Beauty in the Light
"My Sea, My Sister, My Tears by Ntombephi “Induna” Ntobela. I recently had the opportunity to see the exhibit Ubuhle Women-Beadwork and the Art of Independence, at Dayton Art Institute in Dayton, Ohio. To say that their beadwork is dazzling, exquisite, or beautiful is an understatement. Words don't do it justice, nor do my pictures do these pieces their just do, but I had to share because I made a connection with them. Something spoke to me on an energetic level, definitely an emotional one, perhaps even a cellular level. The Ubuhle artists community was begun in 1999 as a way to empower women living and working together in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Working with traditional skills they produced a new beading style on a black cloth called ndwango. Many of the women are single mothers and their art goes to help support their families. The name Ubuhle mean...