Born in the small town of Moruleng in North West, Andrew Ntshabele moved to Johannesburg as a child, where he spent most of his formative years. He studied Fine Art at the University of Johannesburg, where he was awarded the Ekurhuleni Thami Mnyele Fine Arts merit award in his third year. He has since exhibited his work at various spaces around the city.
Much of Andrew’s work centres on the theme of urbanisation, and he draws inspiration from his own experiences of growing up in Johannesburg. His pieces, which are based on actual photographs he takes on his daily travels around the inner city and its outskirts, act as a social commentary on the socio-economic challenges faced by many of Johannesburg’s inhabitants. Andrew works with a combination of acrylic paint and collage to create work that deals with relevant issues like urban decay and the effects of rapid urbanisation on people’s living conditions in spaces.
