Mlangeni was born in 1980 at Driefontein, near Wakkerstroom in Mpumalanga. He moved to Johannesburg in 2001. He studied at the Market Photo Workshop, and graduated in 2004. His work attracted critical notice on the occasion of his first solo show at Warren Siebrits in Johannesburg in 2007.
He exhibited a series of scenes of women cleaning the inner city entitled Invisible Women which he photographed over an eight-month period at night between 11pm and 3.30am. In these haunting images he offers us some insight into the reality of the lives of these seemingly invisible women in a format that richly recalls the long tradition of city nightscape photography.
Since its inception the Tollman Award for the Visual Arts has significantly advanced the achievement and body of work of each of its winners and because of its success in identifying potential young artists in an impactful way, is widely sort after. The past award winners are Wim Botha, Churchill Madikida, Mustafa Maluka, Zanele Muholi, Nicholas Hlobo and Paul Edmunds.
Wim Botha, Churchill Madikida, and Nicholas Hlobo all later received the Standard Bank Young Artist Award. The work that Madikida produced after his award was selected for Documenta XI. Zanele Muholi recently completed her Masters degree in documentary photography at Ryerson University in Toronto and has undertaken residencies at MIT in Boston and Thami Mnyele in Amsterdam. Hlobo has exhibited widely abroad in solo projects including at the ICA in Boston and at Tate Modern in London. Wim Botha and Mustafa Maluka have both enjoyed successful solo exhibitions in Europe. Paul Edmunds produced a catalogue on his work with the proceeds of the award and he is currently preparing for a solo exhibition in Cape Town.
These artists' achievements are attributable to the depth of the research and integrity of the selection process, which has emanated from South African art world professionals including Walter Oltmann, Rochelle Keene, David Brodie, Sophie Perryer, Joost Bosland, and Michael Stevenson. Annually a short list is prepared for the family.
Mlangeni selection was unanimous. His images resonated strongly with them, because of their historical close association with central Johannesburg where they established their first hotel in the 1950's. The award is an acknowledgement of the family's commitment to the continuation of the extra-ordinary creativity and enjoyment that they have derived from South Africa art over the past fifty years.
