Neo Matloga

Although Neo Matloga (1993, South Africa) paints daily life in South Africa’s black households, they often have the epic scale of 19th century history paintings. Like his monochrome palette or his titles in Sepedi, this decision isn’t without political connotations, or ambiguities. His interiors are ordinary, no more exotic than a Western suburban home, though—to a global audience—less familiar. On these stages, characters play out every-day dramas, experiencing all the struggles and consolations of desire and intimacy. The people in his canvases are moral agents, however much socio-economic and political conditions shape life outside (and, indeed, inside) the walls of their homes.