Lonwabo Yonela Ngcwayi
Lonwabo’s portraiture and ideas focus on the human condition, the black person’s life experience and memories from his childhood. The vast landscape of the rural village where he grew up; a rural area in the heart of the Eastern Cape that is saturated with color, love and the spirit of Ubuntu and reflects the essence of Africa - a place where everyone knows each other, made him sensitive to the beauty in the simplicity and the beauty in humans.
“I first picked up a camera in university in 2010 when I was studying towards a BA (Media, Communication & Culture degree). I was fascinated by the idea that I could make the things I saw in magazines and television as a child and I obsessed over it. When I lost my grandmother in 2011, who had been a very important part in my life, I felt lost. During the years dealing with that loss I found joy in creating things for myself and for others. Through the camera lens, I began to “re-member”, that is to come back together again”
“I spent a long time learning the technical aspects such as lighting, composition and what makes images aesthetically pleasing and, though those things are important, I realize now that the true currency of any creative work is the story behind the image, the meaning in the content and the perspective of the creator.”
Lonwabo currently works as a creative in the advertising industry; a photographer and designer for an Ad agency in Qqeberha.
As a photographer, he has been able to capture images of cultural expression, the human condition and beauty for a vast number of artist collaborations, national and some international brands as well as corporate clients.