Born in Thokoza, South Africa, Senzeni Marasela pursued her formal artistic training at the Wits School of Arts at the University of the Witwatersrand, where she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1998. Her practice emerged from this academic foundation, quickly evolving into a multidisciplinary approach that bridges traditional craft and contemporary conceptual art.

Marasela is recognized for her signature use of embroidery and textile work, which she frequently integrates into performance-based projects and mixed-media installations. Her work often centers on the figure of Theodorah, a persona she developed to investigate the complexities of migration, domesticity, and the historical erasure of women's experiences in South Africa.