Netshomi Zam describes a collaboration and friendship that began in the early 2000s, culminating in the formal registration of the partnership in 2013.

Wire artist Mike Carella and all-around creative Riaan de Villiers Hanekom were colleagues at an iconic and innovative enterprise that specialised in wire and bead art. Independently, and in their spare time, both started experimenting with different techniques in welding and beading; Mike with beaded human busts and Riaan with three-dimensional animal heads. Their first collaboration was on a life-size, fully and intricately beaded sculpture of Nelson Mandela, which led to the commission of another, larger sculpture of Mandela, after which many commissions and groundbreaking designs would follow and eventually birth a company that was born of trust, friendship, and a passion for designing and creating the very finest wire and bead art.

Netshomi Zam is proud of its legacy thus far, and the influence it has had on the greater wire and bead industry.

A commitment to social upliftment, conservation, and innovation remains at the core of Netshomi Zam and we welcome you to view our products, become a friend, and hopefully buy a piece of Africa to call your own

Using the African tradition of beads and wire as medium, combined with contemporary design and the skillful hands of African artists and you get highly sought-after collectibles created at Netshomi Zam.

At Netshomi Zam the focus has always been creating African wildlife in a realistic representation rather than stylising. The purpose is to represent real taxidermy mounts. 2021 will see us exploring homeware and we will keep you up to date with new designs.

All large armatures are hand bent and welded together. The very time-consuming work to cover this with beads is then done by a group of beaders. As all beading is done by hand and by different beaders there will never be identical products. We do however endeavor to make catalog items as close to the image as possible.

During the covid pandemic, our artists are working at home, coming to work only to get material or deliver finished goods. Since Covid-19 forced the closure of Streetwires we have acquired the right to produce their product ranges and assist their customers. All Streetwires products will still be made by the same Streetwires artists, keeping them employed and allowing us to keep offering our favourite products to the public.

Please feel free to download our catalogue and peruse our one-of-a-kind pieces in your own time.