South African visual artist Samurai Farai has been honoured with the Co-Create & Co-Define Award at the Chery International Technology Night, a global celebration of innovation, collaboration, and boundary-pushing creativity.
The recognition marks a powerful moment not only for Farai as an artist but for South Africa’s contemporary art landscape, where the relationship between creativity, mobility, and culture continues to evolve in fascinating ways.
Samurai x Chery Collaboration
Earlier this year, in Chery South Africa’s first-ever Art Car Collaboration, Samurai Farai was given full creative freedom to hand-paint a Chery Tiggo Cross. The result is nothing short of remarkable.
Drenched in bold colour, layered with his signature symbolic language, and echoing the hues of our rainbow nation, the vehicle becomes a rolling celebration of Ubuntu, rooted in the belief that we are all connected through community, experience, and self-expression.
Why This Collab Matters
This collaboration wasn’t just about aesthetics, it was about storytelling. Chery’s intention with the project was to create a platform where design, innovation, and identity could meet in a tangible, impactful way. Samurai Farai was the perfect partner to bring that vision to life.
It’s been an absolute dream painting a car, driving said car every day of my life, seeing how people react to seeing artwork on their streets & the amazing conversations that have been sparked through it.” — Samurai Farai
There is something deeply affirming about seeing a global brand champion South African creativity in this way. Without being loud or performative, Chery is shining a spotlight on local artists who are shaping culture from the inside out. It’s thoughtful, authentic, and incredibly timely.
Theme of the Night: Co-Create, Co-Define
The awards took place during Chery Group’s 2025 International Technology Night in Wuhu, China, where global representatives across the group’s brands gathered under the theme “Co-Create, Co-Define.” The convention showcased the brand’s “Enter Super Next” vision and explored the future of smart mobility.
Upholding its mission of co-creating a better life with young people, Chery continues to develop future-forward crossover vehicles designed for modern, youth-driven lifestyles.
Co-Create, Co-Define Award
Beyond the unveiling of new technologies, the convention brought together international media and partners to celebrate Chery’s achievements in user-driven innovation.
During the awards ceremony, Samurai Farai received the Co-Create & Co-Define Award for his collaboration on the Chery Tiggo Cross, a moment that highlights the creative, cultural, and global impact of the project.
A momentous achievement for myself not just as a visual artist, but as someone who sees art’s responsibility to exist outside the confines of the gallery infrastructure, this is how we create a new blueprint for the youth to follow.” — Samurai Farai
The applause and energy in the room underscored the importance of the moment: a celebration of how artistic expression and future-driven mobility can merge to create something both meaningful and globally resonant.
A Defining Moment for South African Art
Samurai Farai’s milestone is more than a personal achievement, it marks a new chapter in South Africa’s ongoing conversation between art and the automotive world. Decades ago, Mama Esther Mahlangu’s iconic partnership with BMW set a global precedent for how African visual language could transform a vehicle into a cultural artefact.
Today, Samurai Farai continues that lineage in his own contemporary way, proving that cars aren’t just modes of transport, they’re canvases, storytellers, and cultural archives.
His collaboration with Chery signals a renewed global interest in South African creativity and serves as a reminder of how art, innovation, and mobility can intersect to inspire a new generation. It’s a defining moment, not just for Samurai, but for the future of South African art and its place on the world stage.
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