Tue Oct 01 09:06:33 UTC 2024: ## Lost and Found: Acclaimed South African Artist’s Work Recovered After 30 Years
**Cape Town, South Africa -** In a remarkable twist of fate, artworks by celebrated South African artist Mmakgabo Helen Sebidi, presumed stolen for three decades, have been rediscovered in Sweden.
The works, considered a crucial part of Sebidi’s artistic journey, disappeared in 1991 after she was invited to Nyköping Folk High School, a residential college, for a solo exhibition. Despite numerous efforts to locate them, including a police report, embassy correspondence, and media coverage, the artwork remained lost for over 30 years.
This May, the school’s caretaker, Jesper Osterberg, stumbled upon the artworks while cleaning a ceiling cupboard. They were found still in their original packaging.
“I was brought up with a house inside me,” said Sebidi, reflecting on the experience. “When I went to Sweden, the exhibition was ‘lost,’ but I refused to accept money from the school. I was going to leave the artworks in my will, to be returned if they were ever found.”
The recovered works, produced between 1989 and 1991, reflect Sebidi’s artistic evolution, grappling with themes of racial segregation, community, and spiritual connection. They are intensely personal, echoing the anxieties of apartheid-era South Africa and embracing traditional African spiritual practices.
The artwork, originally intended for the 1991 exhibition, was finally showcased this year under the title “Ntlo E Etsamayang” (The Walking House) at the University of Johannesburg Art Gallery and the Everard Read gallery in Cape Town.
This remarkable story serves as a reminder of the resilience and enduring power of art, even in the face of loss and uncertainty. For Sebidi, the recovery of her artwork represents not just the return of physical objects, but a reconnection with a pivotal period in her life and a vital part of South Africa’s artistic heritage.
First Piper 