The car had been painted by Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein and David Hockney before her. In 1991, Esther Mahlangu, a South African artist who learned to paint on the walls of her family’s home, covered a BMW 525i in the bright geometric patterns of the Ndebele people. She was the first woman and the first African to create a BMW Art Car.
The Ndebele and her style
The Ndebele of South Africa live mainly in Mpumalanga and Gauteng. Ndebele women are known for painting the walls of their homes with bold geometric designs, a tradition passed from mother to daughter. Mahlangu was born in 1935 near Middelburg in Mpumalanga. She learned to paint as a child from her mother and grandmother, starting with house walls.
Ndebele painting uses strong black outlines filled with bright colours such as red, blue, yellow and green. Patterns are often symmetrical and drawn freehand. Mahlangu paints with chicken-feather brushes, as she was taught.
Recognition and the BMW Art Car
In 1989, Mahlangu took part in the Magiciens de la Terre exhibition in Paris, where she painted a replica of an Ndebele house. The exhibition brought her international attention. BMW invited her to paint a car for its Art Car series in 1991. She painted it freehand. The car has been exhibited around the world. Mahlangu has painted designs for aircraft tails, fashion collaborations and product designs, and her work is held in museum collections.
Teaching and honours
She has taught young people to paint in the Ndebele style, establishing a school at her home to keep the tradition alive. She has received honorary doctorates and South African national orders. In her eighties she continued painting and exhibiting, including a major retrospective. Ndebele painting is a women’s art. Mahlangu’s success brought global attention to the women who have practised it for generations.
Beadwork and her brushes
Ndebele women are also known for colourful beadwork, worn as necklaces, aprons and blankets. The same geometric language appears in beads and in wall painting, and Mahlangu’s own dress often includes traditional beaded rings. Mahlangu still prefers homemade brushes and paints freehand, without sketching, even on large surfaces. Her steady hand has amazed audiences at live painting demonstrations.
Esther Mahlangu learned to paint on mud walls. She took the same patterns to a German car, and the car ended up in museums.
