Elisia Nghidishange

About the artist

Elisia Nghidishange

Elisia Nghidishange (b. 1981) is a Namibian printmaker, sculptor, and mixed media artist from Eenhana in northern Namibia. She graduated from the College of the Arts in Windhoek in 2017. Nghidishange’s work is inspired by the materials that have shaped her life from childhood, including motifs drawn from the human figure, cow horns, and ostrich eggshell beads. She explores themes of tradition, gender, and the pursuit of wealth within contemporary, cosmopolitan society.

Of her artistic process, Nghidishange explains, “I have always used and been inspired by the materials that have been part of my life since childhood.” Her work examines the tension between tradition and modernity, particularly in relation to gender roles and the changing nature of wealth.

Nghidishange’s first solo exhibition, ‘The Cost of Wealth’, was held at the Goethe-Institut Namibia in Windhoek in 2017. She later completed her first artist residency in 2019 in Rapperswil, Switzerland, where she presented her second solo exhibition, ‘The Change Of… Eendume Movakwahepo Shendjeni’. In July 2020, she showcased her third solo exhibition, ‘Insight of Intrusive Women’, at the National Art Gallery of Namibia. Her subsequent exhibitions include ‘Ehafo’ at the Namibian Arts Association (2022) and ‘House of Connection’ at the National Art Gallery of Namibia and StArt Art Gallery (2024).

In 2021, Nghidishange was awarded 2nd Prize for Sculpture at the 2020 Bank Windhoek Triennial. In 2022, her work was part of the 15th Triennial of Small Sculpture Fellbach: The Vibration of Things, and in 2024 she hosted her latest solo exhibition ‘House of Connection‘ at the National Art Gallery of Namibia. Nghidishange has also participated in various group exhibitions, such as the ‘Baker’s Bay Artists’ Retreat’ (2022 and 2023), and ‘We Will Be Free’ (2023). She also participated in the group show, ‘Slow Burn’, hosted by SMAC Gallery that took place in Stellenbosch (2025).

Collections: National Art Gallery of Namibia, Arts Association Heritage Trust (Namibia), Iwalewahaus Collection (Germany), Private Collections: Namibia, Germany, Switzerland, South Africa and the USA.