Zimbabwean multidisciplinary artist Sherman Baloyi is making a bold statement on the continental stage, bringing a fresh perspective to Decorex Africa, one of the continent’s leading platforms for interior design, product innovation and creative expression. Known for blurring the boundaries between fine art, design and sustainability, Baloyi is set to debut a new body of work that includes paintings, fashion accessories and upcycled furniture. This marks not only a significant moment in his artistic journey but also a celebration of Zimbabwean creativity within the wider African design movement.
Baloyi’s work draws on nearly two decades of experience rooted in graphic design, visual storytelling and a deep respect for material culture. Since founding his Harare-based design studio OnaDsgn in 2015, he has consistently explored how design can carry meaning, build identity and reflect place. What began as a branding and visual strategy studio has evolved into a hub for experimentation, where the lines between client work, fine art and social commentary often collapse.
In recent years, Baloyi’s creative focus has turned to the concept of circularity. His practice now actively engages with waste materials, reimagining them as mediums of beauty and protest. Plastic bottle caps, old webbing straps, discarded packaging and other everyday objects become the raw materials for art that forces us to confront how and what we throw away. It is a deeply layered practice, both literally and conceptually, and one that has caught the attention of curators, collectors and cultural institutions alike.
“I see my work as a window to potential, a way for people to reframe their understanding of value,” Baloyi explains. “My goal is to show that waste is not the end of something, it is the beginning of profound beauty in its glorious entirety.”
This philosophy is woven into every piece he is bringing to Decorex. Each object in the exhibition carries the imprint of a larger story: one of survival, adaptation and vision. Some pieces are functional, others purely expressive, but all are anchored in a shared language of pattern, texture and rhythm that feels unmistakably African.
Baloyi’s design education began at the Institute of Art and Design in Bulawayo, where he completed a national diploma in 2006. The programme, an annex of Bulawayo Polytechnic College, offered him a broad foundation in illustration, photography, and digital art, which he continues to use in his mixed media practice today. His time there also sparked a fascination with the visual languages embedded in everyday life: street signs, textiles, rural tools, ceremonial objects and informal architecture. These influences form the basis of his unique style, one that honours African ingenuity while refusing to be confined by tradition.
In 2023, Baloyi launched Onaso, a digital platform and content channel focused on creativity, climate and community. Through Onaso, he creates visual essays, short films and workshops aimed at highlighting how creative thinking can drive environmental awareness and social impact. It is part of a growing effort to build a network of young creatives who see sustainability not as a Western import but as something deeply rooted in African ways of living and making.
“Zimbabwe is compact population wise,” he says, “but our ideas and heritage are vast. As African artists, we have the opportunity to reframe sustainability as something embedded in our indigenous knowledge systems, not a borrowed concept.”
At Decorex Africa, visitors can expect a multidimensional showcase that brings these philosophies to life. Baloyi’s work plays with contrast and contradiction. He takes overlooked materials and turns them into objects that demand attention. His compositions are at once minimalist and bold, tactile and clean. They ask us to slow down, to consider what we discard, and to find meaning in the materials we usually ignore.
This moment is not just about one artist’s success. It is a celebration of a broader creative energy rising across Zimbabwe and the continent. Baloyi’s presence at Decorex stands as a reminder that African design is not defined by trends but by deep reservoirs of heritage, memory and innovation.
His past exhibitions include a solo presentation titled Hobho at Artillery Gallery in Harare in 2022, Walls of Perception at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe in 2023, and Illustrating Voices, which travelled from Nhaka Galleries in Harare to Bulawayo earlier this year. In every context, Baloyi brings the same commitment to pushing boundaries and sparking conversation.
As African design gains traction on the world stage, artists like Sherman Baloyi are helping to ensure that the movement is not just about aesthetic appeal but also about purpose, identity and responsibility. His work is not just seen, it is felt. And in it, we are invited to imagine new possibilities, not only for art, but for the future of the continent itself.
