From Grief to Joy: Kutlwano Monyai’s Powerful Debut Exhibition Challenges How We Heal
By Everyday Mzansi | Entertainment
JOHANNESBURG – What if joy wasn’t the absence of pain, but the courage to embrace it?
That is the profound question South African visual artist Kutlwano Monyai invites audiences to explore in her captivating debut solo exhibition, Dakalo – The Ultimate Gift, opening at Gallery MOMO in Rosebank.
Fresh from winning the prestigious 2024 Absa L’Atelier Art Award, Monyai’s first solo exhibition marks a defining moment in a career that has rapidly positioned her among South Africa’s most exciting contemporary artists. Presented in partnership with Absa and SANAVA, the exhibition is not only a personal milestone but also a celebration of the transformative power of investing in emerging African talent.
A Journey Through Grief, Healing and Hope
At first glance, Dakalo may appear to be an exhibition about loss. But spend time with the work, and another story begins to unfold—one of resilience, renewal and the extraordinary human ability to rebuild.
The title, “Dakalo,” a Tshivenda word meaning joy or happiness, serves as the emotional heartbeat of the exhibition. Rather than portraying joy as a final destination, Monyai presents it as an ongoing choice—a conscious return to gratitude, hope and connection, even in life’s darkest moments.
Using an unexpected combination of polyethylene, concrete, wood and crocheted materials, Monyai transforms everyday objects into deeply symbolic sculptures that explore memory, identity and the invisible threads that bind communities together.
Each piece invites visitors to pause, reflect and consider how personal experiences of grief often become shared stories of survival.
Turning Pain Into Powerful Conversations
The exhibition gradually moves audiences from mourning towards healing, revealing how fractured histories and painful memories can become foundations for renewal.
Through woven textures, reconstructed domestic materials and fragmented forms, Monyai examines the emotional inheritance carried by families and communities, encouraging viewers to see grief not simply as loss, but as a powerful catalyst for empathy, growth and transformation.
It is an exhibition that asks difficult questions while offering quiet moments of hope.
A Career Fast-Tracked Through Opportunity
For Dr Paul Bayliss, Senior Art and Museum Curator at Absa Group, Monyai’s success perfectly illustrates the purpose of the Absa L’Atelier Art Award—one of Africa’s longest-running visual arts development programmes.
“Absa L’Atelier Art continues to invest in artists by helping them fast-track their careers. Kutlwano’s debut solo exhibition demonstrates how meaningful opportunities can support bold, intellectually rigorous and socially relevant artists who contribute to South Africa’s contemporary art landscape,” said Dr Bayliss.
He believes Monyai’s work speaks to a universal truth—that healing rarely follows a straight path.
“Through ‘Dakalo’, Kutlwano demonstrates that joy is often discovered not in the absence of suffering, but through our capacity to rebuild, reconnect and imagine new possibilities together.”
A Rising Voice in South African Contemporary Art
Born in 1996, Kutlwano Monyai has steadily built an impressive artistic career through exhibitions at the Pretoria Art Museum, Bag Factory Artists’ Studios, Turbine Art Fair and numerous collaborative projects exploring identity, materiality and memory.
Now based in Johannesburg, the artist recently completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Fine and Applied Arts at the Tshwane University of Technology, further strengthening a practice that continues to attract national recognition.
Her appointment as one of the 2024 Absa L’Atelier Art Ambassadors signals yet another important milestone for an artist whose work continues to challenge, inspire and provoke meaningful conversation.
An Exhibition Worth Experiencing
More than an art exhibition, Dakalo – The Ultimate Gift is an emotional journey—one that encourages visitors to slow down, reflect and embrace the complexity of the human experience.
It is a reminder that even after heartbreak, beauty can emerge; that even after loss, joy can still be found.
For art lovers, collectors and anyone seeking an experience that resonates long after leaving the gallery, Dakalo promises to be one of Johannesburg’s must-see exhibitions this winter.
