Born 1992 in Kimberley, South Africa Bonolo Kavula works and lives in Cape Town, South Africa. She obtained a BA(FA) from the Michaelis School of Fine Art (University of Cape Town) majoring in Printmaking in 2014.
Kavula works in print media, video work, comic art as well as painting and has recently used performance art as a new artistic expression by creating an art persona in a called Black Mona Lisa. Black Mona Lisa debuted her music video titled, Messy, which was featured in the Zeitz MOCAA exhibition ‘The Main Complaint’ in 2018. “Black Mona Lisa”. She is a rap artist but prefers to call herself a rap visual artist because she is a painter too. The work is a music video where Black Mona Lisa makes her debut as a solo artist and rap artist. Her voice is unapologetic and brave and very candour. “Black Mona Lisa” as a character is expressing her confidence in not only her craft as an artist but also having fun while doing so. She expresses her black female sexuality with freedom knowing she is being watched and heard.
Kavula has also recently lent her voice to stand up comedy as a means to critique the art world through humor. Her first stand up routine was held at blank projects in August 2018.
Her video piece titled, You must be exhausted was a finalist in the Sasol New Signatures Art Competition (2014). She has also been part of various group exhibitions including Burr: Print and Purpose (Print Portfolio) and iQhiya Group Exhibition at AVA Gallery (Cape Town: 2016); New Monuments at Commune 1 (Cape Town: 2016); 3 881 days, blank lab and Furniture at Blank Projects (Cape Town: 2015, 2016) and the Sasol New Signatures at the Pretoria Art Museum (Pretoria: 2011).
Kavula has been awarded the 2014 Katherine Harries Print Cabinet Award at University of Cape Town (Cape Town, South Africa) and her works are part of the Works of Art Committee collection also at the University of Cape Town.
Bonolo is an artist with Suburbia Contemporary Art based in Granada, Spain and Cape Town, South Africa.
Bonolo Kavula is presenting her work Black Monalisa in the group show The New Vernacular.