Art acceleration in action: NCX is back this November to support and develop the careers of four emerging artists

A catalyst for accelerating art careers, the annual Nando’s Creative Exchange (NCX) carefully mentors a group of artists through a year-long process of professional development. This culminates in an exhibition showcasing a specially developed body of work. This year’s NCX exhibition, titled Tiriparwendo, opens at Hub Gallery on 12 November 2026 and runs until 22 January 2027, featuring the work of Bekezela Mabena, Luxolo Theophilus Witvoet, Mpumelelo Samantha Maseko and Viola Greyling.

Launched in 2011, the NCX programme recognises promising early and mid-career artists who demonstrate exceptional ability. Administered by Spier Arts Trust and sponsored by Nando’s, the initiative provides participants with exhibition opportunities, mentorship, sponsorship of materials and studio collaboration possibilities.

Each year, with guidance from an invited, established artist mentor, participants are encouraged to develop a cohesive body of work, preparing them for future exhibitions and professional gallery representation. The exhibition is only part of the programme’s benefits, with the emphasis on professional practice development.

‘Presenting a body of work for public exhibition is a vital step in an artist’s professional practice,’ says Mirna Wessels, CEO of Spier Arts Trust. ‘Through NCX, we see artists grow through exchange with peers and their mentors to not only refine their craft, but gain access to networks, validation and visibility that helps build sustainable careers.’

The four artists on show are all part of the Creative Block programme, which is the foundation programme run by Spier Arts Trust. Each artist has a distinctive language, and all were born in the mid-to-late 1990s, making them part of the generation raised after South Africa’s first democratic elections.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bekezela Mabena (1996-) is a Johannesburg-based visual artist and printmaker whose work blends bold colour and layered mark-making to communicate a personal search for belonging. Born in Tembisa and shaped by his movement between South Africa and Zimbabwe, Mabena brings migration, identity and the idea of ‘home’ into rich visual conversations that unfold across his mixed-media prints and paintings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Luxolo Theophilus Witvoet (1994-) is a self-taught multidisciplinary artist who bridges digital image-making and traditional painting. His work centres on identity, memory and the reimagining of history through a fresh, contemporary visual language. Born in Qonce (King William’s Town) and raised in Cape Town, Witvoet’s creative foundations were shaped by township life. He paints everyday people, commuters, musicians, family references and figures drawn from the South African visual archive. He incorporates acrylic, tobacco ash, flashband, gold leaf and cut-out canvas to translate his digital figures into tactile, layered forms.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mpumelelo Samantha Maseko (1997-) was born in Boschfontein, Mpumalanga, and is based in Johannesburg. Her work centres on Black femininity, identity, and the intimate process of becoming. Her multidisciplinary practice moves confidently across oil painting, collage, assemblage, mixed media, and printmaking. This approach echoes her belief that stories should be told as they are felt. Rooted in introspection and storytelling, she positions Black women as authors of their own myths – complex, powerful and continually evolving.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Born and based in Pretoria, Viola Greyling (1996-) is a ceramic artist and educator whose practice explores identity, memory and the emotional terrain of belonging, all shaped by experiences of migration and displacement. Her work draws on natural forms such as stalagmites, seeds and impressed textures to examine the liminal spaces that accompany movement, whether physical, emotional, or generational. Her sculptural forms often integrate packaging materials pressed into clay, functioning as markers of place and traces of the artist’s search for belonging. This layering of imprints, colours and organic structures mirrors the hybrid identity she continues to navigate.

Members of the public can meet the artists in person at the exhibition opening event, which takes place at 17h30 on 12 November 2026. HUB Gallery is located within Union House at 25 Commercial Street, Cape Town. It is open Monday to Friday from 09h00 to 16h00.

For more information, visit https://houseunionblock.co.za/pages/about-us or follow @spierartstrust on Instagram.