Dr Mpho Matsipa, Associate Professor and Co-Director of Spatial Justice at the Bartlett School of Architecture, is leading After Extraction – an experimental research initiative exploring intersections between creative practice and environmental science in Johannesburg.
After Extraction is a collaborative initiative by Dr Matsipa in partnership with Chimurenga, a pan-African publishing platform, examining the legacies of extraction in Southern Africa and proposing speculative futures grounded in indigenous knowledge, Black feminist thought and artistic response. The project builds on the African Mobilities archive, extending pan-African voices and perspectives on African futures and deep pasts.
The events are supported by the Bartlett School of Architecture Incubator Fund, the University of Johannesburg’s Institute for Advanced Studies (JIAS) and the Graham Foundation.
- Time: 12:00–20:30
- Location: The Library of Things We Forgot to Remember, 44 Stanley Rd, Johannesburg
- Broadcast: Chimurenga/Pan African Space Station
This day-long gathering, co-curated by Dr Mpho Matsipa, Miliswa Ndziba and Kutlwano Ramphele, will explore the work of Black femme and non-binary spatial practitioners in Africa and the Diaspora. Framed as an Umcimbi – a Black intergenerational gathering where all attendees are contributors – the event combines dialogue, performance and collective knowledge-making.
Participants include:
- Phumi Morare, filmmaker
- Bongisa Msutu, lighting designer and heritage specialist
- Thelma Ndebele (Dormant Youth), DJ, curator and architect
- Būjin, composer and writer
- Lindokuhle Nkosi, writer
- Senzeni Marasela, artist
- Molemo Moiloa, artist
- Tamsin Mzozoyana, farmer
- Siwe Ntombela, planner and sorghum food specialist
- Thuli Gamedze, fashion designer
- The Gathering collective members including Fundiswa Douw, Gloria Pavita, Dineo More, Olive Olusegun, Oratile Motlhabane, Nondumiso Langa, Chinenye Chukwuka and Sonali Bissasser
- Chimurenga production team: Duduestang Lamola and Ana Machava
- Time: 10:30–16:00
- Location: Senzeni Marasela Studio, Ellis House, Doornfontein, Johannesburg
An intimate performance lecture featuring artist Senzeni Marasela in dialogue with Dr Mpho Matsipa, Dr Victoria Collis-Buthelezi (Director of JIAS) and poet Uhuru Phalaphala. This session focuses on the figure of Theodorah in Marasela’s artistic practice, exploring themes of land, displacement and gendered experience.
Contributors include:
- Senzeni Marasela, artist
- The Gathering collective
Details for this online event will be confirmed closer to the date.
About After Extraction
After Extraction features the work of contemporary artists including Sammy Baloji (Democratic Republic of Congo) and Senzeni Marasela (South Africa), whose practices critically engage with environmental degradation and cultural and ecological repair.
The project creates interdisciplinary spaces for dialogue between creative practice and environmental science, aiming to imagine futures beyond extractive economies and colonial legacies.
More information
Image credit: Still from the film ‘Why the Cattle Wait’ (2024) by Phumi Morare, Zarafa Pictures