Anadu Art Gallery

Roots That Hold: The Black-and-White World of Mpilwenhle Gwala

October 11, 2026

By: Chieloka Anadu

In Mpilwenhle Gwala’s work, black and white are never just colours. They stand for the good moments and the difficult ones that make up a life, set side by side until the contrast itself becomes the story. Based in Pretoria, South Africa, Gwala works under the name Morbal Art, a practice that spans painting, drawing, and mixed media and draws on family, memory, identity, and resilience, with personal experience and community as its starting points.

The inspiration comes from home: family, upbringing, and the experiences of the people around the artist. Gwala is interested in how both difficult and happy moments shape who we become, and the work shares stories about strength, belonging, and staying connected to our roots. The message underneath is a steady one: “Difficult experiences do not define us, and our roots can give us strength. I hope my work makes people feel understood and inspires them to keep moving forward.”

Among influences, Gwala names Durban-based artist Sphephelo Mnguni, who uses art as a tool for telling personal, cultural, and identity stories. His creativity, Gwala says, encourages the expression of personal experience and community stories “in an honest way,” a principle that runs through Morbal Art’s own approach.

Materially, Gwala works with paint, drawing materials, and mixed media, and uses black-and-white patterns and contrasts as a symbolic language. Those contrasts represent the good and the difficult moments in life, and together with the materials they carry stories about family, struggle, growth, and resilience.

When a creative block arrives, Gwala gives it time: resting, thinking, reflecting on memories, observing the people nearby, and sketching or writing down new ideas as they surface. The reminder to self is a patient one: inspiration can return when you are “patient and open to seeing things differently.”

If the artwork could speak, Gwala wants it to ask viewers to look beyond the image and consider the story and emotions behind it, and to carry the same message that anchors the practice: difficult experiences do not define us, and our roots can give us strength.

Taking part in the Anadu Art Fair is, for Gwala, an important milestone. Personally, it is a chance to share stories about family, background, and community with a wider audience. Professionally, it opens the door to connecting with other artists and art lovers, growing the practice, and introducing Morbal Art to new audiences.

Follow Gwala’s journey on Instagram: mpilwenhle_gwala