Chapter I: The Weight of Holding

Working across medium and large-scale formats, Dakamela builds compositions through layered application, controlled tonal relationships, and material density. Born to a Venda father and Ndebele mother, his practice draws from day-to-day observation, social surroundings, and the duality between outward persona and interior self.

His figures do not narrate events. They register psychological states. A recurring use of blue and surfaces built up through accumulation create portraits that resist spectacle while sustaining presence.

Chapter I marks the first public presentation of nine new paintings, none of which have been photographed for release before the exhibition opens.

Known for materially driven figuration created through palette knife application and layered surface reconstruction. Yokanna treats the canvas as an archive, building and reworking until the figure becomes a record of pressure.

Where Dakamela builds density and composure, Yokanna interrupts through fracture, positioning the figure as a site of accumulation, revision, and pressure. Chapter I presents five new works in dialogue, accompanied by short curatorial texts by Roslidah Okoth in conversation with the artist, read silently by visitors at each painting. One work features a statement in Yokanna's own voice.