Nyoka, Rich Mnisi’s first solo exhibition of collectible furniture

Rich Mnisi, perhaps best known as a fashion designer, is currently showing his first solo exhibition of collectible furniture, titled Nyoka, at Southern Guild in Cape Town.

The collection – comprising seating, a console, chandelier, rug and other objects – is a bold exploration of shape and fluidity, brought vividly to life in a rich array of materials including bronze, wool, resin and glass. Nyoka draws on Mnisi’s family history and African mythology, and plays with the duality of fear and beauty epitomised by the image of a snake, which gives the show its title in Xitsonga.

His visual vocabulary is defined by strong shapes, organic forms and snaking lines, from the anthropomorphic curves of his Nwa-Mulamula Chaise to the swirling pattens of his textile designs.

A sensuous dynamism runs through Mnisi’s designs for Nyoka. A curved console is punctuated by the winding form of a bronze snake, its storage cavity concealed by a richly patterned beaded curtain. A large, asymmetrical rug, woven in karakul wool and mohair, combines voluminous tufts with intricate flat-woven areas in clashing colours synonymous with Mnisi’s iconic clothing. Twisting sinuously down from the ceiling, the twin branches of a bronze chandelier hold resin bubbles of light, and the sheepskin pelts covering a pair of low-slung seats are articulated by a continuous line of black leather that traces the rise and fall of the seats’ forms.

Mnisi worked closely with Southern Guild to realise his vision, collaborating with several artisan groups, including Monkeybiz, Coral & Hive and Bronze Age Studio, in close alignment with the designer’s mission to promote craft and South African handwork in his practice.