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Award-winning ceramic designer Chuma Maweni is a man of few words – but his work speaks volumes.
Though he did not know it then, Maweni’s career started when he played with mud from the river banks of the Transkei. Now he is an award-winning designer and was honoured by the Designer Foundation last week Saturday.
He says his love of pottery began at an early age – during his childhood.
The Cape Town-based artist is grateful for the love and support he has received for his work so far.
“It gives me great satisfaction when I see different reactions of excitement from those who really like my artwork. The fulfilment that I feel always shows itself in the next piece that I create. It surprises me every time,” he said.
Maweni told City Press that being recognised for his talent is another inspiration that pushes him to be more creative as an artist because he is exposed to the world.
“Winning an award comes with a lot of expectations because now my talent or my abilities in ceramic design have been recognised. I am expected to come up with new and better ideas than the ones I had before or at least improve the product.”
For the past three years Maweni has been working on an artwork highlighting his worst life moment – the “Teardrop”.
“When I was at a low point in my life a tear dropped out of my eye. At the time I was busy sketching some new ideas and the tear shape stood out prominently.”
He loved geography in high school and was “fascinated by contour lines and how they differ from one another”.
Teardrop decorations are “made from charcoal black clay and are banded with thick and thin white stripes, which reminded me of the geographic contour lines”. “The contour lines inspired me to create pitch black vases or pots with ridges.”
Maweni says he gets the inspiration from the environment and the people with whom he works.
