Sam Nhlengethwa is widely recognised for his figure-based paintings and collage works that delve into themes such as social and art history, jazz music, and domestic life.

This significant body of work emerged after his explorations into abstract painting during the late 1980s and early 1990s. His venture into abstraction was greatly influenced by his participation in the Thupelo series of artist workshops organised by David Koloane and Bill Ainslie. These annual two-week workshops aimed, in the words of Koloane, "to inspire artists to research and experiment [with] medium and technique so that they are able to expand their creative vocabulary".

The Thupelo Workshop series, initiated in 1985 in Johannesburg, was a response to the socio-political challenges faced by black artists in South Africa during a state of emergency, and was supported by organisations such as the Johannesburg Art Foundation (JAF), The Federated Union of Black Arts (FUBA), and FUNDA community college in Soweto. The workshops sought to empower Black artists to develop their work along international lines, free from the pressures of a white-dominated art market that often dictated the narrative works expected from them. David Koloane emphasised the prevailing expectation for Black artists to produce representational works, particularly within a marketable township genre, and he and his contemporaries strongly rejected the notion.

Thupelo was inspired by Antony Caro and Robert Loder's concept of involving marginalised artists in alternative artistic approaches, originating from the Triangle Artists' Workshop in New York in 1982. "Thupelo," derived from the Sotho language, means "to teach by example." These workshops provided a platform for artists to explore, develop their artistic abilities, and experiment, fostering new forms of expression through an intense and collaborative process, in the hope that the artist-run workshop approach and intensive environment, free from inhibitions and distractions, would catalyse alternative artistic directions challenging conventional expectations.

This painting was produced at one of these workshops in response to the environment and the aims of the programme. This is the only time that Nhlengethwa consistently produced abstract work and these rare examples are consequently highly sought-after.

Sam Nhlengethwa is represented by Goodman Gallery.