Bulumko Mbete has been announced as the winner of the 12th Edition of the highly regarded Cassirer Welz award at Strauss & Co. Mbete is a talented and multifaceted artist, with a deep fascination with the subject of materiality; through the use of textile, beading, natural dyeing and weaving techniques as a means to communicate the richness of generational traditions and expressions of love. The unanimous decision to honour Bulumko Mbete with the prestigious award was made by Bag Factory director Maria Fidel Regueros, Zinhle Zwane and young curator and researcher Boitumelo Makousu, Strauss & Co, Executive Director Susie Goodman, and Senior Art Specialist Wilhelm van Rensburg.
Established in 2011 by the esteemed Nobel Laureate, Nadine Gordimer, as a tribute to her husband Reinhold Cassirer’s deep passion for the arts, the award has grown to become a highly regarded award in the field of visual art renowned for recognizing and honouring the exceptional talent of emerging local artists. Following the unfortunate loss of Stephan Welz the subsequent year, the Reinhold Cassirer Award was renamed the Cassirer Welz Award, to pay homage to these two men who made significant contributions to the South African art scene.
For over a decade, the Cassirer Welz Award, in collaboration with Strauss Education, has played a pivotal role in propelling the winners’ careers and establishing their presence in the South African art market. Despite facing unprecedented uncertainty, Strauss Education has remained steadfast in their dedication to supporting this prestigious award. As the award celebrates its eleventh year, Strauss & Co. acknowledges the significance of preserving the legacy of this esteemed program aimed at nurturing emerging artists.
The award has since expanded its reach, with the 2023 call for entries with proposals submitted by artists from different countries, including those that are part of the Triangle Network: Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Thanks to the enduring support of Strauss & Co and funding from Business and Arts South Africa (BASA), Bulumko Mbete, the recipient of the 2023 Cassirer Welz Award, will recieve a 3-month studio residency at the Bag Factory from the 11th of April to the 10th of June, 2023. In addition to the studio residency, Mbete will also receive financial benefits to aid production costs. The residency period will conclude with a solo exhibition at the Bag Factory, showcasing new works by the artist in July 2023.
