Gcina Mhlophe (b. 1959 South Africa) is an author, playwright, actress, and activist. She is a well-known figure in South Africa today for her stories as well as her contributions to the revival of the African storytelling tradition, and for her work to combat illiteracy in rural communities. Mhlophe has captivated audiences for two over decades performing dynamic tales that meld South African culture, political history, oral tradition, and personal experience. She has performed in theaters from Soweto to London and much of her work has been translated into German, French, Italian, Swahili and Japanese. Mhlophe's engaging performance style ranges from solo narratives and songs to collaborations with musical legends such as the group Ladysmith Black Mambazo and guitarist, Bheki Khoza.

Before her career in television, film, and theater Mhlophe worked as a newsreader at the Press Trust and BBC Radio, then as a writer for Learn and Teach, a magazine for newly literate people. In 2000 she released an award-winning storytelling CD called Fudukazi's Magic for German audiences that was later produced in video with Anant Singh of VideoVision. In 2001, her CD and book, Nozincwadi Mother of Books, was produced as part of her nationwide reading road show to South African rural schools. Mhlophe's published stories include: Have You Seen Zandile; Love Child; Queen of the Tortoises; African Mother Christmas; and How Stories Began. Her honors include; first female Director of Market Theatre in Johannesburg; BBC Africa Service Award for Radio Drama; The Fringe First Award at Edinburgh Festival; Joseph Jefferson Award in Chicago; OBBIE in New York; and Honorary Doctorates from London Open University and University of Natal. Mhlophe has travelled extensively in Africa and other parts of the world giving storytelling workshops. Gcina Mhlophe lives and works in Durban, South Africa.

Gcina Mhlophe first came to the museum in the summer of 2003 to find time to write. Since then she has returned twice to share her stories and work with children in the Gardner Museum's School Partnership program. In 2004, Johnetta Tinker, Director of Community Programs at the Gardner Museum, visited Mhlophe and attended the International Board on Books Conference in South Africa. When Mhlophe returned to the Gardner in 2005, she worked with Tinker, fifth-graders from Mother Caroline Academy, and the Alternative School at Little House. Students learned how to create and tell their own stories using song and spoken word. This was an opportunity share cultural experiences through the exploration of works from the museum's collection and the students own experiences. The project also launched new relationships between the partnership students and school children in Durban, South Africa through a "pen-pal" program. In addition, Mhlophe attended meetings of the museum's Community Advisory Committee. Inspired by her Nozincwadi Mother of Books literacy project, in April 2008 the Committee decided to hold a children's storybook drive for South African children. With the help of Gardner Museum staff members, volunteers, guests and Hope Sudbury, a community service organization, over six hundred books were collected and shipped to South Africa.

Mhlophe's performances at the Gardner Museum include Poetry in Motion (Neighborhood Nights, 2003), An Afternoon with Gcina Mhlophe (Saturday Program, 2005), and Traveling in Time (Eye of the Beholder, 2008), where she spun tales rooted in the imagery of the rare silk Bengali embroidery at the heart of the exhibition Luxury for Export: Exchange Between India and Portugal around 1600.