasising how these define me as a liSwati woman. He has also taught me to question and interrogate the siSwati cultural practices, which this body of work aims to do. I am also telling my story in order for it to be preserved and kept in the viewers who engage with my work.” This group show only includes a small number of photography-based works. However, Neli’s broader body of work also incorporates sculpture – including the installation of sculptural fragments of the lower body, highlighting the invasive tradition of virginity testing. As a precursor to the artist’s exploration of cultural disobedience, these sculptures signify conformity to traditions which women may not have chosen to follow but find themselves bound to.