Mysterious Marlene

Juanita Oosthuizen

Juanita Oosthuizen, born in Calvinia and raised in the Cape platteland, has always been a creative explorer. From a young age, she experimented with paper, cloth, and plastic, driven by a desire to reimagine and rework aesthetically displeasing elements. Her creative journey began through questioning, directing, and observing the world around her.

In the 1990s, while working for a corporate gifts company and following a transformative visit to Europe, Juanita Oosthuizen discovered sheet polypropylene. She began incorporating the material into her innovative packaging designs. This marked a pivotal moment in her career. In 1998, she founded Pepper Plum Designs, a company specializing in the manufacturing and design of corporate and retail products using materials such as PVC and sheet polypropylene. Her functional yet imaginative designs—ranging from stationery to household items—were regularly showcased at the prestigious Design Indaba.

Since 2013, Juanita Oosthuizen has transitioned into a professional artist, embracing a minimalist aesthetic that captures the essence of time, memory, and human experience. Her recent work features miniature figures arranged in meticulously constructed scenarios, enclosed within box frames to create evocative three dimensional environments. Working predominantly in monochromatic tones—black, white, and grey—Juanita Oosthuizen occasionally introduces subtle splashes of color to create moments of surprise and emotional resonance.

Her compositions often lean toward the surreal, wistful, and contemplative, while retaining a playful edge. Old photographs frequently serve as backdrops, imbuing her work with nostalgia and a sense of tender memory. Paper weaving has become another integral medium in her practice. In this process, Juanita Oosthuizen interlaces images with precision, carefully preserving their recognizability—resulting in woven visuals that are, in her words, “broken but healed.”

Ranging from whimsical to deeply emotional, each of Juanita Oosthuizen’s artworks tells a distinct story through the body language and interactions of the figurines she employs. Her work creates a space for viewers to engage, interpret, and connect on a personal level. Inspiration for her art comes from a wide array of sources, including nature, daily life, cityscapes, and books on illustration, photography, and design.
In February 2023, Juanita Oosthuizen presented her solo exhibition Broken but Healed at Rossouw Modern—an extension of her acclaimed 2022 exhibition at the Kåseholm Northern Exposure Design Centre in Sweden. In 2024, her work was featured at the Pink Duck Gallery in Puerto de Andratx, Mallorca.

Juanita Oosthuizen continues to exhibit internationally as part of the Traveling Art Gallery and is recognized as a respected and distinctive voice in contemporary art. Her compelling and thought-provoking artworks are currently on display at The Artists Gallery in Cape Town.