Ndebele Architecture

Ndebele architecture is the homestead building and mural painting tradition of the Southern Ndebele people of South Africa, distinguished chiefly by the colorful, geometric wall paintings that Ndebele women apply to the exterior of their houses. Painters achieve careful symmetry, proportion and straight edges entirely by hand, without rulers or squares, working in muted earth tones made from ground ochre and natural clays in white, brown, pink and yellow, along with limestone whitewash. Back and side walls typically carry simpler geometric shapes formed with the fingers and outlined in black, while front walls display the most elaborate and brightly colored designs, including special attention paid to the gateway wall, called izimpunjwana, that encloses the courtyard in front of the house. Because the pigments are not durable, women resurface and repaint the walls on a seasonal basis, making the mural tradition an ongoing practice rather than a one-time application.