About The Artist

Shani was born in Harrismith, South Africa in 1975. At the age of 4 she moved to Durban where she was exposed to the Zulu nation & its culture. She became fascinated with the influence the Western world has had on this culture & because of this fascination, has often depicted the influence of the West on Africa in her oil paintings. In 1990 Shani moved to Johannesburg. She matriculated there in 1992. She studied art at school but is mainly self taught. Shani moved back to Durban after matric where she supported herself through her art while she went on to study photography at Technikon Natal. By 1995 – the year her daughter was born – Shani was well acquainted with the usual art forms such as drawing, painting, print making, sculpture & mosaics. She became intrigued with living, moving art & decided to take this further. So she apprenticed in the art of tattooing & became a tattoo artist. She went on to produce a collection of paintings inspired by different tattoo styles. In 2001 Shani moved back to Johannesburg where she currently resides. She continues to explore the world of art, expanding her knowledge of mediums. She is currently focusing on 2 main genres of work: contemporary & abstract. Mostly, her contemporary works feature around her abhorrence for injustice & unfairness. They have a dream-like quality to them which differs from surrealism in that the subject does not supersede reality; yet they emit a sense of detachment from what is real. Observers get a feeling that they have taken a step out of present time (where the world can be cruel & unjust), into a world where matter seems ethereal & not always tangible. A world that is easier to bear. Her abstract work is mostly sculptural & done in mixed media. It is in this area that she continues to explore & expand her diverse usage of media to portray abstract subjects, the likes of thought, emotion & philosophy.