Absa L’Atelier Art Award winner explores grief, healing and joy in a powerful new Johannesburg exhibition
South Africa’s contemporary art scene welcomes a major new exhibition as emerging visual artist Kutlwano Monyai presents her debut solo show, Dakalo – The Ultimate Gift, at Gallery MOMO in Rosebank, Johannesburg. The exhibition follows her recognition as the 2024 Absa L’Atelier Art Award winner and opens to the public from 18 July to 29 August 2026.
Presented by Gallery MOMO in partnership with Absa and SANAVA, the exhibition celebrates a significant milestone in Monyai’s career while highlighting the impact of one of Africa’s longest-running visual arts development programmes.
A Contemporary Art Exhibition About Grief, Healing and Joy
At the heart of Dakalo – The Ultimate Gift is an exploration of grief, resilience and hope. The word Dakalo, meaning “joy” or “happiness” in Tshivenda, becomes the exhibition’s guiding theme, inviting visitors to reflect on how healing can emerge through shared experiences and personal transformation.
Using materials including polyethylene, concrete, wood and crocheted textiles, Monyai creates sculptural works that examine memory, identity and community. Her installations reveal how everyday materials can carry emotional histories while encouraging conversations about healing and connection.
Rather than presenting joy as the absence of hardship, the exhibition suggests that it is found through resilience, gratitude and the ability to rebuild after loss.
Transforming Everyday Materials into Powerful Narratives
The exhibition unfolds as a journey from grief to renewal. Through fractured forms, woven structures and reconstructed domestic objects, Monyai reflects on inherited trauma and the ways communities reshape difficult histories.
Her work challenges viewers to embrace vulnerability while recognising grief as a space that can also foster empathy, growth and collective healing.
A Milestone for an Emerging South African Artist
Born in 1996 and based in Johannesburg, Kutlwano Monyai is an artist, scholar and independent curator whose practice focuses on memory, identity and materiality.
After completing a Postgraduate Diploma in Fine and Applied Arts at Tshwane University of Technology, she has exhibited at leading South African institutions including the Pretoria Art Museum, Bag Factory Artists’ Studios, Turbine Art Fair and Modern Arts Projects South Africa.
Her appointment as a 2024 Absa L’Atelier Art Ambassador marks another important chapter in her growing career as one of South Africa’s most exciting contemporary artists.
Exhibition Information
Exhibition: Dakalo – The Ultimate Gift
Artist: Kutlwano Monyai (2024 Absa L’Atelier Art Ambassador Award Winner)
Venue: Gallery MOMO, Rosebank, Johannesburg
Dates: 18 July – 29 August 2026
Admission: Free
Celebrating 40 Years of Absa L’Atelier Art
For four decades, the Absa L’Atelier Art programme has supported emerging African artists through mentorship, residencies, exhibitions and professional development opportunities.
Dr Paul Bayliss, Senior Art and Museum Curator at Absa Group, says the programme continues to invest in artists who challenge conversations and contribute to South Africa’s evolving cultural landscape.
Monyai’s debut solo exhibition reflects the programme’s commitment to nurturing artists whose work resonates both locally and internationally.
