Ukhamba (beer drinking vessel)

While the work of Nesta Nala is celebrated globally, less is known about the creations of her mother and ceramics teacher, Siphiwe Nala. Born in eMachobeni in 1914, she moved to Oyaya following her marriage into the Nala family in the 1930s. While ceramics expertise has traditionally been passed down from mother to daughter in Zulu communities, Siphiwe was the first member of her natal family to pursue pottery making. She learned from her co-wife, MaNgubane Nala, and their mutual mother-in-law, Ntombi Makhumalo Nala. In turn, Siphiwe taught her own daughter, Nesta, the necessary coiling and burnishing techniques for ceramic production. Mother and daughter formed a close working relationship between 1960 and the 1970s, so much so that it can be difficult to tell their works apart. They both were highly skilled at the burnishing techniques used to create a smooth reflective surface reminiscent of metal. Similarly, they both favored constrained, banded designs positioned roughly two-thirds of the way up the vessel. However, Nesta's surviving children indicate that key distinguishing features were the style of their hatching patterns and the type of vessel they chose to produce--Siphiwe always employed cross-hatching, and she specialized in izinkamba (sing. ukhamba) production. In contrast, Nesta almost exclusively relied on single line incisions, and she primarily created the flare-necked uphiso (pl. izimpiso) favored in foreign markets.

Izinkamba were used for brewing, storing, and serving sorghum beer at important life events. The dark, burnished containers and their contents were considered attractive spaces for ancestors who were called upon during births, marriages, and deaths. The refined aesthetic of this example was highly valued among community members who avidly sought Siphiwe Nala's creations throughout her sixty years as a master ceramicist. Cherished by its original owners, hairline cracks were braced with metal brackets to allow for continued use.