Lonely Man, Man of Man

John Ndevasia Muafangejo was a twentieth-century Namibian printmaker. His parents belonged to the Kwanyama tribe, whose territory is now part of southern Angola and northern Namibia. A prolific printmaker, Muafangejo depicted religious, social, and political themes. The National Art Gallery of Namibia established the John Muafangejo Art Centre in Windhoek in 1994, indicating his significance and continued influence on the arts in Namibia. He was among the first Black artists to be recognized in neighboring South Africa under apartheid. Shortly after Muafangejo’s death, the anti-apartheid movement featured his prints on posters, and while his work has been described as anti-colonial, he stated in a 1985 interview: “I am not a political person. I am a religious person.” Representative of Muafangejo’s woodcuts and linoleum cuts, “Lonely Man, Man of Man” is split into three panels, which contain scenes of people drinking, couples dancing, and a solitary artist holding an oversized pencil. The print may be a self-portrait; many of his works incorporate facets of his own narrative, including a few references to loneliness and times of sorrow. The inclusion of xylographic text, in this example in the upper right corner, is common in Muafangejo’s prints.