Works
Puleng Mongale (b. 1991, Soweto) is a visual artist whose primary mediums are photography and digital collage. Her practice serves as a means of unpacking and processing her lived experiences as a black South African woman. For Mongale, art-making is both an act of expression and a tool for survival - a way to hold her own story with honesty and agency rather than trying to deliver a fixed message. For Mongale, self-portraiture is both a starting point and a grounding force. Using her own body allows her to be present, vulnerable, and open to the stories she carries (both her own and those of other women). Her digital collages bring together various elements to build layered, textured images that reflect the complexity of her inner world. Mongale’s work has been featured in numerous group exhibitions, including In Conversation with Esther Mahlangu – Hlanganisa Uhlukanise Johannesburg, 2025), Happy Women’s Day, Guess (Johannesburg, 2025), Africa Foto Fair (Abidjan, 2023), Abadali Group Show (Johannesburg, 2022), The Fold (London, 2021), Beyond (Cologne, 2021), and Terrains of Possibility at Rele Gallery (Lagos, 2021). Mongale was a top 12 finalist for the Absa La'telier in 2025.
“Through photography and digital collage she stages tender, dreamlike worlds that reimagine Black life, memory and belonging.”