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Colbert Mashile was born in 1972 in Bushbuckridge in the Mpumalanga Province of South Africa. Mashile comes from a family of teachers and was expected to join the family trend upon completion of high school. However, while studying in Pretoria, he became curious about the art that he saw in gallery windows on the city streets, leading him to the Johannesburg Art Foundation and then to a degree in fine arts from the University of the Witwatersrand. Disliking the stress of Johannesburg, Mashile has found refuge for his family in the quiet of Mpumalanga, where he can feel and experience his Africanness, letting emotions come through and discovering the truth about himself.

Mashile has risen to prominence on both national and international levels, focusing on initiation rituals and the traditions around circumcision. His recent work builds upon these themes, but is infused with the natural and mystical elements that have become part of his environment since moving back to rural Mpumalanga.