Helga Gamboa
University of Wales, Aberystwyth
Identity and Culture: the pottery making culture of Kwanyama women
Ceramic pieces hold vital information for ethnographic studies. A ceramic piece speaks through its form, decoration and the techniques of its making, of the ideas, beliefs and practices of the people who form the culture that produces the vessel. I use cultural studies (my research) as a basis for my making and the results show that I am not only learning about culture, heritage and history but also preserving knowledge. In a ceramic piece information is retained and survives and the reading of it will depend on the individual’s perception and social heritage.
Migratory Practices
5th - 6th September 2006
Notes on the Speaker
I am a Ceramic artist and PhD student researching the pottery making culture of the Kwanyama women in the South of Angola. My making and my cultural research explore questions of personal and communal identity. I use many of the techniques I am researching and my ceramic art explores the consequences of the meeting of cultures in colonial and post-colonial contexts.
Current - African Art History PhD student Aberystwyth, University of Wales.
2001 MA / PGDIP Artefacts and Archives
University of West of England-Bristol
1999 BA (Honours) Ceramics
University of West of England-Bristol
Exhibitions
2006 ‘Sankofa’ Manchester Museum
2005 “Feile Clai” Aberystwyth Arts Centre Aberystwyth
2004 “The Discerning Eye ” The Mall Gallery London
2004 “Angolan Art“ Vendas Novas Gallery Lisbon
2003 “Angolan Contemporary Art” The Guild Gallery Bristol
