24 FADA ANNUAL REPORT 2023 At the April graduation, FADA awarded an honorary doctorate to the revered South African sculptor Noria Mabasa in acknowledgement of her role in decolonising South African art, promoting diverse cultural practices, and advocating for women’s rights. HONORARY DOCTORATE NORIA MABASA displacement, while dealing with themes of race and gender in our current times. Her artworks depict the harsh realities of life in rural areas and the strive towards social transformation. Mabasa resides at the Tshino village in the Vuwani area of Venda, where she runs an art school in which she instructs her students in the art of clay-pot and sculpture making. Numerous articles have been written about her and are in circulation both locally and internationally including a book published and released by the Department of Arts and Culture in 2019. Her artworks have been exhibited extensively both locally and internationally and are to be found in important private, corporate and public collections. The University of Johannesburg recognises the role that Noria Mabasa has played in decolonizing the South African art world and exposing South Africans and the international world to the richness of diverse cultural practices which had remained hidden for many years. We applaud the way she has courageously encouraged many women to explore artistic labour outside of the conventional domains of ‘male art’ and has shared her indigenous knowledge with, not only those in her community, but the wider world. We believe that it is timeous that Noria Mabasa be recognised for her valuable contribution to cultural life, education and contemporary art over the last fifty years. Amongst the more exceptional aspects of her sustained career as an artist, is Mabasa’s committed activism for women’s’ rights and the rights of humans overall. She continues to educate the next generation of sculptors, particularly female sculptors, for whom she is a role model. Mabasa has long been an innovator and disruptor of the western canon of fine art. We were honoured to award an Honorary Doctorate in Art and Design to Noria Mabasa in recognition of a life devoted to visual arts practice, its teaching, and the uncovering of local forms of envisioning the purpose in such practice. Laudatio – Noria Muelwa Mabasa Noria Mabasa (b. 1938) is considered a South African living treasure. She has been perfecting her artistic practice as a sculptor since 1974. She is a custodian of indigenous knowledge and creative practice and is a respected teacher who willingly shares her knowledge and skills. Known for her pottery, ceramic sculpture and wooden sculptures, she is a recipient of the 2002 Silver category of the National Order of the Baobab, also receiving several other national and international accolades and awards for her outstanding artistry and creativity. Motivated by a series of dreams in which her ancestors spoke to her, she turned to wood as her chosen medium for sculpture. As the first recognised Venda woman to work in wood, she broke cultural and gender stereotypes as this material had always been the preserve of male sculptors. Mabasa’s carvings depict Venda mythology and spirituality, as well as portray traditional ceremonies and the daily lives of those in her community, particularly women and children She explores the hardships women suffered under apartheid such as violence, loss and
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