SA Art Times November 2010

The South African Art Times | November 2010 | Free

ART TIMES

Heidi Erdmann 9 Years of The Erdmann Gallery Photo: Jenny Altschuler

‘A blooming success’ Cape Town, Monday, 11 October 2010

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Irma Stern, Gladioli, signed and dated 1939, oil on canvas, 99 by 93 cm

Wondering what your artworks are worth?

Visit www.straussart.co.za We are currently inviting submissions for our forthcoming Cape Town and Johannesburg auctions.

Entries close end December 2010 and mid March 2011 respectively.

Enquiries: Cape Town – 021 683 6560 ct@straussart.co.za / Johannesburg – 011 728 8246 jhb@straussart.co.za

J.H. Pierneef (1886-1957), Leadwood trees, Bushveld, 1944, oil on canvas, Sanlam Art Collection.

THE

LIE OF THE LAND

Representations of the South African Landscape Curated by Michael Godby 15 October 2010 to 28 January 2011

Sanlam Art Gallery 2 Strand Road, Bellville Hours : Monday to Friday 09:00 to 16:30 Telephone 021 947 3359 • Catalogue on sale • Entry Free

11.11.2010 – 24.11.2010

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MARK SHIELDS Starts Thursday 25th November 2010 at Everard Read, Cape Town, 3 Portswood Road, V&A Waterfront The exhibition concludes 9 December 2010 Right: At the Sun’s Return, acrylic & gesso on canvas, 152 x122 cm

ART TIMES | EDITOR

Letter to the Editor The South African

Art Times November 2010 www.arttimes.co.za

Dear Sir,

Published monthly by

Global Art Information PO Box 15881 Vlaeberg, 8018 Tel. 021 424 7733 Fax. 021 424 7732 Editor: Gabriel Clark-Brown editor@arttimes.co.za Advertising: Eugene Fisher sales@arttimes.co.za Subscriptions: Tracey Muscat subs@arttimes.co.za News: Lea Rhodes news@arttimes.co.za Shows: Liesel Botha show@arttimes.co.za Admin: Bastienne Klein admin@arttimes.co.za

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I would like to extent herewith a kind and courteous request to you to consider publishing this short letter in ART TIMES that will identify and explain an ongoing misunderstanding.

I am sure you will remember the much publicised copyright court case between Gerhard Marx and BMW / Ireland Davenport in 2008. In fact, it still dominates the most prominent Google and Wikkipedia information regarding the artist, despite being somewhat ‘old news’ by now. It almost seems as if it remains the artist’s main claim to fame as even during a recent radio interview Marx proudly brought up his tainted and triumphant litigation campaign against BMW. Please forgive me if I sound unsympathetic and dismissive but above situation has gradually become a bigger irritation and embarrassment to me as to anyone else involved.

The reason is that I am also a South African artist and my name is Gerhard Marx. I was born in 1956 and ironically enough my first published artwork appeared in Die Huisgenoot of 29 May 1974, two years before above-mentioned namesake was born ! I graduated ( BA Fine Arts - U.P.) in 1979 and in 1980 participated in my first public exhibition in Bloemfontein I am a versatile artist and illustrator with production ranging from abstract painting, figurative realism, botanical illustration, palaentological illustration and sculpture, childrens’ books and even caricature artwork.

Although undoubtedly a less aggressive self-promoter as the younger Gerhard Marx, I am nevertheless well known internationally and in particular as botanical artist. My work is represented in the Standard Bank Collection, Kirstenbosch collection, Albany Museum, numerous local, USA and British

private collections as well as in many publications.

As you can imagine, the younger and clearly more limelight-loving and ‘copyright conscious’ Gerhard Marx has become an increasing source of embarrassment and irritation to me. Ironically enough I may have a good copyright case against him for claiming the name which I had been given 20 years before he was born and to which I had contributed considerable recognition, goodwill and familiarity in the art world by the time he had his first exhibition !

Ever since the famed court case I’ve been getting many e-mails and phone calls, some from overseas clients, asking me for a more detailed explanation about the much publicised court settlement that they assumed I had been involved with ! One American client even wrote and asked how did I respond to the journalist who wrote after the court settlement : “This has got ‘money grabbing’ and ‘quick buck’ written all over it.” I am sure I may even have lost some friends and potential commissions due to the fact that people concluded that I turned out to be a much more aggressive, unforgiving and opportunistic character that they had assumed.

Being a somewhat self-contained person and rather unconcerned with self-promotion, I have regrettably done nothing towards it to date and am still unsure just how to ‘clear my name’ so to speak !

Therefore, this is my official attempt then to clear up the confusion and to point out the very unfortunate situation that there are two living artists in South Africa at this time who are both named Gerhard Marx.

Yours gratefully and sincerely, Gerhard Marx.

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NEWS | ART TIMES

Artists: What you should know about the Information Bill and Media Tribunal Peter Machen While South Africa’s constitution promises freedom of expression to all its citizen, that guarantee is currently under threat from the proposed Protection of Information bill and the Media Tribunal, two separate but thematically related initiatives from the ANC-led government.

Although the bill and the tribunal do not at first glance directly effect the work of artists, the constraints that would be imposed on the country’s media, should either of them come to pass, would no doubt impact on the cultural production of South Africa, as part of the the resultant shift towards a more autocratic and authoritarian state.

The Protection of Information bill would allow any national or local government department or agency to classify and make secret any information that they consider against ‘national security’ and would punish whistle blowers or journalists with up to 25 years in jail if they leak or publish classified information, even if it is in the public interest.

This violates Section 32 of the Constitution which protects citizens’ right of access to any information held by the State.

While the proposed act would allow the state to hide large-scale dirty secrets (the entire arms-deal story would certainly be considered classifiable since it clearly relates to national security), it would also allow local municipalities to fudge a great deal of information, leading to radically reduced accountability and transparency.

The media tribunal, meanwhile, is a far more amorphous affair. Prompted by an ANC discussion paper and based on a resolution adopted by the ANC at Polekwane in 2007, the call for a tribunal is ostensibly based on the idea that the existing press ombudsman is inefficient and inaccessible to most South Africans. But the suggested model would seem to make the press directly accountable to government, rather than to the country’s legal system.

In the media landscape of the 21st century, art occupies a unique position in that it is not bound by the same moral, legal and social constraints imposed on most other forms of expression.

Much of contemporary work sits on the edge of morality and legality, exploring issues such as ownership, privacy, sexuality, politics and economics.

If artistic work contains information that might be

considered to compromise ‘national security’, what then? And, as the global art canon expands to include archives, documentation and research-based work, there’s a good chance that artists might bump up against legal frameworks suggested by the Protection of Information bill.

If, for example, a newspaper crossed the proposed line and published something that the state had determined to be unpublishable, what about artistic work which includes that story?

This isn’t as big a stretch as it might seem. Think of late-period apartheid-era protest art and how much of it related to the specific actions of the state and to the supression of information.

Although the legal issues are murky, it’s a short walk from attempting to control the output of the country’s journalists to trying to regulate the output of its artists. We see this tendency frequently in government, including Lulu Xingwana’s impulsive (although later recanted) desire to ‘ban’ Zanele Muholi’s work, the endless debacle over Andries Botha’s elephants in Durban and the calls from various ministers to censor the internet.

Outcries against the Protection of Information bill, including several international petitions, have already weakened its proposed language, with the phrase ‘national interest’ being watered down to ‘national security’, although that is still a spectacularly ambivalent phrase that could be applied to a vast range of matters. Continued petitions and protests could do much to stop the bill in its tracks.

There is another parallel issue which has largely been ignored. The content of publications not registered with the press ombudsman (as well as films and video games) is already theoretically under state control since publications that skirt the edge of ‘decency’ require potentially dodgy content to be approved by the Film and Publication Board, thanks to legislation passed last year. These kind of measures are all part of a broader process aimed at regulating our reality.

The South African constitution was written not by government but by a rich mixture of citizenry, including a full-spread of role-players. It’s a similarly diverse range of people who have continued to fight for our freedom in post-apartheid South Africa, but who so often do so in the wilderness. It’s time for all South Africans to join the fight.

As Pieter-Dirk Uys frequently opines, democracy is precious and fragile. It needs vigilant protection from all of us. It’s not something we can leave up to the people we did or didn’t vote for.

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ART TIMES | NEWS | NATIONAL GALLERY CONFERENCE 1-2 OCTOBER

Numerous panel discussions were organized by The SA National Gallery Director Riason Naidoo over the weekend of 1-2 October at The National Gallery, Cape Town.

Essentially the panels were in set up gauge the response to the show entitled From Pierneef to Gugulective which had received mixed press reviews from the South African art media. Numerous panels discussions were organized over various topics including Curatorship – Audiences, Art Museums, Art Criticism and the media, Art Education etc. On the whole the level of discussion was of a high standard and the collection of some of South Africa’s great art minds were present which lent itself to a much needed platform for healthy art debate. In addition the occasion raised many current and relevant topics that would be good to follow on to further forums.

One of the most pressing issues was raised by Malcolm Payne, who asked what was being done by the arts community to address the proposed Media Tribunal and Information Bill. For more information regarding the Information Bill and Media Tribunal please go to page 7.

Top - Left to right) On the Art Critics panel: Gabriel Clark-Brown, Lloyd Pollak, Gerhard Schoeman, Bronwyn Law-Viljoen, Ashraf Jamal, Alex Dodd and Thembinkosi Goniwe | Steven Sack relays how he became a curator on the Curator panel | Jenny Stretton, Bronwyn Law-Viljoen, Jenny Stretton and Storm van Rensburg in the audience | Jenny Stetton, Gordon Metz, Ciraj Rasool on the Art Museums panel | Lloyd Pollak delivers his right as a Critic speech (left Gabriel Clark-Brown, right Gerhard Schoeman) The critic in the media panel.| Malcolm Payne stresses his concern regarding the Information Bill and Media Tribunal.

All photographs by Jenny Altschuler

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NEWS | ART TIMES

SA art galleries: Coping with the recession “The game has changed” Patrick Burnett The depressed worldwide economy has scoured a mark on South Africa art galleries – and there appears to be little relief in sight.

Two years ago a booming art industry was seeing itself as largely recession proof, but this idea has since been blown away as cash drained out of financial markets following the US sub-prime crisis two years ago.

“The big issue is to stay alive and keep your head above water. Right now it’s quiet, there are less feet coming through,” said the owner of one art gallery.

The picture is not uniform, however. Larger, wellcapitalised art enterprises targeting the top end of the market seem less concerned about talk of recession.

And record sales - at least for works by the “old masters” - still make headlines.

An Irma Stern still life sold recently for a staggering R13 368 000, setting a new record price for a South African painting at auction. The auction, conducted by Strauss & Co, featured several works which sold for over R1 million rand each.

But many gallery owners can only dream of sales like these and are in battle mode.

Worldart owner Charl Bezuidenhout said even though the recession had an impact, it was difficult to tell how much of an impact because “you cut down a bit, get lucky or work harder”.

But while in the past he had someone on the floor of his gallery, he was now on the floor. And he had decided not to renew his lease on a Johannesburg property.

João Ferriera, the owner of the João Ferriera Gallery, said the recession had affected turnover and decisions on exhibitions – which were down.

“We have had to cut back on everything: international penetration at art fares, reduced staff levels and promotion.”

Also facing down the crunch has been institutions like Johannesburg’s Artist Proof Studio (APS) – considered to be an incubator of young talent.

Director Kim Berman said APS had lost much of its core funding for 2010.

Thirty-five new learners had been accepted in February 2010, but there had been no bursaries to cover fees and students had struggled with transport costs.

“We had enough funding to last up to June 2010,” said Berman.

Mary-Jane Darroll, Executive Director at fine art auctioneers Strauss and Co, said she thought the recession had had an impact. “The broader market is that money is definitely tighter.”

But she also cautioned that this depended on which market area was being examined.

She said over the last five years new auction houses had entered the market and therefore overall spend had increased. “Overall it is difficult to

know if the market has actually dropped,” she said.

She said Strauss and Co were still seeing record prices – like that for the Irma Stern still life - with the area doing well being the top 1% of artists.

Decorative works in the R30,000 to R50,000 price range had been down, but works of quality were still seeing “a lot of interest”.

Michael Stevenson of the Michael Stevenson Gallery in Cape Town, expresses a similar sentiment. “We have not changed our programming or our commitment to artists in any way because of the ‘recession’. There are always serious collectors and curators and museums, in SA and internationally, interested in work that has validity and integrity, irrespective of the economy.”

There are some positives to tough economic times, it appears.

Bezuidenhout said the changed business environment opened up the possibility for experimentation.

“That’s great because it forces you to do things, takes you out of your comfort zone and hopefully the knowledge gained will help when times are better.”

At APS, Berman said the board of directors had met to design new strategies for sustainability and to reduce reliability on outside funders.

This had led to a fund raising art evening and dinner that had raised a potential R1.7 million.

In addition, a team of 10 risk managers and staff from Deloitte had been sent in as part of a corporate social investment initiative to do a systems audit and design process flows to improve efficiency and management systems.

At Straus and Co, Darroll said there had been no specific change other than a “clear direction in selling the very best works that we can find. We are trying to be discerning in what we put on offer.”

Views are mixed on how long the economic dip might last.

Ferriera said while there had been “a bit of movement in the decorative market”, there was little movement on the financial markets and so it was not clear where the money to rejuvenate the sector would come from.

In the meantime, the focus would be on finding new markets, developing collections and carrying stock that “has the distance”.

Ferriera said while people were saying it was “really slow” and a negativity had slipped into the market, people had previously survived recessions and depressions.

“At the same time the deals are not there and that’s almost scary because the collectors feel they are being over approached.”

Bezuidenhout’s time frame is another two years.

Survival would depend on “how deep your pockets are” and how creative businesses could be in terms of savings and re-negotiationg things like rentals.

“The game has changed,” he said.

9

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ART TIMES | NEWS

David Goldblatt TJ: Some things old, some things new and some much the same On at The Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg: until 06 November 2010

Refugees from Zimbabwe given shelter in the Central Methodist Church on Pritchard Street, in the city. 22 March 2009 About Photographer David Goldblatt brings together old and new photographs of Johannesburg in a solo exhibition at Goodman Gallery titled TJ: Some things old, some things new and some much the same. TJ – an obsolete acronym stemming from the South African pre-computerised system of motorcar registrations – stood for “Transvaal, Johannesburg”.

These letters, Goldblatt explains, “implied a certain loyalty”. While some of the photographs to be on show at the Goodman Gallery were taken in what Goldblatt refers to as the “time of TJ”, the title refers to the notion that particular aspects of the city have changed very little since that era and in some cases, worsened. The exhibition ultimately elucidates on these particular aspects of the sprawling city of Johannesburg, which both infuriate and astound the photographer.

“One of the most damaging things that apartheid did to us,” Goldblatt says, “was that it denied us the experience of each other’s lives. Apartheid has succeeded all too well. It might have failed in its fundamental purpose of ruling the country for the next thousand years in that fashion, but it succeeded in dividing us very deeply and it will take a long time to overcome that.” This deep-rooted division is further exacerbated by a continuing social and urban fragmentation. While TJ includes old black and white photographs from an earlier era, new works explore the intricacies of crime,

In another recent series, Goldblatt has focussed on ex-offenders, inviting them to revisit the scenes of the crimes that led to their incarceration and be photographed there. “I don’t believe that many of them are inherently evil,” says Goldblatt. “They came to their crime for a whole lot of other reasons.” In the 20 plus ex-offenders who he has met, Goldblatt – while admitting that this is only a small sample – has picked up on various factors and patterns that seem to contribute to their criminal behaviour such as domestic dysfunctionality (many, he found, grew up without fathers), and a dire education system. “We have failed a very large number of young black people in this country in regard to their education,” he says. “We had Bantu education under apartheid, and that was a crime against humanity, because it educated deliberately to under-educate. But the education of millions of young black people in post-apartheid has been almost as bad… their ability to mobilise upwards and out of the ranks of the poor is very limited. They’re at a tremendous disadvantage from the start.”

As always Goldblatt’s photographic style is unaffected and direct, reflecting art critic Ken Johnson’s observation that the “effect of Mr. Goldblatt’s understated, antisensational photographs and the spare words that accompany them is cumulative. They build into an infectiously mournful beauty.

Even in pictures that seem almost nondescript… Mr. Goldblatt’s compositions have a classical elegance and a reticence that speaks volumes.”

Continued on page 11

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housing and poverty in Joburg.

Much of Goldblatt’s frustration lies in the city’s remarkable oversights, greed and lack of planning. “When we came out of the apartheid regime the Johannesburg municipality was split up and the Gauteng province became responsible for planning in the north-west and they just didn’t plan,” explains Goldblatt. “The result was that to a large degree property developers were at liberty to develop pretty well as they liked.” At the same time exorbitant amounts are spent on stadia and events such as the Miss World competition, while certain areas, such as Diepsloot, remain in dire need of basic facilities such as school libraries and storm water drainage systems. The urban sprawl that the city has become, as well as its oftendesperate and baffling conditions, is revealed through aerial shots of the indiscriminately structured northern suburbs and townships, photographs of Zimbabwean refugees sleeping in a congested Methodist church and of the ruins of an amusement park in the foreground of Soccer City – a conflicting icon of growth and prodigality with a budget overrun of R800 million.

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NEWS | ART TIMES

David Goldblatt continued from page 10 David Goldblatt was born in 1930 in Randfontein, South Africa and since the early 1960s he has devoted all of his time to photography. In 1989 Goldblatt founded the Market Photography Workshop in Johannesburg, with, he explains “the object of teaching visual literacy and photographic skills to young people, with particular emphasis on those disadvantaged by apartheid”. In 1998 he was the first South African to be given a one-person exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York. Goldblatt received an Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts at the University of Cape Town in 2001. The same year a retrospective exhibition of his work, David Goldblatt Fifty-One Years, began a tour of galleries and museums in New York, Barcelona, Rotterdam, Lisbon, Oxford, Brussels, Munich and Johannesburg. He was one of the few South African artists to exhibit at Documenta 11 in Kassel, Germany in 2002. He recently held solo exhibitions at the Jewish Museum (which travels to the South African Jewish Museum in October this year) and the New Museum, both in New York and is currently exhibiting alongside photographers such as Walker Evans and Bruce Nauman in The Original Copy: Photography of Sculpture, 1839 to Today at MoMA. Goldblatt’s photographs are in the collections of the South African National Gallery, Cape Town; the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris; the Victoria and Albert Museum, London; and MoMA. He has published several books of his work. Goldblatt is the recipient of the 2006 Hasselblad award, the 2009 Henri Cartier-Bresson Award and was recently announced the 2010 Lucie Award Lifetime Achievement Honoree.

www.absolutart.co.za Frank Spears, "Crucifiction", Oil on Canvas

Ex - Offenders body of work Born in Soweto in 1979, Paul Lerato Tuge’s mother was pregnant with him when his father went to prison for 15 years for robbery. Brought up by his grandmother, who was hardly able to feed him, Paul began house-breaking at thirteen and at fourteen was dependent on drugs and drink. In 2001, after he and a friend broke into a house in Benoni in which he stole a pistol, a neighbour’s gardener reported them and they were arrested. With the stolen pistol Paul shot and wounded one policeman and possibly a second; they then escaped and hid in this stormwater gulley. When they heard dogs, they surrendered. Paul was sentenced to twenty years for two attempted murders. On appeal he was acquitted of one charge and his sentence was reduced to twelve years of which he served six. He underwent intensive rehabilitation in prison. He has founded a company called Dream Finders in which he hopes to employ fellow ex-offenders ‘because it’s hard to find a job if you have a criminal record’.

Media slashes arts coverage Pardon the generic tone of this email but I’m sending it to as many people as I can. In two weeks’ time the Sunday Times review section will be cutting back on its arts coverage, this in spite of audience/reader surveys that have shown it is a very popular section in the paper. Now, instead of a page, there will be ONE review and a listing. Sunday Times theatre/performance/visual arts/dance writers were informed of the decision by the editor Ray Hartley this week.

They would not dream of doing that to sports and this slow death of support for the arts and particu-

Gerard Bhengu, "Zulu Chief", Watercolour

Shop 43 Willowbridge Lifestyle Centre, Carl Cronje Drive, Tyger Valley, Bellville, Cape Town Gallery : 021 914 2846 Gerrit Jr : 072 699 5918 Email : info@absolutart.co.za

larly theatre is most unfortunate...What I’m trying to organise is for actors, playwrights, theatre makers, gallerists, dancers, artists and anyone involved in the arts to protest this move and this decision.

Please, when you notice the cutback, start writing in, in your masses..inundate them with mail and perhaps they will offer a public explanation for their lacklustre support of the performing and visual arts.

If you want to take part in this could you circulate it to people in the industry on your database....

Emails to tellus@sundaytimes.co.za

Adriaan Boshoff, "Chickens", Oil on Canvas

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Johann Louw, Painter Residency in Paris, 2010 In June this year, Johann Louw took up a one month workshop residency in Paris that entailed producing a series of stone based lithographs at the Le Atelier Pons studio. Le Pons is an old lithography workshop, run by Elizabeth Pons, daughter of Jean Pons, who as master printer worked with a number of artists such as Pablo Picasso and the French expressionist and abstractionist graphic masters.

Since his large and successful mid-career retrospective, organised by the Sanlam Art Collection in 2008-2009, that showcased his extensive oeuvre and toured the country, including the Pretoria Art Museum, Durban Art Gallery, the Oliewenhuis Art Museum in Bloemfontein and the SASOL/University of Stellenbosch Art Museum, Johann Louw has achieved much in the last two years, giving great momentum to his professional and artistic career.

53rd Venice Biennale, 2009 Last year, Johann Louw was one of only three artists selected to participate in an official collateral exhibition to the 53rd Venice Biennale entitled I Linguaggi del Mondo: Languages of the World. He exhibited four large paintings and received considerable attention, facilitating his participation in further international exhibitions and biennales.

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The residency culminated in a touring exhibition of graphic and lithographic work, organized by Paul Boulitreau and the Rendezvous Art Project.

The lithographs that Johann produced during the workshop residency are also exhibited by Rendezvous in South Africa as a touring show.

4th Beijing International Art Biennale, 2010 Johann is one of four South African artists who exhibited at this year’s Fourth International Art Biennale that ran from the 20th of September to the 10th of October at the National Art Museum

of China, Beijing. The theme of the biennale was Environmental Concern and Human Existence. Johann was in Beijing during the biennale and attended the opening ceremony and the symposium.

Sabbioneta Biennale, 2010 Currently, Johann is also participating in the 2nd International Biennale of Contemporary Art of Sabbioneta. Louw’s work forms part of the main exhibition of the biennale; entitled “Parallels”, curated by the art critic Stefania Provinciali and is hosted in the magnificent Palazzo Ducale in Sabbioneta until the 14th of November 2010.

Exhibition of new works at SMAC Art Gallery, 2010 – 2011 A long awaited solo-exhibition of new paintings and drawings is scheduled to open in December at SMAC Art Gallery in Stellenbosch. A catalogue is being produced for the exhibition.

In Johann’s words: “ I’m filled with expectations for my upcoming exhibition at SMAC. It’s a large gallery, which is easy when curating a retrospective but more challenging when dealing with an exhibition consisting solely of new work”.

Discussing his new work, Johann says: “My newer works demonstrate a greater investigation of colour than in the past. They are more elusive with a gradual reintroduction of expressionist tendencies in terms of a looser use of paint.

In terms of subject matter, I have moved away from more specific themes to something broader – investigations of an emptiness and voidness”.

(Above) Johan Louw at his studio in Piketberg, 2010. (Photo: Robert Hofmeyer) (Below) Bardo II 2010 . ‘Liggende torso met landskap’, 2006,

NEWS | ART TIMES

Marilyn Martin writes a response to Melvyn Minnaar’s October’s column regarding the need to have a museum of contemporary art, or an alternative venue to the SA National Gallery Background : The lack of adequate space and facilities at the Iziko South African National Gallery (Iziko Sang) has been critical for many a decade. The problem first surfaced in the late 1960s and in 1969 the Marist Brothers’ property adjoining the Iziko Sang, known as the Annexe, was accepted by the Board.

This brought only temporary relief.

As a result of consistent appeals by the late Raymund van Niekerk, the Department of National Education engaged in discussions in the mid-1980s to develop the space between the main building and the Annexe. Preliminary sketch plans were prepared but for various reasons this never materialised. At this stage, the property of the Natale Labia family in Muizenberg was offered to government and accepted.

Costly renovations followed. At the same time, the main building was in a sad state of upkeep and repair and there was a need for new lighting and a climate control system. The work was done between April 1989 and October 1991. By now some millions had been spent on the Sang and government did not see its way clear to proceed with an additional building.

The political situation was changing rapidly and the project slipped off the agenda.

In 1993 I started the process of assessing the needs with staff and over a long period I engaged with architects and architectural students in order to advance the project.

The restructuring of national collections When the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology (Dacst) announced the restructuring of national collections, our plans went the back burner.

The building was placed on the list of the Department of Public Works, but other Iziko priorities prevailed, such as the Iziko Social History Centre, which has just opened, and the courtyard project at the Iziko South African Museum. Now it is back on the agenda.

Such projects are in the first place the responsibility of central government, after which fundraising could augment allocations; there have been no attempts at finding a single big patron.

Iziko Centre for Contemporary Art Lack of space has gone beyond being critical, while curatorial and public demands are constantly changing. The Iziko Centre for Contemporary Art could be a lively, open and vibrant place where contemporary cultural production, in all its manifestations, could be stimulated and developed to the benefit of all. There is

no museum in South Africa that collects and displays architectural drawings and models.

There are many examples of what an iconic art building can do for a city and a country. Such a building can only result from a national competition, and it must be one which takes into consideration all the aesthetic, technical, practical and environmental requirements, challenges and possibilities of the 21st century. This would not only solve many problems but would stimulate national and international interest and put Iziko Art Collections well and truly on the map.

Marilyn Martin EXISTING SPACES : MAIN BUILDING • All exhibition rooms are restored to their original function (no storage, shop or café) and are used for the exhibition of the permanent collection and special temporary exhibitions • The permanent collection is stored in the basement, with the exception of paintings and sculpture that are too big • The offices of the Director of Art Collections, the Administrative Assistant and the Manager of Art Collections remain in the building • The following spaces are vacated and their use reconsidered as part of the architectural brief: Storage for prints and drawings, photography and new media; Library; Workshop; Wing; offices; the storage space under Room 8 ANNEXE BUILDING The Annexe presents wonderful opportunities for restoration and allocation of different functions. The history of the building has to be researched and redesign and different uses are to form part of the brief for the new building.

NEW BUILDING – A CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART Underground parking, Public spaces, Room for the Friends of the Sang, Library Auditorium for 200-250 people, with control room for film, video and audio-visual equipment Multi-media room Centre for Children, comprising spaces for activities, exhibition and a playroom

Seminar rooms Workshop spaces/studios Computer work stations for the public Classrooms x 2, each able to accommodate about 30 learners at tables or easels Sinks x 8 for classroom activities and storeroom space, Gallery Shop, Gallery Café (with separate entrance), Garderobe, Sickbay, Toilets for the general public, as well as for classrooms, workshops and children Exhibition spaces General comment: that the size of spaces be similar to those in the main building (different sizes) but without impediments such as pillars; track lighting suspended from the ceiling to optimise efficiency and flexibility; a close connection with the natural environment, eg glass walls around enclosed gardens/sculpture courtyards; full temperature and humidity control; maximum of 50 lux, including natural light.

Temporary exhibition spaces : Spaces specifically designed for prints, drawings and photography.

Flexible spaces for installations and videos, divisible by movable partitions. Sculpture courtyard/garden Storage space : For all works that cannot be accommodated in the main building, particularly large paintings and sculpture, and making provision for future needs; storage for works on paper, photography and new media; for frames Conservation :Studio for painting and sculpture Studio for works on paper and photography Frames Exhibitions & Technical : Workshop and studio for preparation of exhibitions Climate controlled holding areas for temporary exhibitions awaiting installation and transit, with sufficient space for large crates to deal with exhibitions coming in and going out Technical entrance and loading bay with direct access for trucks (surface to be the same height as trucks so that crates can be wheeled off on trolleys into the building and despatched by lift to basement or temporary exhibition area).

Facilities for staff and activities Board Room, Meeting rooms, Offices for curatorial, conservation, education, security and cleaning staff Reception area where staff can receive visitors Tea room, Kitchen, Sick bay, Toilets

Alette Wessels Kunskamer Maroelana Centre, 27 Maroelana Street, Maroelana, Pretoria GPS S25º 46.748’ EO28º 1.5615’ OPEN Mon to Fri 09h00 - 16h00 Saturday 09h00 - 13h00 WALTER BATTISS FISHERMEN AT THE LAKE OIL ON CANVAS 30 X 50 CM

Tel (+27) 12 346-0728 / Fax (+27) 12 346-0729 alette@artwessels.co.za gerrie@artwessels.co.za Alette 082 652 6663 Gerrie 084 589 0711

A quality selection of SA masters and selected contemporary art

www.artwessels.co.za

13

The South African

Art Information Directory 2011

R 189, 00 Vat Inclusive

The most complete listing of South African art resources and infrastructure for visual artists.

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South Africa Art Information Directory 2011 Now in it’s 7th year Th SA Art Information Directory is the White and Yellow Pages of the dynamic SA visual arts community.

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ART TIMES | NEWS | CERAMICS NATIONAL SHOW

Ceramics Southern Africa National Exhibition 2010 Grande Provence Gallery, Franschhoek

Clockwise: CSA National Ceramics Exhibition at The Grande Provence Gallery, Franschhoek, Top right :The American Master potter Jeffrey Oestreich, the award judge opened the exhibition. Middle: Jeffrey Oestreich with the first prize: by Sibonelo Cyril Luthuli’ “A brush with death” piece, Ralph Johnson with Jeffrey with Ralph’s winning pieces entitled “Large vessels”.

Below: The winning entry: A Brush with death by Sibonela Luthui, Other winners include: Untitled by Bantu Mtshiselwa and 4 Pinch pots by Annalie Odendaal

The CSA National Ceramics Exhibition opened on Sunday 10 October at Grande Provence in Franschhoek. A capacity crowd of visitors attended the opening. American Master potter Jeffrey Oestreich opened the exhibition. Jeffrey who was the award judge spoke about the uniqueness of the ceramics on show noting minimal influence of American, British or Japanese ceramics. The exhibition continues until Sunday 24 October and viewing is from 10am to 6pm daily.

For more information please call Ralph Johnson on 021 6716139 16

CSA National Exhibition 2010 Prize winners CSA Premier award; Sibonelo Cyril Luthuli ( Kwa Zulu- Natal ) Cape Gallery award for Best work for Expression; Ralph Johnson ( Western Cape ) Reinders Potters Supplies Best work for Function; Christo Giles ( Western Cape ) Rose Korber award runner up for Expression; Charmaine Haines ( Eastern Cape ) Potters Shop award runner up for Use Laura du Toit ( Western Cape )

CPS Sterling award for first time entry on a National; Bianca Whitehead ( Eastern Cape ) CPS Supa Porcelain award for best porcelain piece; Rika Herbst ( Gauteng ) Merits for Use Karen van der Riet ( Gauteng ) Clementina studio ( Western Cape ) Annalie Odendaal ( Gauteng ) Merits for Expression Monica van den Berg ( Gauteng ) Bantu Mtshiselwa ( Eastern Cape ) Ann Marais ( Western Cape )

CERAMICS NATIONAL SHOW | ART TIMES

CSA National Exhibition 2010 Prize winners Follows from left page bottom: Row 1 (Vertical) The seven deadly sins by Ann Marais, Dancing Trees by Rika Herbst, Celadon Bowls by Christo Giles Row 2: Zig Zag Vases by Cllemintina van der Walt, Bowl 1,2,3 Karen van der Riet, Row 3: Red and Orange by Bianca Whitehead, Well loved ceramics personality: Hennie Meyer

Other noteworthy pieces: Row 1 (Vertical) Lace Impressed bowl by Catherine Brennon, Three vases by Heather Mills, Decorative plate by Brendan Ford, Row 2: Trophies of Africa - only yellow by Margaret Woermann, Cosi Funtutis operatic tea party by John Bauer.

Row 3: Drinking party by Ardmore Ceramics, Tenmoku jugs by Christo Giles. For all the work on exhibition see: www.arttimes.co.za 17

SOUTH AFRICAN GALLERY GUIDE

Trasi Henen’MNMNMNMN’ (Detail) To be seen at Blank Projects

GALLERY GUIDE | FREE STATE, GAUTENG, MPUMALANGA Artspace –Jhb 27 October - 11 November, “Paperworks” a solo Exhibition of etchings and engravings inspired by the Tarot and Alchemy by Judy Woodborne.

20 November - 11 December, “Oppitafel X” 1 Chester Court, 142 Jan Smuts Ave., Parkwood, Jhb. T. 011 880 8802 artspace@wol.co.za www.artspace-jhb.co.za Artspace Warehouse 10 October - 06 November, “Skin” a group exhibition by Danelle Janse Van Rensburg, Thelma Van Rensburg and Adele Oldfield.

3 Hetty Ave, Fairlands, Jhb. T. 011 880 8802 artspace@wol.co.za www.artspace-jhb.co.za

Norman Catherine Zombie to be seen at “People, Prints and Process-Twenty five years at Caversham” Standard Bank Gallery

Free State Bloemfontein Oliewenhuis Art Museum 04 November - 16 January, “Rendezvous” a group graphic design exhibition. (In the Main Building) 25 November - 05 December, “Planet Pixel” From 11 November, “Fractal” 16 Harry Smith Street, Bloemfontein T.051 447 9609

Gauteng Johannesburg Afronova Gallery 29 October - 27 November, “Black Line” a solo exhibition by Billie Zangewa.

155 Smit Street, Braamfontein, Jhb. C. 083 726 5906 afronova@tiscali.co.za www.afronova.com Alliance Française of Johannesburg 10-15 November, “Memory Stains” by Cathy Abraham.

Paintings and drawings.

17 Lower Park Drive, Corner Kerry Road, Parkview.

T. 011 646 1169 johannesburg@alliance.org.za www.alliance.org.za Art-icle Showcase (Gordart) Gallery 06-14 November, “(ge)integr(i/eerde)t(eit/yd): a visual sonnet cycle” a collaborative exhibition by M.C. Roodt and M Visser. David Paton will open the exhibition on 06 November at 12pm.

Parkwood, Johannesburg. Parkwood, Jhb. C. 084 423 8635 gordon@gordartgallery.com Artist Proof Studio 30 October - mid November, “I see you” prints by Thabo Motseki.

The Bus Factory, 3 President Street, West Entrance, Newtown Cultural Precinct, Newtown.

T. 011 492 1278 artistp@mweb.co.za www.artistproofstudio.org.za

Bag Factory Until 03 November, “Vesia-Amanzi-Waters” a group exhibition. Featuring South African artists Jill Trappler, Eunice Geustyn, Witty Nyide and Finnish artists Kristiina Korpela, Jaana Partanen, Leena Mäki-Patola.

The project will be joined by Silja Saarepuu from Tallinn, Estonia, ashore the Baltic Sea. 10 Mahlatini Street, Fordsburg, Jhb. T. 011 834 9181 info@bagfactoryart.org.za www.bagfactoryart.org.za Brodie/Stevenson 04 November - 15 December, “Permanent Error” a solo exhibition of new work by Pieter Hugo. Brodie/Stevenson is pleased to announce the opening of its new gallery space at 62 Juta Street, Braamfontein, Jhb. T. 011 326 0034, www.brodiestevenson.com Carol Lee Fine Art 06-14 November, “Nuance” group show. upstairs@bamboo Cnr 9th Street & Rustenburg Road, Melville, Jhb. T. 011 486 0526 CIRCA on Jellicoe 4 November - 16 Dec, Mixed media, bronze sculpture by Deborah Bell.

2 Jellicoe Ave. T. 011 788 4805 www.circaonjellicoe.co.za David Krut Projects During November, a solo exhibition by Deborah Bell.

140 Jan Smuts Ave., Parkwood, Jhb. T. 011 447 0627 www.davidkrutpublishing.com Everard Read Gallery Jhb 04-28 November, Oil on canvas by Paul Augustinus.

6 Jellicoe Ave., Rosebank, Jhb. T. 011 788 4805 www.everard-read.co.za Gallery 2 During November, Graduates of the Artists Proof Studio.

140 Jan Smuts Ave, Parkwood. T. 011 447 0155/98 gots@mweb.co.za www.gallery2.co.za Gallery AOP 06-29 November, New drawings by Marcus Neustteter.

44 Stanley Ave., Braamfontein Werf (Milpark) T. 011 726 2234 www.artonpaper.co.za Gallery MOMO Until 08 November, OKHA Design.

11 November - 31 December, Dumile Feni Sculptures.

18 November - 31 December, Group exhibition.

52 7th Avenue, Parktown North, Jhb. T. 011 327 3247 www.gallerymomo.com Gertrude Posel Gallery This gallery has a permanent exhibition of traditional southern, central and West African art.

Address: University of the Witwatersrand, Senate House, Jorissen Street, Braamfontein.

Tel: 011 717 1365 julia.charlton@wits.ac.za

GoetheonMain 11 November - 15 December, “Aleph” an installation by James Webb GoetheonMain, 245 Main Street, City & Suburban, Jhb. T. 011 4423232 Goodman Gallery Until 06 November, “TJ: Some things old, some things new and some much the same” by David Goldblatt.

163 Jan Smuts Ave., Parkwood, Jhb. T. 011 788 1113 www.goodman-gallery.com 16 Halifax Works by Michael Heyns can now also be viewed by appointment in Johannesburg at 16 Halifax Street Bryanston.

Dana MacFarlane 082 784 6695 dana@michaelheyns.co.za Henry Taylor Gallery The Henry Taylor Gallery specializes in South African Investment art; hence, it is not uncommon to find Old Master paintings by Errol Boyley and J.H. Pienreff, hanging alongside up and coming artists such as Claire Denaire or Gian. P. Garizio.

Shop No G 7.2 Cnr. Cedar Rd. and Witkoppen Rd. Fourways. T. 011 70-53194 htaylor@mweb.co.za www.henrytaylorgallery.co.za Johannesburg Art Gallery 09 August - December, “Transformations: Woman’s art from the late 19th century to 2010” artists taken from JAG’s Collection.

Until 21 November, Photography by Ernest Cole.

Until 11 January 2011, “South African Photography 1950-2010” 10 November, Portfolio readings at Market Photo Workshop from 9:30am to 3:45pm.

10 November, Panel Discussion on Borders and Photography as part of the Borders Master class at 4pm at the Market Photo Workshop.

10 November - 11 December, Borders Master class exhibition opening at 6pm at The Photo Workshop Gallery (photography) 08 December - 12 January, Portfolio 10 opening: 8 December at 6pm at The Photo Workshop Gallery (photography) Until 19 January 2011, “I am home” by Mimi Ng’ok currently on at the Photographers Gallery at the Market Theatre.

King George Str., Joubert Park, Johannesburg T. 011 725 3130 Email: khwezig@joburg.org.za www.joburg.org.za Jozi Art:Lab 22-27 November, “Eunic Architecture studio 2010” The 3rd annual EUNIC Architecture Studio will devise strategies to improve and renovate an existing inner city building, Florence House. This weeklong programme was launched in 2008 with an aim of linking public, students and young professionals in addressing the crucial issue of living and housing conditions in modern South Africa. Arts on Main, 264 Fox Street, Johannesburg. ben@ifas.org.za T. 011 836 0561 Manor Gallery Until 02 November, “The 84th National Open Exhibition of the Watercolour Society of South Africa” top South African watercolourists participating include: Sue Orpen, Zanne Bezuidenhoudt, Cherelee Powell and Ingrid Kolzing.

11 November - 14 December, “The Year End Fine Art Sale 2010” a selection of paintings- framed and unframed. Norscot Manor Centre, Penguin Drive.

T. 011 465 7934 gallery@wssa.org.za www.wssa.org.za

19

Colbert Mashile new monotypes

Temptation I, Monotype, 76 x 57 cm. 1/1.

The Artists’ Press Box 1236, White River, 1240 • Tel 013 751 3225 mark@artistspress.co.za • www.artprintsa.com

Art Times Colbert Oct. 2010.indd1 1

18/10/10 09:13:09

Recent Acquisition Art Exhibition

Kgorong

Unisa Art Gallery,Kgorong Building Ground Floor, Main Campus Preller and Ridge Street, Pretoria, 0003 Email: ukun1@unisa.ac.za Tel: (012) 441 5683

November 2010 Enquiries: (012) 441 5683 / ukun1@unisa.ac.za Gallery viewing hours: (Tuesday to Friday) 10H00 - 16H00

FREE STATE, GAUTENG, MPUMALANGA | GALLERY GUIDE Market Photo Workshop 06 October - 01 November, “Working the City, Experiences of Migrant Women in Johannesburg” a group student project in Poster form.

From 10 November, Borders Master class exhibition.

2 President Street, Newtown, Jhb. T. 011 834 1444 info@marketphotoworkshop.co.za www.marketphotoworkshop.co.za Museum Africa Until 24 Dec 2010, “l’Afrique: A Tribute to Maria SteinLessing and Leopold Spiegel” co-curated by Nessa Leibhammer and Natalie Knight.

121 Bree Str., Newtown, Jhb. T. 011 833 5624 www.knightgalleries.net Nirox Foundation (Arts on Main) Until 07 November, “What do we know about Landscape?” by French photographer Éric Bourret.

Until 15 December, “The Mystery of the Elements” featuring works by the Spanish artist Enric Pladevall (Nirox Sculpture Park) Corner Berea and Main street, City and Suburban, Jhb. comm.culture@ifas.org.za www.artsonmain.co.za www.niroxarts.com | www.ifas.org.za/culture | www.ericbourret.com Resolution Gallery Until 11 January 2011, “Public Perception” a poster show by Andy Robertson.

142 Jan Smuts Ave., Parkwood, Jhb. T. 011 880 4054 www.resolutiongallery.com Rooke Gallery 28 October - 15 December, “Study of Trees” photography by Garth Meyer.

The Newtown, 37 Quinn Street, Newtown, Jhb. C. 072 658 0762 Seippel Gallery Until 30 January 2011, “Floating Underwater Dreaming”

by Jill Trappler.

Arts on Main, Cnr of Fox and Berea, Jhb. T. 011 401 1421 www.seippel-gallery.com Spaza Art Gallery From 27 November, “Christmas Show” group multi-media exhibition.

19 Wilhelmina Street, Troyville.

T. 011 614 9354 C. 082 494 3275 Standard Bank Gallery Until 04 December, “People, Prints and Process-Twenty five years at Caversham” Until 04 Dec, “Translations: Art into Jewelry.”

Cnr of Simmonds & Frederick Str.’s, Jhb. T. 011 631 1889 www.standardbankgallery.co.za Strauss & Co 01 November, Auction of Important Paintings and Sculpture.

Country Club Johannesburg, Woodmead Corner Lincoln Road & Woodlands Drive, Woodmead. www.straussart.co.za

Pretoria Alette Wessels Kunskamer Exhibition of Old Masters and selected leading contemporary artists.

Maroelana Centre, Maroelana.

GPS : S25º 46.748 EO28º 15.615 T. 012 346 0728 C. 084 589 0711 alette@artwessels.co.za www.artwessels.co.za Association of Arts Pretoria During November, PPC exhibition 173 Mackie Street, Nieuw Muckleneuk, Pretoria.

T. 012 346 3100 artspta@mweb.co.za www.artsassociationpta.co.za Brooklyn Theatre in association with Trent Gallery Until 10 November, “Four Artists” Jaco Benadé, Ernst de Jong, Loeritha Saayman and Sam Müller.

Greenlyn Village Shopping Centre, Thomas Edison Street, Menlo Park. Stuart @ 082 923 2551 trent.art@gmail.com daniel@brooklyntheatre.co.za www.brooklyntheatre.co.za www.trent-art.co.za Fried Contemporary 24 November - 22 January 2011, “UP Fine Arts Staff Show” 430 Charles St, Brooklyn, Pretoria. T. 012 346 0158 art@friedcontemporary.com www.friedcontemporary.com Gallery Michael Heyns 14 November - 09 December, “R5,000 & less” Michael Heyns ends off the year with an eclectic exhibition of his paintings and clay works priced at R5,000 and less. Exhibition opening Sunday 14 November.

351 Lynnwood Road Menlo Park Pretoria. (next to Schweickerdt Art Shop) T.012 460 3698 C.082 451 5584 www.michaelheyns.co.za Kunsuniek 06 October - 14 November, Experience a stimulating variety of well-known South African artwork uniquely exhibited in a superb dwelling atmosphere.

331 Chappies Rd, Lynnwood, Pretoria.

Marie Spruyt 012 361 6927 www.kunsuniek.co.za Pandora Art Gallery 04-25 November, “Enso” a group exhibition. Featuring Aleta Michaletos, Andrew Abramovitz, Aniki du Plessis, Francois Coertze, Hilton Edwards, Jan Haarhoff, Louis Botha, Neels Venter, Phanuel Soza, St John Fuller, Steven Ashley Botha, Susanna Smith, Tony Wintour, and Willem Edel. Exhibition Opening 04 November 6:30pm for 7pm. Opening speaker Ronel Nel with music by Riku Latti. 621 Berea Street, Muckleneuk, Pretoria.

C. 084 997 3903 pandora.art1@gmail.com www.pan-dora.co.za

Platform on 18th 21 October - 13 November, “Soup” a group Show of paintings, photography and mixed media by Leanie Mentz, Liebet Marie, Marcia Moon.

18 November - 04 December, Solo exhibition of paintings and mixed media by David Smuts.

232 18th Street Rietondale, Pretoria. T. 084 7644 258 www.platformon18th.co.za Pretoria Art Museum Until December, A selection of ceramics, representing the development of studio ceramics and the work of traditional rural potters of South Africa over the past thirty years, is on display.

A selection of artworks from the permanent collection of the Museum tells a brief story of South African art from the time of the first San artists.

Until 28 November, “Corobrik Collection” Ceramics Southern Africa.

North Gallery and Preiss Hall. T.012 344 1807/8 art.museum@tshwane.gov.za www.pretoriaartmuseum.co.za The Tina Skukan Gallery Until 18 December, An exhibition of handcrafted furniture and décor, wooden sculptures, Suzanis and other hand embroided textiles, the best of central Asia.

6 Koedoeberg Rd, Faerie Glen, Pretoria.

T. 012 991 1733 www.tinaskukangallery.co.za Trent Gallery 29 October - 11 November, Group show including Wilma Cruise and Jan van der Merwe.

Curated by Marijke de Kock.

12-25 November, “Works on Paper” by Willem Boshoff and Judith Mason. Opening Friday 12 November at 6:30pm. Curated by Hardus Koekemoer.

26 November - 09 December, solo exhibition by JanHenri Booyens. Opening Friday 26 November at 6:30pm.

Curated by Richard Humphries.

11-24 December, “Boudiccea Castings show” Featuring Susanna Swart and Kay Potts. Opening Friday 11 December at 6:30pm. Curated by Klaus Fischer.

198 Long Street, Waterkloof, Pretoria.

T. 012 460 5497. Trent.art@gmail.com www.trent-art.co.za

Mpumalanga

White River The Loop Art Foundry & Sculpture Gallery Casterbridge Complex Corner R40 and Numbi Roads White River T. 013 751 2435 www.tlafoundry.co.za

Thompson Gallery 07-30 November, “Homage to Dan, a celebration of Life” paintings by Sheila Jarzin Levinson. Opening 07 November @ 4pm with opening speaker and award winning architect of the Apartheid Museum, Sidney Abramowitch.

78, 3rd Avenue Melville, Jhb. T. 011 482 2039/9719 info@thompsongallery.co.za www.thompsongallery.co.za

21

GALLERY GUIDE | FREE STATE, GAUTENG, MPUMALANGA | REVIEWS

(Above) Sibisi Sthembiso Afternoon Song (Below) Hogins Robert Twin Cigars IChagall® / © Dalro 2010 La Flûte Enchantée, 1967 (The Magic Flute).

Marc Chagall Lithos donated to the Constitutional Court.

Standard Bank Gallery

People, Prints & Process 25 Years at Caversham producing handmade, limited edition artists’ prints.

The art collection at the Constitutional Court received three Marc Chagall lithographs donated to the Court by the famous Russian French artist’s granddaughters, Bella and Meret Meyer.

The Court’s collection is unique. Collected over the past sixteen years, the original paintings sculptures and drawings evoke democracy and human dignity, and draw regular visitors to the Court and to Constitution Hill from all over the world.

The gift to the Court, made possible by the generosity of the Chagall family, will be marked by a ceremony hosted by the artworks committee of the Court and the Ambassador of France in South Africa. The works will enhance the already wonderful collection and will be accepted by former Justice Albie Sachs on behalf of the Court.

Chagall, who was born in Belarus and settled in France, travelled widely and is now one of the twentieth century’s most famous artists: his monumental commissions include The Opera Ceiling in Paris (1964), glass windows for the Cathedral of Metz (1959-60), windows for the synagogue of the Hadassah University Centre in Jerusalem (1962) and a glass window Peace for the United Nations Building (1963-64).

The life and work of Marc Chagall find a strong resonance in the country concerned with the problems of exile, memory and love.

His works are an apt addition to the Court’s singular collection. They reflect the intellectual and moral forces binding people and societies together and their aspirations for peace and happiness.

Media queries: Eléonore Godfroy-Briggs at the French Institute of South Africa Tel: (0)11 298 2706 | comm.culture@ifas.org.za | www.ifas.org 22

The Caversham Press, founded in 1985 by Malcolm Christian in KwaZulu-Natal, has made an important contribution to the development of printmaking in South Africa and has a memorable history. It is this contribution and history, as much as excellence in printmaking, that ‘People, Prints and Process – 25 Years at Caversham’ celebrates.

The exhibition runs at the Standard Gallery, Johannesburg, from 14 October to 4 December 2010.

‘People, Prints and Process – 25 Years at Caversham’ features over 100 works by more than 70 artists. It tells a remarkable story of faith in creative people and the processes of human interaction and empowerment, generated through collaborative work underpinned by exacting design and printing processes (etching, lithography, screenprint, and linocut).

The Caversham Press found a home near Lidgetton in KwaZulu-Natal when master printer, Malcolm Christian, bought a former Methodist chapel surrounded by a graveyard. The chapel became a studio but retained the peaceful aura of its original spiritual structure. The gravestones are now incorporated into the garden and many newer buildings contribute to Caversham’s community identity and provide accommodation for residencies and visiting artists. There are no distractions to inhibit dedication to the processes of thinking in visual form and

Caversham prints occupy an important space in South Africa’s art, culture and political evolution and in the history of South African prints. The Press is now part of a cluster of related art and educational initiatives, including the Caversham Centre for Artists and Writers and the Caversham Education Institute. The journey undertaken by Malcolm Christian was guided by his belief in human creativity, and summed up in the word Masabelaneni (let us share). Christian has shared his technical expertise and inventiveness with the artists who visited Caversham for 25 years.

“Caversham,” says Malcolm, “is about people and their need to share stories and insights, affirming our common bonds of humanity from frailty to strength, from baseness to transcendence. Over 25 years, these artists have been drawn from the renowned to the emergent, from those who have completed life’s journey to those just beginning...

They reflect the essence of collaboration, the duality within each of us to be inspired and to be a source of inspiration.”

In 1985 most of the visiting artists were formally trained white artists; now they are largely black artists and students from KwaZulu-Natal who experience the joy of learning new visual communication skills from a dedicated teacher in the tranquil studios of rural Caversham.

Caversham is a story of collaboration in a country characterised historically by division, fragmentation, hostility and injustice. After two and a half decades, Caversham’s contribution to the story of South African printmaking reveals a complex dialogue of many voices and the evidence of many visions embedded in a rich diversity of imagery.

Reference: Meintjes, J (2010). Hats Off! at Tokara.

Standard Bank Gallery : Corner Simmonds and Frederick Street, Johannesburg, Tel: 011 631-1889 Gallery hours: Mon-Fri, 08:00-16:30; Saturday, 09:00-13:00. The gallery is closed on Sundays and public holidays. Admission free

WESTERN CAPE | GALLERY GUIDE

Western Cape Cape Town 38 Special Art Café and Studio Until 23 November, “700 Wives and 300 Concubines” a solo exhibition by Cinga Samson T. 021 462 1348 082.307.7883 curator@38special.co.za www.38special.co.za Absolut Art Gallery 19 November - 19 December, a group exhibition featuring works by Ryan Loubser, San-Maré Raubenheimer, Pieter Uitlander and Raché Gerber.

Ongoing, permanent exhibition with some of the best Masters and contemporary artists. Namely Irma Stern, JH Pierneef, Cecil Higgs, Adriaan Boshoff, Tinus De Jongh, Adolf Jentsch, William Kentridge, to name but a few. Shop 43 Willowbridge Life Style Centre, Carl Cronje Drive, Bellville, CT. T. 021 914 2846 info@absolutartgallery.co.za www.absolutart.co.za Artvark Gallery Until 30 November, Paintings by Lolly Hahn-Page and Tammy Griffin.

During September, New work of the well-acclaimed Zimbabwean Artist Wendy Roselli.

48 Main Road Kalk Bay. T. 021 788 5584 Artvark now also at the Cape Quarter, on the 1st floor Alliance Française of Cape Town 04 November, A screening of Schadeberg’s documentary, Voices from Robben Island.

155 Loop Street, CT. T. 021 423 5699 capetown@alliance.org.za www.alliance.org.za /A Word Of Art A Word of Art will be closed for the next few months to work towards the next big group show and on the www.writeonafrica.org project 66 Albert Rd, Woodstock Industrial Centre.

T. 021 448 7889 rickylee@writeonafrica.com www.a-word-of-art.co.za The Arts Association of Bellville 10-24 November, “Unisa 2010” The Arts Association of Bellville, The Library centre, Carel van Aswegan Street, Bellville. T. 021 918 2301 info@artb.co.za www.artb.co.za/gallery.htm Atlantic Art Gallery A permanent display showcasing leading contemporary South African artists.

25 Wale Street, Cape Town. T. 021 423 5775 AVA Until 12 November, Main Gallery: “Stalking the Familiar” by Lynette Bester Long Gallery: “One in One- My Year as a Statistic” by Tracey Derrick Artstrip: “Diagram of Change” by Elsabe Milandri 13 December - 21 January 2011 “Monotype by Warren Editions.”

13 December - 21 January 2011, “Category Error 2” group exhibition. Participating artists: Joanne Bloch, Jann Cheifitz, Mandy Darling, Josie Grindrod, Verna Jooste, Leora Lewis, Lynne Lomofsky, Khanyisile Mbongwa, Philip Miller and Jane Solomon.

Association for Visual Arts, 35 Church Street, Cape Town.

T.021 424 7436 art@ava.co.za www.ava.co.za

Barnard Gallery Until 19 November, “CC-Unlimited Power” by Robert Slingsby.

55 Main Street, Newlands.

Fiona@luxurybrands.co.za

City Hall 14 October- 05 November, “Prêt-à-partager - a transcultural exchange in art, fashion and sports” (Presented by the Goethe Institute) City Hall, 2nd Floor, 101 St Georges Mall St, Cape Town.

Blank Projects.

04-26 November, “In Transit” a travelling exhibition of photographic works

by Laurence Bonvin (Switzerland); “A Re Fanon” A process based project by Lerato Bereng/ Mohau Modisakeng.

Exhibitions Opening Thursday 04 November @ 6pm.

113-115 Sir Lowry Rd, Woodstock, CT. T.072 1989 221 info@blankprojects.com www.blankprojects.com

David Krut Projects Cape Town Until 28 November, “Heritage osmosis” by Mischa Fritsch Montebello Design Centre, 31 Newlands Avenue, CT. T. 021 685 0676 alastair@davidkrut.com www.davidkrutprojectscapetown.com

Cape Gallery Until 13 November, “Desert Abstractions and Photo Impressionism” Photographs (Giclée Prints on Canvas)

by Robert Müller. To be opened by Nicole Palmer (Artist Photographer, Stellenbosch) On Sunday 24 October @ 4:30p.m.

From 14 November, “Natures & Patterns” recent work

by Christopher Langley.

60 Church Street, Cape Town. T. 021 423 5309. web@capegallery.co.za www.capegallery.co.za Carmel Art Dealers in Fine art, exclusive distributers of Pieter van der Westhuizen etchings.

Relocation of their Claremont and Constantia galleries is now complete visit the new gallery at the Cape Quarter Square –Cape Town’s newest upmarket and trendy shopping mall where Leonard Schneider and Beila are available to assist you.

Cape Quarter Square, 27 Somerset Road Green Point (on the first floor above the Piazza & restaurant level) T. 021 4213333 www.carmelart.co.za Casa Labia Until 11 November, “Florence Years” by Kim Meyerson.

17 November - 29 January 2011, Africa Nova presents Casa Labia in Bloom - a celebration of indigenous flowers. Casa Labia in Bloom is a multi-media festival of art, inspired by South Africa’s indigenous flora developed

by Margie Murgatroyd of AFRICA NOVA. The exhibition will feature works in a range of media and styles, including painting, ceramics, photography, sculpture and jewellery. 192 Main Rd, Muizenberg. T. 021 788 6067 info@casalabia.co.za www.casalabia.co.za Cape Town School of Photography 04 November - 03 December, “Inner and outer landscape impressions” by Michel le Sueur.

4th Floor, 62 Roeland Street, Cape Town.

T. 021 4652152 info@ctsp.co.za Cedar Tree Gallery 30 November - 06 Febuary 2011, Photography by Malcolm Dare. Opening 30 November @ 6pm.

Rodwell House, Rodwell Road, St James, CT. T. 021 787 9880 cedartreegallery@gmail.com www.cedartreegallery.co.za Centre for African Studies Gallery Until 18 December, “Juggling with the Familiar II : Exhibition of Works in Progress” the exhibition brings together photographic and mixed media projects by South African female artists who utilise extreme subjectivity and intimacy within their methodology and style in one way or another. Artists included are: Ingrid Masonda, Tracey Derrick, Suzanne Duncan, Sophia Claassens, Siona O’ Connell and Jenny Altschuler.

Harry Openheimer Building, Engineering Mall, Upper Campus, UCT. T. 021 650 2308

David Porter Antiques Buyers and sellers of South African art.

T. 021 6830580/083 452 5862 david@davidporterantiques.com The Donald Greig Bronze Foundry and Gallery Donald Greig is a specialized wildlife sculptor and his sculptures ranging in size from life-size to paperweights will be on display at the gallery. The foundry will do a bronze pour on most days and the entire ‘Lost Wax Casting Process’ can be viewed by the public through special glass windows.

The Nautilus Building, No.14 West Quay Road, V&A Waterfront, Cape Town. T. 021 418 4515 greig@intekom.co.za www.donaldgreig.com Duende 10-20 November, “Abandoned Spaces” by N.J. Molloy.

A new Art Gallery in Sea Point, Shop 1 Trafalgar Place, 67G Regent Road, Sea Point will be opened on 10 November @ 6pm. “Abandoned Spaces” shows film photography hand printed limited edition work by N.J. Molloy. Exhibition ends 20 November. To be opened by gallery director Debbie Grewe.

23 November - 03 December, “h-u-m-a-n book 1” Surisa-Surisa shows acrylic on canvas together with word paintings. Opening 4pm.

Erdmann Contemporary /Photographers Gallery 20 November-end January 2011, “Summer group exhibition” featuring works by Lindeka Qampi, Fanie Jason, Karlien de Villiers, Lien Botha, Nomusa Makhubu, Johann Louw and Barbara Wildenboer.

03-20 November, “Mauerbilder 1961” photographs of the Berlin Wall by Jurgen Schadeberg. opens on Wednesday 3 November at 6pm. Schadeberg will be present at the opening. The exhibition Mauerbilder 1961 is presented in Cape Town courtesy of the Goethe Institute, Johannesburg. It forms part of the German Cultural Weeks program, hosted by the German Consulate in Cape Town.

04 November, A screening of Schadeberg’s documentary, Voices from Robben Island. This screening will be hosted at the Alliance Francaise in Loop Street, Cape Town.

63 Shortmarket Street, Cape Town. T. 021 422 2762 galleryinfo@mweb.co.za www.erdmanncontemporary.co.za Everard Read Gallery Until 31 Jan 2011, “Untamed”, an installation by Dylan Lewis at Kirstenbosch Gardens.

18 November - 02 December, “Never & Always”

by Mark Shields.

3 Portswood Road, Victoria and Alfred Waterfront, Cape Town. T. 021 418 4527 ctgallery@everard.co.za www.everard-read-capetown.co.za 34 Fine Art Until 06 November, “Submerge” a solo exhibition by Lionel Smit.

09 November - 15 January 2011, “Then: Now” a group exhibition. www.vgallery.co.za / www.34fineart.com C. 082 354 1500

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GALLERY GUIDE | WESTERN CAPE Focus Contemporary 28 October - 25 November, “Pretending to be Flesh” by Christian Diedericks.

26 November - 26 December, “Spot” by Helen Sear.

67 Long Street, Cape Town. T. 021 419 8888 info@focuscontemporary.co.za www.focuscontemporary.co.za The Framery Art Gallery Until 06 November, Patrick Mokhuane and Timothy Zantsi.

67g Regent Road, Sea Point. T. 021 4345022 G2 Art 24 November - 10 December, “Road trip” Paintings by Roelie van Heerden. Opening 24 November @ 6pm.

61 Shortmarket Street, Cape Town. T.021 424 7169 di@g2art.co.za www.g2art.co.za

Infin Art Gallery A gallery of work by local artists.

Wolfe Street Chelsea Wynberg. T. 021 761 2816 and Buitengracht Str. Cape Town. T. 021 423 2090 www.infinart.co.za Institute for Democracy in Africa (IDASA) Until 30 November, “Arch” by Ed Young. A super-real sculpture of the Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu swinging from a chandelier.

6 Spin Street, Cape Town. T. 021 467 7600 www.idasa.org.za Irma Stern Gallery Until 30 November, Ceramics by Melanie Hillerbrand.

Cecil Rd, Rosebank, CT. T. 021 685 5686 www.irmastern.co.za

Gallery F Contemporary and archival South African Art. 221 Long Street, Cape Town. T. 021 422 5246 info@galleryf.co.za www.galleryf.co.za Gallery M 04 November - 04 December “Pussyfooting” by Louise Sinclair.

Opening Thursday 04 November @ 6pm.

First Floor, Piazza da Luz, 94 Regent Road, Seapoint.

T. Marlo 072 461 3387 or Louise 082 326 4827 info@gallerym.co.za www.gallerym.co.za www.louisesinclair.co.za

iArt Gallery - Wembley Until 06 November, “Patmos and the war at sea” by Alistair Whitton.

29 November - end December, “Tempermes” by Louis Jansen van Vuuren. Louis Jansen van Vuuren will launch his first and long-awaited anthology of Afrikaans poetry, entitled Tempermes. The book will be accompanied by an exhibition of painting.

Wembley Square, Gardens, Cape Town.

T. 021 424 5150 www.iart.co.za

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Johans Borman Fine Art Gallery 13 November - 04 December, “Seebriewe” an exhibition of oil paintings by Jacobus Kloppers.

In Fin Art Building, Upper Buitengracht Street, Cape Town. T. 021 423 6075. art@johansborman.co.za wwww.johansborman.co.za Kalk Bay Modern Until mid November, “Point of Focus” photography exhibition. Pinhole Photography with selected conventional photography. Jenny Altschuler, Glen Green, Nic Bothma, Gavin Foley, Geoff Kirby, Dave Robertson, Leanette Botha and Kevin Factor are some of the photographers featured in the exhibition.

1st Floor, Olympia Buildings, 136 Main Rd, Kalk Bay. T.021 788 6571 kbmodern@iafrica.com www.kalkbaymodern.com

Michael Stevenson Contemporary 21 October - 27 November, “As Terras do Fim do Mundo”

by Jo Ractliffe 21 October - 27 November, “4 for Four” a four-screen video installation by Simon Gush.

21 October - 27 November, “Fishermen (Études no 1)” a short film by the renowned Finnish artist Eija-Liisa Ahtila as part of the FOREX series.

Ground Floor, Buchanan Building, 160 Sir Lowry Rd, Woodstock, CT. T. 021 462 1500 info@michaelstevenson.com www.michaelstevenson.com

Goodman Gallery, Cape 16 October - 15 November, “Open End” Painting show, a group exhibition featuring Minnette Vari, Lisa Brice, David Koloane, Tom Cullberg and more.

20 November - 09 January 2011, Season Show featuring Brett Murray.

3rd Floor, Fairweather House, 176 Sir Lowry Rd., Woodstock, CT. T. 021 462 7573/4, www.goodmangallerycape.com

iArt Gallery Until 13 November, “Mad Art Moments” An exhibition in in support of the Make a Difference Foundation.

Featuring Sheena Rose.

During December, “The Gift of Fine Art” 71 Loop Street, Cape Town. T. 021 424 5150 www.iart.co.za

Iziko Good Hope Gallery Until 31 January 2011, “Ghoema & Glitter: New Year Carnival in Cape Town” Buitenkant Street, opposite the Grand Parade, Cape Town. T. 21 464 1262 kmooney@iziko.org.za

Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens-Sanlam Hall 06-17 November, “Original Cape Art” 23 Cape Artists.

The exhibition will be opened on Saturday 06 November @ 12am by guest speaker Dr Ian McCallum, psychiatrist, naturalist, and well known writer. Art works in a wide range of mediums, by established and up-coming Cape artists.

Entrance to the exhibition is free after entry to Kirstenbosch Gardens. T. 021 799 8621

Gill Allderman Gallery Continuous Exhibition, “Exhibition # 36” A Group exhibition featuring abstract art, graffiti, paintings, drawings.

278 on Main Road, Kenilworth. www.alldermangallery.co.za gallery@new.co.za C. 083 556 2540

Greatmore Studios Artist in Residence Kim Myerson will be exhibiting at Casa Labia from 06 October - 11 November with an exhibition entitled “Florence Years” 08 September - 26 November, “Take5” featuring Victoria Malcolm, Tom Fleming and Edwin Pennicott, Witty Nyide and Andy Williams.

47-49 Greatmore Street, Woodstock. T. 021 447 9699 info@greatmoreart.org www.greatmoreart.org

curated for the ifa lethu foundation.

Iziko Michaelis Collection, Old Town House, Greenmarket Square, Cape Town. T. 021 481 3800 hproud@iziko.org.za

Jacobus Kloppers: Seebriewe and Seebrief 3 An exhibition of oil paintings to be seen at: Johans Borman Fine Art Gallery 13 November to 4 December 2010

Iziko SA National Gallery Until 30 January 2011, Borders presents a distillation of work from the Bamako Encounters 8th African Photographic Biennale, 2009. Mali’s pan-African exhibition is travelling for the first time to Sub-Saharan Africa, providing South Africans with a unique opportunity to engage with contemporary photographic production from across the continent and its diaspora. The show is curated by Michket Krifa and Laura Serani.

06 November - 16 January 2011, “Boarding House” photographs by Roger Ballen.

27 November - April 2011, “Imagining Beauty” body adornment from Iziko collections and young SA designers.

25 Queen Victoria Street, Cape Town T. 021 481 3934 www.iziko.org.za Iziko Michaelis Collection Until 30 January 2011, “Home and Away: A Return to the South”

Raw Vision Gallery 16 December - January 2011, Marina Cano wildlife exhibition 89 Sir Lowry Rd, Woodstock, CT. T. 076 581 9468 info@rawvisiongallery.com www.rawvisiongallery.com Rose Korber Art 20 October - 20 November, “Abstraction and Meaning” by J P Meyer.

48 Sedgemoor Rd, Camps Bay, CT. T. 021 438 9152 roskorb@icon.co.za www.rosekorberart.com Rust-en-Vrede Gallery Until 04 November, “Sandveld Compositions”

by Annelie Venter; “Sensus – The landscape of stolen moments”, Sculptures in wood by Loni Drager; “Breathing Lessons”

by Leoni Uys. 09 November - 15 December, “From the Vine” - Jewellery designed by Ilke & Marc Whitehorn; “Alternative Realities” oils by Janna Prinsloo; “Legkaart” oils by Lynie Olivier; In the Cube in the Clay Museum: Rice Bowls by various potters.

10 Wellington Rd, Durbanville.T.021 976 4691 www.rust-en-vrede.com

42nd 4VNNFS &YIJCJUJPO of SA art: from 27 November 2010

Tel: 044 874 4027 www.artaffair.co.za 79 Market Street, George

GPS 33°57’42.66’’S | 22°27’24.54’’E

Unrequited Love: Under a Sickle Moon

91 Kloof Street | CPT M| +27 82 679 3906 info@salon91art.co.za www.salon91art.co.za

‘love the way it hurts’ sue dall

3 - 27 NOVEMBER 2010

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CONSERVATION FRAMERS & GILDERS Est. 1997

Archival Framing Gilding & Restoration Tel: 021 448 9220/021 448 3466 Fax: 086 670 7805 Email: conservationframers@tiscali.co.za 39 Lower Main Road, Observatory 7925

WESTERN CAPE | GALLERY GUIDE Salon 91 03-27 November, “Unrequited Love: Under a Sickle Moon” group exhibition of mixed media, drawing, furniture, sculpture and painting. Featured artists include: Coba Vermaak, Cornelis Dumas, Lorenzo Nassimbeni, Lourens Joubert, Ndikhumbule Ngqinambi, Niklas Wittenberg, Paul Senyol and Sue Dall.

91 Kloof Street, Gardens, Cape Town. T 021 424 6930. info@salon91art.co.za www.salon91.co.za South Gallery Showcasing creativity from KwaZulu-Natal including Ardmore Ceramic Art. Fairweather House, 176 Sir Lowry Rd, Woodstock, Ground Floor.

T. 021 465 4672 info@southgallery.co.za South African Print Gallery A wide selection of Fine Art Prints by South African Masters and contemporary printmakers. New prints in stock! During November, “Exquisite Corpse”, a group exhibition featuring Judy Woodborne.

107 Sir Lowry Rd, Woodstock, T. 021 462 6851 info@printgallery.co.za www.printgallery.co.za Waterkant Gallery 21 October - 08 December, “African Archival Photography” 123 Waterkant Street, Cape Town. T. 021 421 1505 info@waterkantgallery.com www.waterkantgallery.com Wessel Snyman Creative 29 October - 27 November, “Footprints” by award winning French photographer Amelie Debray.

17 Bree Street, Cape Town. T. 021 418 0980. wesselsnymancreative@gmail.com What if the World…

Until 20 November, “Teeth are the only Bones that Show…” by Athi Patra Ruga.

10 November - 04 December, Solo Exhibition by Andrzej Nowicki.

08-15 January 2011, “WITW Summer Group Show” First floor, 208 Albert Rd, Woodstock, T.021 448 1438 www.whatiftheworld.com Worldart Gallery Until 08 November, “Un-mute my tongue” a solo exhibition of new paintings by Ayanda Mabulu.

54 Church Street, Cape Town. T.021 423 3075 charl@worldart.co.za www.worldart.co.za Youngblackman Gallery From 27 October, Matthew King’s Fissinage“I feel like going home to bed, but it’s only noon” 69 Roeland Street, Cape Town.

T. 083 383 0656 www.youngblackman69.com

Franschhoek

Galerie L’ Art A permanent exhibition of old masters.

Shop no 3, The Ivy, Kruger Str., Franschhoek T. 021 876 2497 www.galart.co.za The Gallery at Grande Provence 31 October - 01 December, “Painters who Print-Art on Paper” an exhibition that celebrates some of the artists who have worked at The Artists Press.

Until 01 December, “Fragile Earth” by Jeannette Unite (The Project Room) Main Road, Franschoek. T. 021 876 8600. gallery@

grandeprovence.co.za www.grandeprovence.co.za

Piketberg

IS Art 31 October - end November, An exhibition of Franschhoek artists. Featuring Achim von Arnim, Alisha Erasmus, Andrea Desmond-Smith, Cindy Douglas, Annemarie van Heerden Hermans, David Walters, Francois Marais, Ingrid Bolten, Jacqueline Crewe-Brown, Johannes du Plessis, Kerri Evans, Paddy Howes, Sarah Walters, Stuart Douglas, Sue van Rensberg, Vuyisa Potina.

Ilse Schermers Art Gallery at Le Quartier francais, 6 Huguenot Street, Franschhoek. T. 021 876 8443

AntheA Delmotte Gallery 29 October - 20 November, “Portraying the beauty of Verlorenvlei” This exhibition is to draw attention to a very important wetland close to Piketberg that is under threat by a proposed mine.

29–31 October, Piketberg Art Weekend.

With amongst others an open studios route.

25 November - 15 December, “16 days of activism” 47 Voortrekker Street, The Old Bioscope, Piketberg.

073 281 7273, anthea@lantic.net

George Strydom Gallery From 27 November, 42st Summer Exhibition of South African Art Opening Saturday, 27 November @ 6pm with opening speaker Prof Lize van Robbroeck (Art historian, Stellenbosch University) 79 Market Street George. T. 044 874 4027 info@artaffair.co.za www.artaffair.co.za

Hermanus Abalone Gallery During November, Selected Works by Alta Botha, John Clarke, Christo Coetzee, Hannes Harrs, Leonard Matsoso, Larry Scully, Lynette ten Krooden, Elzaby Laubscher, Louis van Heerden. (Main Gallery); Graphic and Photographic collection featuring Lien Botha, Bettie Cilliers-Barnard, El Loko, Cecil and Pippa Skotnes, Braam Kruger, Judith Mason, Pat Mautloa, Dirk Meerkotter, Diane Victor.(Side Gallery.)

2 Harbour Rd, The Courtyard, Hermanus. T.028 313 2935 info@abalonegallery.co.za www.abalonegallery.co.za

Knysna Knysna Fine Art From 05 November, “Roadtrip” by Alex Hamilton.

Opening (coinciding the official new gallery opening) Friday 05 November @ 6pm.

Knysna Fine Art has relocated to Thesen House, 6 Long St, Knysna.

T.044 382 5107 C. 082 5527262 gallery@finearts.co.za www.finearts.co.za

Oudstshoorn Artkaroo Gallery 18 November - 18 December, mixed & multi media and lithographs by Chris Spies supported by ceramics by Elsable Pretorius.

107 Baron van Reede, Oudtshoorn. T. 044 279 1093 janet@artkaroo.co.za www.artkaroo.co.za

Paarl Hout Street Gallery 25 November - 28 February 2011, “Annual Summer Salon.” this exhibition features an extensive range of paintings, ceramics and sculptures by more than thirty South African artists.

270 Main Street, Paarl. T. 021 872 5030 zetler@icon.co.za www.houtstreetgallery.co.za

Somerset West Liebrecht Art Gallery 3 November - 28 January 2011, “Slice of Life” a group exhibition. In what must surely be one of the largest national exhibition projects ever undertaken by a small privatelyowned gallery - run by one gallerist and his dog – in this country, 630 paintings by 63 artists from all corners of South Africa are being showcased in the Liebrecht Gallery in Somerset West for a period of three months.

Opening 03 November @ 6:30pm.

34 Oudehuis Street, Somerset West.

T. 021-8528030 C. 0823043859

Stellenbosch Art on 5 Permanent exhibition of paintings and ceramics by Maryna de Witt, Pera Schillings, and Karen Kieviet.

7b Andringa Str., Stellenbosch. T. 021 887 7234 Dorpstraat Galery 06-30 November, “20squared” a group exhibition. Opening 06 November @ 10am.

144 Dorpstraat, Stellenbosch. T. 021 887 2256 info@dorpstraatgalery.co.za www.dorpstraatgalery.co.za Glen Carlou Estate On exhibition is The Hess Art Collection, including works

by Deryck Healey, Ouattara Watts and Andy Goldsworthy.

Simondium Rd, Klapmuts. T. 021 875 5314 www.glencarlou.co.za SMAC Art Gallery 30 September – 28 November, “Green”

by Barend De Wet. At Smac. The exhibition will feature a combination of recent and older works; sculpture, painting and performance.

Until 28 November, Ulrich Schwanecke.

De Wet centre, Church Street, Stellenbosch.

T. 021 887 3607 www.smacgallery.com Sasol Art Museum University of Stellenbosch 11 November - 14 Febuary 2011, “Mother Nature. Art and Psychology in conversation.” A multi-media exhibition.

Includes paintings by Marlene Dumas, sculpture by Claudette Schreuders, and photographs by Jodi Bieber, as well as multi-media artworks by established and upcoming artists. Curated by psychologist Elzan Frank.

52 Rhyneveld Street, Stellenbosch.

US Art Museum 26 October - 20 November, “Self” a solo exhibition of contemporary art jewellery by Angela Tölken. www.artistjeweller.blogspot.com Cnr of Dorp and Bird Streets, Stellenbosch.

T. 021 808 3524/3489

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STELLENBOSCH Kunsgalery Art Gallery Experience the abundance of South African artistic talent by prominent South African Artists.

1st oor Cape Quarter Square 27 Somerset Road, Green Point Ph: 021 421 3333 Audrey Fourie, Still life with bowl

email: carmel@global.co.za website: www.carmelart.co.za

wide selection of works by leading South African contemporary artists Piet van Heerden, Paarl landscape

www.stellenboschartgallery.co.za e-mail: mjg@kingsley.co.za hester@stellenboschartgallery.co.za Tel/Fax: 021 887 8343 Cell: 082 566 4630 / 076 279 2175 34 Ryneveld Street, Stellenbosch

est. 1977

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Expert advise Extensive range of moulding profiles Custom made hand-finished frames Conservation framing with museum glass On-site consultation can be arranged All work done in our own workshop Original art by local contemporary artists

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REVIEW: MENIPPEAN UPRISING | WESTERN CAPE | GALLERY GUIDE

a wisp of spider’s web or a shred of gossamer.

Lace is the lightest of substances, and even the faintest current animates the cotton phantom which appears to breathe as he glories in his virile splendor.

Belinda Blignaut’s funsy-wunsy exercise in mastication permeates the entire space with the cheap scent of the chewed bubble gum she has lumped all over a door which erupts in pustules and boils,

Lloyd Pollak The Dada South exhibition confirmed the vision of the curators of the Menippean Uprising, Hentie van der Merwe and Pierre Fouche, vindicating their love of fantasy, and inspiring them to bypass the glum, issue-driven art of our past. Instead they struck out toward the enticing subjunctive realms of perhaps, if and maybe, and as soon as we clap eyes on Adriaan de Villier’s fantastic tower of swirling, bulbous silhouette, inspired by the trickled sand-castle spires of Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia, we know we have tumbled down a rabbit hole into Wonderland.

Like a ring around a gemstone, the over-sized baroque frames enclosing the miniaturized, photographic collages that comprise Mendisa Pantsi’s ‘Wanneer die Tokkerlossie …’, underline the wonder of this encounter with the supernatural, and force us to peer, as if through a peephole, at their contents. In this gender-bending imagery, Pantsi photographs herself, and collages the tokolosh over her own likeness, so the two become one, and the bogeyman of tradition metamorphosises into a benign black fertility goddess.

Niklas Wittenberg applies his eclectic blend of drawing, painting and photographic collage to diminutive, intimate formats that usher us into his droll and whimsical daydream world. His trademark is a quirky, but sophisticated, faux naïf style in which the stylization of comics and the wonky charm of child art are charmingly refracted through a sensibility steeped in ooh-la-la and campy hankypanky.

The commission revolves around a fleeting, but passionate, seaside romance between two men who parted never to see each other again. Aiden, the lost lover, has dissolved into a tissue of remembrance, and the frailty and transparent voids of the lace give dissolving memories, and inconsolable loss consummate expression, resonating the elegiac poignancy of the marble effigies of Hadrian’s drowned paramour, Antinous. Conscious or unconscious allusions to these Hellenistic masterpieces in which a grief-stricken Emperor unceasingly commemorated his grande passion, definitively inscribe the work in the history of queer imagery.

making the inanimate, animate, and prone to all the disgusting ailments to which flesh is heir. The gum, manually wrenched into lubricious vaginal and anal shapes, brought back my itchy-twitchy pubertal years of undirected libido and disconcerting erections. The work invites intimate erotic exploration and provides multiple fleshy, pink apertures for the randy index finger to probe, at last bringing the sex toy into the art gallery.

Dale Washkansky’s examination of the roots of Nazism embedded within traditional German culture; Liza Grobelaar’s winged skull adduced Three lace panels, suspended from the ceiling, and as proof incontrovertible of the existence of tiered one behind the other, lend a sculptural dimiraculous beings; and Hentie van der Merwe’s Even though presented in fragmentary, unfinished mension to the head and torso of the naked Aiden dreamy matelot all reveal the curator’s support for form, Pierre Fouche’s ‘Aiden’s Metamorphosis’, who the artist reconstructed from an old B& W a creative approach in which tensions relax, and is a show-stopper that realizes every ideal the photograph, reproducing the contrasts of the tonal the imagination takes wing in exotic and sensual curators aim to achieve in the art of the twenty first gradations by decreasing or increasing the size of materials - mohair, lace, velvet, lapis lazuli, gold century. A traditional feminine craft is applied to a the apertures in the lace patterns. Hung before a and mercury. Although such art may at first aphomoerotic theme, and Fouche’s manual black rectangle on the gallery wall, the supporting pear inconsequent, it remains rooted in the myths, skill, flawless aesthetic sense and intensely poetic cotton threads become invisible, and Aiden’s body dreams and legends that fill the Jungian collective imagination bring off this chimerical reification of asserts an immaterial presence like unconscious and nothing could be more relevant yearning, nostalgia, desire and absence. than that.

29 Images: (Left- right) Pierre Fouche’s ‘Aiden’s Metamorphosis’ | Adriaan de Villier’s fantastic tower; Mendisa Pantsi’s ‘Wanneer die Tokkerlossie …’, | Hentie van der Merwe’s dreamy matelot; Liza Grobelaar’s winged skull; Niklas Wittenberg’s Rabbit

Group exhibition : Ryan Loubser, Pieter Uitlander, San-Mare Raubenheimer and Rache Gerber 19 November till 19 December Pieter Uitlander

Ryan Loubser

San-Mare Raubenheimer

Rache Gerber

A selection of the best Masters & Contemporary artists

www.absolutart.co.za

JH Pierneef, "Landscape of Boabab Trees", Mix Media, Signed & dated 1933

Shop 43, Willowbridge Lifestyle Centre, Carl Conje Dr, Tyger Valley, Bellville, Cape Town.

Gallery : 021 914 2846 Gerrit Dyman Jr : 072 699 5918 Email : info@absolutart.co.za.

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Ilse Kleyn Cape Town based artist with “Loved”. Oil painting, 1500 x 1000mm on boxed canvas. Ilse’s work can be seen on het website; www.artofkleyn.co.za and can be contacted on +27 845042814 / +27219814630. This year Ilse was selected by a panel of judges for the recent addition of Best of Oil Artists Worldwide, Vol 1, published by USA based Kennedy publishing. he coffee table style book feautures a double page spread of Ilse’s work.

Eastern Cape East London Ann Bryant Gallery The Main Gallery 02-12 November, Walter Sisulu University B-tech degree Graduation exhibition, a group exhibition of oil paintings and mixed media works by students from Walter Sisulu University. Opening 2 November @ 6:30pm.

The Coach House Until 06 November, “Great Expectations Revisited” a solo Exhibition by Liz Sanchez. Paper Mache Sculpture, Oil painting, Ceramics and Fibre Art. 11-27 November, Solo exhibition of mainly woodblock prints with the original woodblock by Jeff Rankin.

Opening Thursday 11 November @ 6:30pm.

9 St. Marks Rd, Southernwood, East London.

T. 043 722 4044 annbryan@intekom.co.za www.annbryant.co.za

Port Elizabeth Alliance Francaise During November, “Réunion Chroniques” (Reunion Chronicles), a photographic exhibition from Reunion Island. Featuring François-Louis Athenas, Raymond Barthes, Thierry Fontaine, Yo-Yo Gonthier, Line Leclerc, Edgar Marsy, René Paul Savignan and Laurent Zitte.

17 Mackay Street, Richmond Hill. T. 041 585 7889 assistantafpe@telkomsa.net www.alliance.org.za Epsac Gallery 27-29 November, “Professional Practice Seminar” - 3 day Seminar AT EPSAC. A first for Port Elizabeth! Booking Essential.

The seminars have been successfully run in Johannesburg, Pretoria & Cape Town.

36 Bird Street, P.E. T. 041 585 3641 gallery@epsac.co.za

Kwazulu- Natal Durban The African Art Centre Durban Until 15 November, “An African Christmas” The exhibition will showcase a large selection of skillfully beaded and telephone wire Christmas ornaments and decorations, colourfully beaded tableware, hand-built ceramic created by crafters supported by the African Art Centre.

17 December - 05 December, A solo exhibition of landscape paintings by Derrick Nxumalo.

08 December - 09 January 2011, A New Range of Summer Jewellery and a selection of artwork in a variety of mediums by the Velobala Group.

94 Florida, Durban. T. 31 312 3804/5 africanartcentre@afri-art.co.za www.afriart.org.za Alliance Française of Durban During November, “Extra-Muros : Architectures of Delight” 22 Sutton Crescent , Morningside. T. 031 312 9582 www.alliance.org.za Artisan Contemporary 10 November - 04 December, “Coastal Reflections” paintings by Jenny Meyer and Jewelry by Bianca Ladds.

344 Florida Rd, Morningside, Durban. T. 031 312 4364 www.artisan.co.za

EASTERN, NORTHERN CAPE | KZ- NATAL | GALLERY GUIDE Montage Gallery Mid October - Mid November, “fine art sale”, in the run-up to the end of the year period, as an early boost for art lovers. The idea is to entice artists to clear out their studios by offering their work at reduced prices, and a number of well-known names have already pledged their support.

59 Main Road, Walmer, P.E. T. 041 581 2893 montage1@iafrica.com www.montagegallery.co.za Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum Permanent exhibition, “Art in Mind” Until 05 December, “RE.SPONSE” Lecturers, students and Alumni from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University School of Music, Art and Design were challenged to produce artworks in response to selected works from the Art Museum’s Permanent Collection. This exhibition showcases these interpretations together with the original artworks.

Until 12 December, “Fauna and Flora” images and ceramics.(Artworks include a selection from the print portfolio “Art meets science: flowers as images” produced at The Caversham Press. Artists selected include Vusimusi (Derek) Nxumalo, Douglas Goode, John Manning and famous early South African 20th Century artists Hugo Naude and Irma Stern, will be featured together with ceramics produced at Ardmore Studio and a selection of Hilton Nel’s ceramic cats. Textiles from the Art Museum’s Chinese collection will also be displayed, alongside prints from the Indian and Japanese collections.)

10 December - 06 February 2011, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum Biennial Exhibition and Award 2010.

18 December - 18 March 2011, “Faces and Places” An exhibition of paintings, photographs, prints and ceramics from the Art Museum’s Permanent Collection depicting people and the environments that they live work and play in. (Artworks featured include portraits by George Pemba, Maggie Laubser, Dorothy Kay, Lynnley Watson and Jessie Mooy with photography by Rob Duker, Marc Shoul and Jurgen Schadeberg. Scenes by Tommy Motswai, Linga Diko and Willie Bester will feature people in places.)

1 Park Drive, Port Elizabeth. T. 041 506 2000 www.artmuseum.co.za

ArtSPACE Durban 01-13 November, “we loved being at home” - Caryn Nolan 15-25 November, Anthea Martin and Megan Bonnetard.

29 November - 15 January 2011, “8th Annual Affordable Art Show” 3 Millar Road, Stamford Hill, Durban. T.031 312 0793 info@artspace-durban.com www.artspace-durban.com Durban Art Gallery Until 07 November, Standard Bank Young Artist 2010: Michael MacGarry.

2nd Floor City Hall, Anton Lembede St (former Smith St) Durban.

T. 031 311 2264 strettonj@durban.gov.za KZNSA Gallery 02-07 November, NPC Photo Awards 14 November - 2011, “Buzz Art” Christmas gift fair extravaganza.

166 Bulwer Rd., Glenwood. T. 031 2023686 www.kznsagallery.co.za

Margate

New Creations 29 October - 20 November, “Transfiguration”- Ekphrastic/ Art & Poetry Exhibition 25 Artists, 12 Poets, 40 Artworks, 35 Poems Paintings.

Photography and ceramics will be displayed alongside the poem which originally inspired the artwork. Amongst our poets are Gabeba Baderoon (2005 winner of the DaimlerChrysler Award for South African Poetry), Chris Mann (Ad Hominem Professor of Poetry at Rhodes University and founder and convenor of Wordfest.) Established artists include: Greg Schultz, Anthony Harris, Sandy Coffey, Derrick Erasmus, Christine Ross-Watt, Donve Branch, Bretten-Ann Moolman, Esme Goosen, Alida Stewart, Nonnie Roodt, Rick Becker, Louise Punt-Fouche, Sue Hoppe...

Dr Nicholas Allen will be the opening speaker.

For enquiries T. Stephanie Liebetrau at 041 3737136/ 082 8774138 letrau@agnet.co.za

Northern Cape Kimberley William Humphreys Art Gallery 27 October – 15 November, Exhibition of works by lecturers of the University of KwaZulu Natal.

Work on display from the William Humphreys Art Gallery Collection: Peter Clarke; New acquisitions from the Eastern Cape; Alan Grobler – linocut prints from Port Elizabeth; Contemporary South African Ceramics.

Civic Centre, Cullinan Crescent, Kimberley.

T. 053 831 1724 artmuseum@whag.co.za www.whag.co.za

Pietermaritzburg The Blue Caterpillar Art Gallery 1-30 November, Oil Paintings by Tony de Freitas and Roy Stokes both local KwaZulu Natal artists.

01-30 December - Spanish artist Didier Lourenço’s watercolour and original oil paintings will still be on view in the gallery and on our website.

02-31 January, Still lifes and landscape oil paintings by Jocelyn Boyley and Charmaine Eastment both artists where influenced and tutored by the late Errol Boyley.

The Blue Caterpillar art gallery at Butterflies for Africa 37 Willowton Road, Pietermaritzburg. T. 033 387 1356 art@butterflies.co.za or bluecaterpillarart@hotmail.com www.butterflies.co.za Tatham Art Gallery Until 26 November, “Jabulisa 2010 The art and craft of Kwazulu-Natal.”

Until 28 November, A Passion for Plants, a mixed media exhibition by BAASA members.

Cnr of Chief Albert Luthuli (Commercial) Rd. and Church Str. (Opposite City Hall) Pietermaritzburg.

T. 033 342 1804 www.tatham.org.za

Margate Art Museum Museums art collection on display.

T.039 312 8392 C.072 316 8094 huey@hcm.gov.za

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GALLERY GUIDE | WESTERN CAPE / GALLERY BUZZ Kim Myerson opening at The Casa Labia Galleria, with her solo show entitled: Florence Years

Clockwise: Kim Myerson | John White, Frederike Stokhuyzen-White | Carey Brander, Carmen Brander, Rachelle Bomberg, Charl Bezuidenhout | Victoria Myerson, Kim Myerson, Sue Sayers | Antonia Labia Hardres-Williams, Catherine Bolton | Sarah Daly, Jenny Daly, Glynis Mayer, Di Gottschalk | Robert Slingsby opens at The Barnard Gallery

Conrad Theys, Chris Barnard and Robert Slingsby New Osner Photography Gallery, Waterkant

Zavrik Botha aka Superdog gives a killer blast to his past work at the Castle. Photo : Alex Jongens

Pictured at the ABSA function “Journey into Investing in Art� exhibition at the Crouse Art Gallery were Mpume Langa; Portia Nodangala and Ndabo Langa | Kate Butler; Karen McGuinness from Backsberg Wines and Dean Butler | . Yashika Phunwasi and Mukesh Maharaj.

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REVIEW: RE.SPONSE | EASTERN CAPE | GALLERY GUIDE

RE.SPONSE - Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum, Port Elizabeth Jeanne Wright The Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in collaboration with the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum is presenting an art exhibition with an innovative twist. The concept for this exhibition is an interesting and challenging one. 38 artists who have been associated over the years with the University’s fine art department were invited to choose a work from a menu of works chosen from the museum’s permanent holdings. The original work was to act as a catalyst or springboard for the genesis of a new work. The ‘response’ would be displayed contrapuntally or ‘in dialogue’ alongside the original. Many well-known local and national figures are amongst the works which are executed in a wide range of media. The works were arranged under titles such as Faces, Figures, Inner City to the Countryside, Flora and Fauna and Narratives.

The project challenges both artists and viewers, as iconic images like Pembas, Prellers and Kentridges have an aura of their own and are not easily accommodated or faced down. Significant pieces were set alongside the new works and consequently, both works could be seen or understood in a different context. In one of the six academic essays in the catalogue, Professor Gregory Kerr suggests that works acquired by museums tend to acquire a ‘hallowed’ status by the sheer fact that they are picked out and isolated from an artist’s oeuvre as work to be admired, criticized or emulated. He also

points out that art arises as a response to a particular period in the artist’s working life and that it reflects what was going on in both the artist’s mind as well as the particular set of social circumstances prevalent at the time. In this instance, styles and approaches vary from the literal to the obtuse.

Interpretation of works was undertaken either in the established canon or if works were ‘modern’ and perceived as conceptually opaque, interpretation was open-ended and idiosyncratic as Alhyrian Lane’s ‘Walter’s Battery’ - a quasi scientific construction with sea water and electric currents which was a response to Walter Battiss’s abstract patterned serigraph called “Floating Goddess”.

Nicholas Allen’s ducal and ironic self-portrait in response to Dorothy Kay’s seminal work “The Eye of the Beholder” - and bearing the same title - adheres to a long tradition of photo-realism in art.

Anton Momberg’s sculptural take on the same work deconstructs the subject matter literally using eyes as the linking motif. Mary-Anne Kella produced two exquisite white horn shaped ceramics in response to Jurgen Schadeberg’s black and white photograph from the 1950’s - the sinuous curves of the horns echoing the gyrating dancers movement and shadows. An 1850 I’Ons watercolour of Xhosa women resulted in layered resonances from three different artists. Vulisango Ndwandwe produced an installation of tent-like pit-fired ceramic vessels placed in a laager around a circle of ceramic canons which had elephant dung and a bowl of maize

kernels within the circle – a remarkably elegant and pithy interpretation of a colonial subject overlaid with contemporary systems and profiles. Another work in response to the same I’Ons was Graham Jones’s wooden construction of a ‘bridge/ ladder’ supporting a trio of rider and horses - a marriage of Quixotic irony and rustic metaphor.

Some of the new work is underwhelming when seen alongside the museum works, underscoring how difficult the business of making art is when specific briefs determine how the artist approaches his topic. It was also evident that some artists found the brief far removed from their own concerns and the links to the original subject were tenuous at best. Two which did work surprisingly well in an unlikely symbiosis was Bantu Mtshiswela’s earthy ceramic loaf-shaped disc called ‘Lava Unfolds’ as a response to Walter Oltman’s insectoid-like sculpture, ‘Lava suit’. Diametrically opposed in their metaphysical meaning and technical attributes – the one laboriously made from twisted aluminum wire and the other, a simple shape made from lowtech heavily grogged clay, the two images have all sorts of cross-pollinated cultural references – wire art as an indigenous African craft medium and clay as the medium for the famous Xian warrior figures.

In some strange non-linear way, both are about the same thing – voids and a sense of the primeval and ancient.

Clockwise: The exhibition room, Dorothy Kay’s seminal work “The Eye of the Beholder” Vulisango NdwandwaIbhunga (War meeting, the agenda) ceramic, cow dung, maize (mielies); Walter Oltman’s ‘Lava suit’; Bantu Mtshiswela’s earthy ceramic loaf-shaped disc called ‘Lava Unfolds’ 35

ARTLife THE SOUTH AFRICAN

ART LIFE

Art Times Schools Feature: Bishops Four Seasons Project The Art Times recently caught up with the Bishops Art Department who were embarking on interesting projects for their pupils namely The Four Seasons Project that involved them painting in situ on The Rondebosch Common If your school has an interesting art department project, e-mail us at editor@arttimes.co.za and tell us about it

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ART LIFE

Bishops Accelerated Art Programme - The Four Seasons Project Peter Hyslop

winter months, the boys painted images based on photographs taken of the Common and environs on typical Cape winter days, where the boys carried over what they had learned about technique and the use the medium of oil paint from the ‘Learning from the Past’ investigation.

The interpretation of the season of spring was based on drawing and painting from the lilies that flower on the Common. Working from life and photographic sources, the boys were also introduced to the new painting techniques, involving the use of an exciting range of materials.

The Music and English pupils who participated in this project were shown the paintings that had been created by the visual arts pupils to be used as the springboard for their response in music and words respectively.

The collaborative aspect of this project, drawing together pupils and staff from different disciplines is a very exciting process, and was enjoyable for all concerned.

Conceived from the outset by Accelerated Art Programme tutor Ashley Bestbier as a collaborative project involving the pupils in the Accelerated Art Programme, the Music and English departments at both College & Prep, the project grew out of a desire to use the Rondebosh Common, experienced The interpretation of summer was undertaken through the four seasons, as the starting point and during the first term of 2010, and in this instance source of inspiration. the boys went out with their easels and painted Ashley Bestbier and Peter Hyslop (Art Master) directly from nature on the Common, just as the introduced the boys to the work of the French French Impressionists had done in the latter half of Impressionists & a few more recent practitioners the 19th Century. of the plein air approach in order to learn from Autumn was depicted in a collaborative project the masters. This was the first component of the involving a collage of small individually painted project, titled ‘Learning from the Past’. squares, then arranged by the boys to create a As the next stage of the project started during the large-scale artwork.

Row 1: Hewitson, Joshua; - Row 2: Hendrix, Zach; Gray, Ethan; Church, Christopher | Row 3: Dawray, Ihsaan, Hewitson, Joshua | Row 4: Hutchinson, Gregory ; Manicom, Steven ; During, Alastair | Row 5: Hendrix, Zach; -

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Jewellery and Watches Auction in Cape Town Monday 22 November 2010 The Vineyard Hotel, Newlands Preview Thursday 18 to Sunday 21 November from 10am to 4pm Strauss & Co, 1st Floor, Colinton House, The Oval, 1 Oakdale Road, Newlands Enquiries 021 683 6560 vanessa@straussart.co.za www.straussart.co.za

Vladimir Griegorovich Tretchikoff was born in Petropavlovsk, in distant north-eastern Russia on a peninsula overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

In 1917, to escape the Russian Revolution, the family fled south to Chinese Manchuria, where the young Tretchikoff became a set painter in the Harbin Opera House. It was here that his passion for theatre, opera and spectacle were nurtured. He met and married his beloved wife Natalie in Shanghai in 1932. They soon relocated to Singapore where they became part of the cosmopolitan, social set that frequented places like the Dutch Club.

Natalie was inevitably the centre of attraction at these glittering events in ball gowns and jewellery designed by her devoted husband.

Her striking, good looks and his penchant for theatricality are reflected in dramatic designs that evoke historical periods and exotic locations.

However, when the Second World War spread to the Pacific in 1940, Natalie and their daughter Mimi were evacuated and the family lost all contact. It was 1946 before they were re-united in South Africa. Tretchikoff went on to become one of the most commercially successful artists of all time.

This remarkable necklace, designed and made in Cape Town, is both an extraordinary art piece and the embodiment of an abiding love that triumphs against all odds.

Amethyst and gold fringed necklace, designed by Vladimir Tretchiko for his wife Natalie R100 000 – 120 000

Masterpiece by Vladimir Tretchikoff

ART LIFE

A creative cycle: Andrew Putter introduces the project that is picked up and evolved by students and volunteers who takes things forward.

Below the opening of the Sketch Assembly at Gipca, Michaelis School of Art. Right hand page: The final works resulting from the collaboration 42

ART LIFE

Putters new project: Sketch Assembly: Merry Company at Gipca They depict young people having fun: drinking, dancing, gambling, feeling each other up.

Sketch Assembly: Merry Company is a new educational project in the Hottentots Holland cycle

by GIPCA Fellow Andrew Putter, in which a group of 30 artists and designers re-imagine the history of the ‘Hottentots’ and the Dutch at the Cape of Good Hope in the 1600s by collaboratively making a body of visual sketches based on 17th century Netherlandish merry companies.

Sketch Assembly: Merry Company is the third project in Andrew Putters’ ongoing Hottentots Holland cycle. Putter’s first project in this cycle - a video installation artwork in which Maria Della Quellerie sings a ‘Hottentot’ lullaby – won him the prestigious Spier Contemporary Award in 2007.

Each of Putter’s Hottentots Holland projects re-imagines the meeting of the local ‘Hottentots’ (the Khoikhoin) and the Dutch at the Cape in the 1600s. As historians now know, the arrival of the Europeans at the Cape was devastating for the Khoikhoin. As a consequence, very little knowledge of the ancient and sophisticated culture of these ancestors survives today.

Unlike the previous two projects in the cycle, Sketch Assembly: Merry Company is a visually-

based educational project, not a body of new commercial artworks. The idea for the Sketch Assembly was sparked by a visit to the Jol exhibition at the Iziko SA National Gallery last year, where Putter saw Dirck Hals’s little painting titled ‘Merry Company’ for the first time. Merry companies are a kind of painting that were very popular in Dutch households in the early 1600s, a generation or two before van Riebeeck came to the Cape. They depict young people having fun: drinking, dancing, gambling, feeling each other up.

Merry company paintings – with their emphasis on the passions of youth – gave Putter the idea of making a new body of images which looked at the history of Khoikhoin/ Dutch contact through the eyes of the young. The idea was to photographically imitate historical merry company paintings – with actors, costumes, sets and props - except that these new works would have both Dutch and Khoikhon characters, and they would be set at the Cape.

Putter advertised the project broadly in May, and received more than 120 expressions of interest.

After looking at portfolios and conducting a series of interviews, he selected 30 people to work with,

including photographers, graphic designers, industrial designers, painters, clothing designers, set designers, and an architect. Many of these people were in their final year of study at one or other local tertiary institution, or had recently graduated.

The group first met in early June, and began the process by choosing 4 existing merry company images from the early 1600s to work with. In the ensuing 4 months, they produced an enormous body of new tests, experiments and versions of these 4 works – and elements of them – in the form of photographs, drawings, diagrams, and models. This group of collaborative, interdisciplinary sketchers is the Sketch Assembly, and it is their body of tests and sketches which comprises the output of the project called Sketch Assembly: Merry Company. Instead of the usual display of final products, the exhibition will only show these preparatory processes. This makes it particularly interesting for those who are curious about all the work that artists make, but don’t usually show – the preliminary ideas, the tangents, the playful explorations. It is an exhibition especially suited to students.

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Above: Alice Elahi painting at Cape Cross. Red Freesias; Clump of trees, Waterberg 2006; Quartz plains near Ugab ; Wild surf 1998

Alice Elahi : An elemental passion for Africa

I sat at Mile 108 along Namibia’s Skeleton Coast in an icy gale waiting for another painting to be finished.

In the intervening years Alice’s focus has changed from the Cape coast to Namibia’s wilderness areas, an abiding passion for almost thirty years.

The sea in all its moods has always been a subject, one that lies close to her heart. It is the emptiness of the Southern African landscape that has inspired her work. Although in the early years family holidays and beach scenes were her main subject matter, there is now seldom any sign of man’s impact on his surroundings. “I have been so lucky to have painted in remote areas that many people have never seen.”

Alice Elahi, Kew Gardens

By Nushin Elahi I remember as a kid sitting in a howling South Easter in the Cape Town docks long before they became the fashionable Victoria and Alfred Waterfront. My mother, Alice Elahi, was painting furiously into the open car boot. The light had already faded, but she could find the colours on her palette without looking. The Flying Dutchman was blaring from a tape and the wind shook the car. I was cold and wondered if it could blow us over the dolosse of the breakwater. Decades later

There is something about battling the elements that sparks the creative passion in this artist. Not for her pretty pictures in a studio setting. Wind, rain, sand and sun all take their toll on the paper.

Painting outdoors has honed her skills as a watercolourist, one the late critic Johan van Rooyen in 2002 called “one of the most accomplished and subtle landscapists in the book of South African art. She expresses most poignantly the temper and temperament of our wilds.”

Alice Elahi was a winner of the New Signatures Award in 1968, and her first solo exhibition in 1972 has been followed by regular exhibitions since then. Initially she took her subjects from family life, and watercolours were largely sketches for her strong and expressive oils. The glowing reds of her paintings of the canyons in Seweweekspoort in the western Cape seemed to

Above: Alice painting in the desert, Below: Alice at Kew Gardens

lead naturally to an exploration of the red dunes of the Namib in the Eighties.

The harsh outlines and sensual shapes of the sand fascinated her, and year after year she was drawn again to this barren and challenging landscape. The huge distances across the country meant that work was done on intensive painting trips and watercolours no longer were simply studies for oils. Of course it is the oils that hang in embassies and museums, like Lagoon (pictured) at the Pretoria Art Museum. “(Her work) has a rugged African beauty, rich in texture and colour, vibrant with light and with a beauty entirely individualistic and personal,” said the late Pretoria Art Museum director Albert Werth in an article in Our Art 4. “It is simultaneously realistic and abstract, and possesses both power and beauty.”

Alice has been based in Pretoria for her entire career as an artist, but her affinity with the sea means she has remained a Capetonian in spirit. This year’s exhibition, Coastlines, includes watercolours of Southern Africa’s shores from the Kunene River mouth in the north, down the Skeleton Coast and along the Garden Route.

I remind her of my ordeal in the docks. “Yes”, she says sadly, “that was the day the wind blew my new palette into the sea.”

Coastlines: 30 October to 7 November at the Alice Elahi Studio Gallery, Pretoria.

For details see www.aliceelahi.co.za 45

BILL BROWN Bill is not your typical artist. He did not choose art as a subject at school although he trained as a cadastral draughtsman in the department of the Surveyor General in the then Rhodesia, and after that as an architectural draughtsman with a firm of Chartered Architects in Salisbury. It was only when, in his late twenties, he received a set of ink drawings as a present, that a spark was lit.

This single act that changed his passion to draw and eventually paint, turned that spark into a consuming fire which has continued to this day.

He is passionate about capturing landscapes and seascapes on paper, board or canvas, and he never goes anywhere without his camera – a very useful tool when finding the perfect subject matter.

Light and how it transforms the seemingly mundane into exciting and dramatic atmospheric scenes has compelled Bill to try and record these images in any way he can.

The opportunity to retire and devote himself wholeheartedly to this passion has brought Bill to this very special time in his life in his early sixties.

“I had secretly but not convincingly believed that this day might come ‘some time’” he commented.

Bill joined the South African Society of Artists in 2004. Then, on retiring from a busy business career in manufacturing at the end of 2007, he threw himself wholeheartedly into art.

SASA was the ideal vehicle to carry him towards his goal and the support he has received from the society, and its many and enthusiastic members, has ensured that he stayed on target in progressing as a “full time artist”.

Entering SASA competitions and exhibitions has maintained firm but positive pressure on Bill and resulted in his achieving a number of honours from the society. The most recent being his election as a Fellow of SASA.

Email: willsart@mweb.co.za • Cell: 082 403 7292 • Web: artlife.co.za

Kommetjie

Hout Bay from Kommetjie beach

Twelve Apostles

Hazy day at Muizenberg

Kalky’s of Kalk Bay St James Beach Sea Gazer

Kalk Bay and Harbour House

Jager’s walk, Fish Hoek

INSIDE: THE ELLERMAN HOUSE ART COLLECTION FEATURE

BUSINESS ART

ART LEADER PROFILE | BUSINESS ART

Art Leader:

Heidi Erdmann Hazel Friedman Spring has always been a season of dualities for Heidi Erdmann, but this September, as she prepared for Doppelganger. Mark Hipper’s posthumous exhibition, her birthday and the 9th anniversary of the Erdmann Gallery, the paradoxes of birth, death, pain, healing, celebration and mourning probably never seemed greater. “In fact my life has been broken into two pieces,” she declares, “Before the accident and after.”

The word “broken” seems appropriate. In 1993 Erdmann suffered horrific injuries in a car accident. She broke every bone in her body and one side of her face was literally ripped off. She was six months pregnant at the time, and although both she and her child survived, she lives with ongoing reminders of life’s fragility. “I was an extremely physical person before the accident. Now, when family and friends go mountain-climbing, I have to wait in the car.”

That will hopefully change with a series of leg operations that will repair her limbs and allow her to climb mountains. But while her physical mobility is currently limited, she possesses a relentless, indomitable spirit that has earned her the respect of peers and gallery competitors alike.

Erdmann does not have a formal art background, apart from a stint in the art department of the film industry, she asserts. After the accident, however, while she was “healing and hiding”, she began producing ceramics as a distraction from her disability. It was during this period, in November 1993, that she “curated” her first show - a group exhibition showcasing some of the Cape’s wildest, most wanton and exciting artists, including Barend de Wet, Anton Kannemeyer, Claudette Shreuders, Brett Murray and Kate Gottgens - to mention a few.

“I called it The Exhibitionists and it was a three-day extravaganza that gave me an incredible taste of what it was like to work with artists,” she recalls.

While she cut her cultural teeth with the Exhibitionists , her rite of passage into curatorial adolescence was through a three-year tenure at the South African National Gallery (SANG), as secretary to the then director, Marilyn Martin, 1994. “It was a pivotal point in our history. South African art was rearing its head like a baby in a cot!” She reminisces. “Marilyn was always interested in photography. I too was always drawn to the medium and adored the museum environment, working with collections.”

She adds: “Although the pace is faster in a commercial gallery I liken myself, ironically, to the long-distance runner as opposed to the sprinter”.

But she was nevertheless initiated into the often cut-throat, peak-and-plummet environment of the commercial art world when she was appointed curator of the Area Gallery - a pioneering photographic space owned by renowned filmmakers, Ian and Cindy Gabriel. “Photography was flourishing overseas as an exciting, sexy medium, but in South Africa there were so many misperceptions about it. While there were very structured rules and guidelines concerning editioning and authentication certificates, internationally, within South Africa the public mistrusted the medium. Today, of course, the scenario is very different and the status of photography has been greatly enhanced as an artform with investment potential.”

Surpisingly, despite her passion for the medium, Erdmann does not practise photography herself. But she certainly has a head for figures. While she describes SANG’s Martin as her creative mentor, her “MBA” in art management was acquired while doing the books for a film production company, where she continued her extensive research into contemporary art and photography. That was in 2000. Erdmann Contemporary had been conceived in 1999, focussing on promoting the international career of comic artist, Conrad Botes, who was being nurtured by Studio d’Arte Raffaelli, in Italy. Although Erdmann no longer represents Botes, she has maintained a relationship both with him and with international galleries in Italy and London.

Photo: Jenny Altschuler

But arguably, her greatest contribution to contemporary art has been through her unrelenting support for contemporary photography - a commitment that was cemented in 2001 by the establishment of the PHOTOGRAPHERSgalleryza.

From the outset she adopted a multi-pronged approach to the gallery, focusssing primarily on photography and comic art, with a select coterie of sculptors and painters also on her books. And while she may not be the most high profile of gallerists, since her gallery’s inception she has effectively straddled both local and international arenas. She partners with a gallery in London and her artists have been representetd at fairs such as Cologne, Photo San Francisco 2005, Photo LA 2006 and Artseasons 2007. Artistactivist Manfred Zylla will soon be exhibiting a selection of works at Centro Luigi Di Sarro, in Rome. Erdmann is also currently compiling a retrospective exhibition for photographer Roger Ballen. And legendary photographer Jurgen Schadeberg has returned briefly from France, where he now resides, for an exhibition of images of the Berlin Wall …

Erdmann is, unashamedly, a control freak. “I have to involve myself in every aspect of the gallery. And I can’t just sit around and sell art to someone who stops by. I have to actively seek out and evolve new projects. Included in the litany of “shows to do” in an already crowded cultural calendar, is the Erdmann’s 10th anniversary show and the curatorship of a photographic show in Finland, which she regards as a “career highlight.” Also on the itinerary is an art excursion into Asia, particularly Hong Kong and a focus on African photography in Paris.

But apart from a schedule that would stretch the stamina of a marathon runner, perhaps the most evident hallmark of Erdmann’s commitment to contemporary art and photography is the intensely personal relationships she shares with the artists themselves.

“They have to do residencies, I regularly visit their studios and drive them insane. She adds: “and I’m exactly the same with my clients! It’s a partnership and process that entails presenting a high quality product.”

It was possibly this intense commitment that attracted Mark Hipper to Erdmann’s space. He, the meticulous, disciplined, intellectually-charged perfectionist; she, the more fluid, but equally intellect driven perfectionist.

“It was a wonderfully intense mix. We were such opposites yet had the utmost respect for each other. I love the grapple stages of an exhibition, where you agonise and plan everything from title to display. But I never had that with Mark. Even the show’s title, Doppelganger, had been decided by him ages ago.

When Hipper’s drawings and paintings arrived she cursed him. “Here I was, about to put together an exhibition of works by an artist who would have been so intensely involved. It was agonising. I felt abandoned.”

But Hipper’s presence in the elegiac display is spine-chillingly ubiquitous, not simply as alter-ego or “double” - as indicated by the exhibition title - but also in the form of incarnations and entanglements of the other and the self Doppelganger is about love, loss and transience. It is lyrical, elegant and profoundly poignant. In the Unfinished tripych - ironically, the only titled work - the artist’s muse hops, skips and jumps out of the frame, the only trace of her presence in the form of her shadow, or the shadow of the one who has been watching her Erdmann too, is something of a dual, no, make that a multiple, personality? comfortably wearing several hats. “It’s not in my nature to slow down, until I stumble.” Soon, she will be climbing, literally. However it is apparent to all that already, she has successfully scaled several summits and even moved a couple of mountains.

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Perched high up on the upper slopes of Lion’s Head, Ellerman House commands sweeping views of the wide Atlantic Ocean and the rocky promontory below where Sea Point yields to Bantry Bay, and the sweet scent of wealth permeates the air.

The address 180 Kloof Road is one of the most desirable on the peninsula, and, like a mountain pass, the road slowly snakes its way past sleek minimalist apartments and the gardens of stately mansions planted with palms, wild fig and magnolias so waxy one imagines domestics polishing them with a cloth early each day.

Text by Lloyd Pollak. Photo’s by Jenny Altschuler (JA) and Ross Hillier (RH)

The five-storey hotel is entered from above via that supremely civilized amenity, a porte cochere which protects you from the uncouth assault of the elements. Double doors usher one out of the twenty-first century and into the hall, where time travels backwards to disgorge us amidst colonial splendor. The juxtaposition of an English fin de siecle marquetry cabinet and a massy Cape Dutch antique bible desk pays tribute to South Africa’s dual European heritage, and reflects the sympathies of Sir John Ellerman who started learning Afrikaans in 1948 when he purchased the property and took up residence in the Cape.

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It is with him that the history of Ellerman house as a refuge and sanctuary begins. The wealthiest plutocrat in the British Empire and the proprietor of newspapers, breweries, collieries and the Ellerman line, a fleet of 120 merchant vessels – Sir John was a pathological recluse obsessed with privacy. He and his wife, Lady Esther, lived a secluded life in this haven which is neither overlooked by neighbors, nor glimpsed from the road. So intense was the Ellerman’s loathing of exposure, that they permitted only two photographs of themselves to ever be taken, and one of these holds pride of place on the Steinway grand piano in the sitting room.

(Top) The majestic view of the Cape’s full horizon (RH) (Left) Nick Dreyer, Ellerman’s amazing manager spends much time enjoying the fine art (JA) (Right) The stairwell into the main corridors of the house (note Welz’s ‘Still Life with Musical Instruments’ ) (JA)

ELLERMAN HOUSE ART COLLECTION FEATURE | BUSINESS ART

ELLERMAN HOUSE ART COLLECTION & GALLERY

The impressive teak joinery of the hall rises into a pieced screen of carved balusters in its upper register. A grand manorial staircase leading to the principal staterooms sweeps downward to left, and as you descend, you are regaled by a roll call of many of our most illustrious old masters like Van Esche, Preller, Sekoto and Oerder. The progression comes to a climax on the landing where Jean Welz’s entrancing ‘Still Life with Musical Instruments’ stops you in your tracks. This ravishingly delicate creation portrays strung instruments, sheet music, a music stand, violin cases, a bow and a single rose placed on a plate. This vaporous mirage-like image is executed in a style as ethereal as tinted steam or a melody fading on the air. The artist’s (Left) Van Wouw’s “Meiliepap eater” with Frans Oerder’s “African Kraal” (JA) (Right) One of the friendly staff passes Thomas Bowler’s early Cape scenes (JA)

signature palette of melting grays, browns, pinks, greens and yellows is so cloying in colour, and so delectable in appearance, you could eat it with a spoon.

Paul Harris, financier and hotelier, was an inveterate collector long before he purchased Ellerman House in 1988. It was he who turned it into a hotel boasting one of the most comprehensive collections of traditional South African art in the country. An outright masterpiece of sculpture, Anton van Wouw’s ‘The Mieliepap Eater’ (1907), rises from a chest of drawers at the further end of the baronial hallway on the hotel’s principal floor.

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Although it is but a diminutive cabinet bronze, it triumphantly vindicates the proposition that grandeur and monumentality do not depend on scale. This portrayal of a lean and dirt-poor black youth squatting on his hunkers as he prepares his humble meal in a tiny three-legged pot, derives from European delineations of the dignity of labour, but the sheer dereliction of this bare, forked black stripling, lends the bronze poignancy and expresses Van Wouw’s keen empathy with the miserable and oppressed indigenous peoples languishing under the colonial yoke.

The Sitting Room and Staterooms A complete switch of mood occurs on entering the sitting room. After the enclosed areas of the staircase and hallways on the mountain side of the hotel, space suddenly opens up and expands around us, and the dark sheen of polished woodwork yields to fresh, spring-like pastels. The room is all urbane Edwardian elegance and sophistication with pale eau du Nil walls, crystal chandeliers and sconces aglow with pendant lusters. Tall, wellproportioned French windows open up onto the marine vistas, bringing the

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outdoors, indoors, and flooding the interior with light.

A radiant sparkle is the keynote of the staterooms all of which communicate with the gardens and ocean, and the light picks out the mellow glow of the veneers and gleaming gilt bronze mounts on a pair of sumptuous, French, tambour-fronted commodes, the glint of the gilded porcelain in the alcoves, and the shimmer of the massive cut-glass Regency vases piled with blossoms. Fresh flowers are everywhere: towering vases erupt with proteas, roses, lilies and sprays of leaves, and bowls filled with Barberton daisies and camellias afloat on water suggest a pot pourri come back to life.

The furnishings are deliberately self-effacing in line with the general manager, Nick Dreyer’s, cardinal rule of never competing with the views.

Understatement banishes any hint of ostentation. Curtains and upholstery are executed in pale, plain and muted fabrics in celadon, oyster and faint powder blue and rose pink. Pattern, when it occurs is unfailingly discrete, and any business of effect is avoided. The undeniable panache of the butler’s trays, Regency style rope-back armchairs, library and occasional tables is disguised by their well-bred reticence.

(Top) View from the smoking room to the kitchen, note Maggie Laubsher’s “The Shepherd” hangs above the fireplace. (JA) (Below) The jewel like rooms are filled with well chosen artwork. Some returning residents insist that staff hang work that was seen and enjoyed on a previous visits. (RH)

The Dining Room

The Library

In the sea-green dining room, three French windows, divided by tall mirrors, face the ocean, coastline and shipping, bathing the space in a Veuve Clicquot effervescence and shimmer. Two seascapes by Terence MCcaw, and early 19th century scenes of coasts and shipping compliment the room’s marine theme. All is sparkling, laundered freshness, and the crisp, starched white napery, hall-marked cutlery and gilded service are given a honeymoon shot of romance by the candelabra, chandeliers and flickering candles.

A desk of impressive solidity and many glass-fronted book cases in the library evoke the sequestered privacy of a squire’s study in an English country house. The 25 weighty tomes of the handsome ‘scholar’s edition’ of the Encylopaedia Britannica (1875-1889) bound in tooled, gilded leather, turn of the century classics and monographs on South Africa’s painters and sculptors, line the shelves. It is such intimate touches that turn Ellerman House into a home from home, making the guests feel chez soi and avoiding the impersonal character of many a Ritz, Grand, Plaza or Carlton. Deep French bergeres, equipped with footstools, and silver trays with crystal decanters of sherry at the ready, dispel any hint of scholastic austerity. A conservatorylike glass extension to the room whips up a festive holiday mood, and forms a proscenium framing the view. Management’s unswerving commitment to the comfort of their guests is seen in many inspired personal touches. Here two commodious chairs and footstools have been strategically positioned before the windows, inviting you to drink in the prospect, like some rare, vintage appellation contrôlée.

Any hotel, by its nature, is a warren of corridors, vestibules, stairs and service areas, but the nooks and crannies of Ellerman House, like the tunnels of the disused mines that saved Britain’s artistic patrimony from the Blizkrieg, are veritable treasure troves. One passage is lined with Edmund Pink’s topographic studies of the peninsula in the 1820’s; another contains the largest collection of Bowler water-colours of the colony in private hands. In the gym, one suddenly haps upon a spiral staircase in a minuscule cubic space like a jewel box, hung with superb graphic works.

The dinning room paintings complements one’s culinary pleasures, paintings include John Meyer and McCaws Seascapes (RH)

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BUSINESS ART | ELLERMAN HOUSE FEATURE Maggie Laubsher’s “The Shepard” hangs above the fireplace. This tabletop arrangement carves out a shallow space in which, five paraffin lamps, are juxtaposed with shells, lemons and a hieratic sculpted head of archaic, Afro-Egyptian inspiration. The round lamps state the spherical theme, and a suite of variations on the circle constitute the formal basis of the painting. The background objects – an artist’s palette, flat metallic silhouettes and a decorative fragment of wallpaper - are dragooned into circles, ovals and arcs, and the swinging curves inject a boogie-woogie rhythm and swirl into the painting. The severity of Preller’s continent mesh of pewters and gun-metal grays is offset by the frivolous pink of the artist’s palette, lemon, carmine, blue and orange accents, the burning orange flames of the wicks and the play of highlights and reflections on the metal surfaces. Lamps are associated with mining, and they establish this as the source of both the country’s wealth, and the finer things of life such as the painting and sculpture invoked by the palette and head.

for you are lord of all you survey, as you gaze down at the shoreline which obligingly curves around you to extend the views beyond a mere 180 degrees. Space appears boundless, for the distant horizon recedes beyond the ocean, and the sweeping views seemingly extend for ever. The only hints of the finite are the passing cargo ships, the occasional playful whale, Robben Island, Bloubergstrand and the distant mountain ranges beyond.

The Main Façade and Gardens

The Contempory Gallery and its Statuary

A greatly enlarged seaside villa first constructed in 1907, Ellerman House is a comely, horizontal range of buildings of broad and ample proportions that turns architecture outside in. French doors and sash and bay windows are prefixed by wide arched loggias that marry the inside to the outside, invite nature within, and provide ideal vantage points from which to admire the gardens, coastline and sea lain down before you like a Persian carpet. Paved areas outside provide a transitional feature before house becomes garden, and these are dotted with tables and umbrellas for leisurely al fresco meals, teas, sundowners and aperitifs. The garden is a foretaste of heaven. You could be on the bridge of an ocean liner,

So as not to sacrifice an inch of precious garden space, the new contemporary art gallery was built underground beneath the furthest terrace. Artists advised on the design which aims at the inconspicuous. The architecture never forgets its minion status, and - like a Cockney dresser attending a prima donna assoluta - remains subordinate to the painting, sculpture, video and photography. Nevertheless this is no sterile and aseptic white cube.

The lavish makes an appearance in Quaker disguise. Floors are stained oak parquet; walls, white painted beech wood, lending texture and warmth to the brilliantly lit exhibition space which completely avoids the claustrophobic gloom associated with subterranean structures.

The peace is broken only by birdcall. The soothing sough of trees, the liquid music of waves pounding on rocks, the heave of the ocean swell and the plash of water trickling into the swimming pool heighten the sense of ease and hush.

Balustraded terraces descend in strict formation. The broad expanses of impeccably manicured lawn are bordered by spruce, well-groomed beds of white and pink roses, agapanthus, lavender and irises interspersed with soaring Canary Island date palms.

Unfortunately, although the Harris’s have assembled a premier old master collection, they have Helen Keller’s eye for contemporary art, and most of the work on display is dispiritingly nondescript. Angus Taylor’s dramatic sculptures spilling out from the gallery into the garden are however the exception that proves the rule. These rugged, craggy earth gods present a wild appearance that underlines the couth character of Ellerman House.

A hulking, naked ogre looms up before us like a materialization of the genius of the place, and acts as keeper and guardian of Ellerman House. The neck of this hybrid being – part stone, part mineral and part flesh – rises into a savage array of rocks. Lighting, gales, storms and lashing rain, have inflicted grievous damage upon this Titan who crouches in order to rest his pitted and scarred bronze body. Deep crevices part his flesh. Screws and nails hold the ruptured skin together, and indicate the lengths to which Ellerman House’s staff will go, to ensure one’s every comfort.

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(Above) The entrance to The Ellerman House (RH) (Below) A sweeping view of Bantry Bay and Seapoint. From here Sir Ellerman could watch his fleet of ships appear from one horizon and disappear over the next (RH)

ELLERMAN HOUSE FEATURE | BUSINESS ART

(Above) Inside and outside the contemporary art gallery with Angus Taylor’s mighty head looking out into the bay (RH) (Middle) Taylor’s Sitting man in garden (JA). For more work see Ellerman at www.artvault.co.za

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BUSINESS ART | INTERNATIONAL | GAUGUIN : MAKER OF MYTH / TATE MODERN

By Nushin Elahi It’s an interesting exercise walking backwards through Gauguin: Maker of Myth, the exhibition that is now drawing record crowds at the Tate Modern in London. Almost like rewinding a film, you see images that you hadn’t noticed before. Although the exhibition is arranged in thematic groups, rather than chronologically, it ends with his island paintings.

We have all been fed the myth of Gauguin’s tropical island paradise, of the artist who threw everything away to remain true to his art. In fact, there are few paintings that show the idyll. Two Tahitian Women from New York’s Met is the exception rather than the rule: two beautiful dusky, doe-eyed creatures bearing offerings against a jungle background. More often the islanders are close-faced, their eyes hooded and wary, their look sullen and secretive.

They are squatting for their morning toilet by a river, whispering amongst themselves or gazing fearfully at monstrous gods. Their figures are statuesque rather than sensual.

Gauguin came to the tropics to escape a conventional life. He had already turned his back on his family to fulfil his own belief in himself as an artist. “I am a great artist and I know it,” he wrote to his estranged wife in 1892 from Tahiti. The search for the primitive had led him to a down-at-heel French colony the missionaries had got to a century earlier. The islanders were clothed, housed and eventually even had electricity – a far cry from the half naked groups he depicts in jungle clearings. Gauguin set about researching 58

their long-forgotten gods and old legends from other European traveller’s tales, and then created his own myth.

His determined embrace of a naïve art is still unsettling a century on: the devil crouching in the undergrowth, the monumental female deity Oviri.

The constant presence of these ancient forces makes for provocative work, often startlingly modern but seldom the dreamy vision of paradise that he is popularly believed to have created.

From this perspective it is possible to see how Gauguin was always searching for the Other. A simple flower study has a malevolent idol crouching behind the blooms; the gentle portrait of a sleeping child shows wallpaper that seems to contain sprites from a dream-world; a devilish-eyed child peers at a bowl of fruit. What appears a simple portrait of an island girl (Tehamana has many parents) takes on another layer when you know it is his teenage ‘vahine’, demurely dressed in European garb, but flanked by images of idols.

These conflicting narratives of European culture imposed on a primitive lifestyle permeate his island work, but Gauguin was astute enough as a businessman to realise that the mystique of his art depended on the tropical idyll that Westerners then and now craved.

There is little showing Gauguin’s Impressionist beginnings, but many from his stint in Brittany where the Celtic folklore laid the seeds for his later work.

His landscapes are exquisite, his simplified style and blocks of saturated colour still uniquely his own, despite the many artists who have been inspired by his work. His religious paintings, from the self portrait as Christ, to the gorgeous almost abstract reds and whites of Vision of the Sermon, the strange use of iconography and landscape in both the Green and the Yellow Christ all prefigure the primitive deities of his Tahiti paintings.

This is the first time in over fifty years that London has hosted a major Gauguin exhibition and the incredible range of work covers not only his paintings, but sculpture, carvings and ceramics. Many of his great masterpieces are here, but also lesser known, unusual work. So the ornately carved lintel of his Tahitian home, the ceramic self-portrait as a severed head made soon after Van Gogh’s death, woodcut prints of his books and the work he prized as his best sculpture, the grotesque figure of Oviri, are displayed alongside his oils. They come from all over the world, but a surprising number hail from Copenhagen. As a young French stockbroker, Gauguin took a Danish wife, who fled home with their five children when the market crashed and her 34year-old husband turned his Sunday hobby into a full-time passion.

As he told her, he was indeed a great artist, but his work will never have the comfortable delight of the Impressionists. It is challenging, modern and deeply unsettling. Reproductions also never do it justice, so this is one exhibition worth joining the pilgrimage to the Tate.

Gauguin: Maker of Myth at the Tate Modern, Millbank, London until 16 January 2011.

Nevermore O Tahiti 1897 (Courtauld Gallery, London) Oil on canvas. Girl in a European Dress

SOUTH AFRICAN ART AUCTIONS | BUSINESS ART

Strauss & Co. set a new record for South African art A still life by celebrated artist Irma Stern sold this week for R13 368 000, setThe auction finished on an exhilarating note with high prices for contemting a new record price for a South African painting at auction. The auction porary art. Stanley Pinker’s The Wheel of Life sold for R2 450 800, more conducted by Strauss & Co featured several works which sold for well in than double its pre-sale estimate of R1m and an elegant still life painting by excess of R1 million rand each. The sale totalled over R43 million bringing Cecil Skotnes fetched R946 900 (estimates R300 000 – 500 000). A bidding Strauss & Co’s total for the year thus far to over R120 million rand confirmfrenzy ensued on a John Meyer landscape which sold for R267 360 and ing the strength of the local art market and Strauss’s leading position as on two graphic works by William Kentridge which also sold well above their auctioneers of South African art. estimates.

Major collectors and art lovers packed the auction house to capacity to witness the sale that has been the talk of the art world. Stephan Welz, Significantly, sales were good at the top, middle and lower ends of the marManaging Director of Strauss & Co and the country’s top fine art auctioneer, ket, bucking predictions that the financial climate would put a dampener on set a cracking pace from the start. J H Pierneef’s Koringlande, Agter Paarl, buyers’ enthusiasm for art purchases and proving yet again that quality sells. which as a rare Cape landscape has excited much public interest, exceeded By close of evening it was clear that Strauss & Co had achieved the highest its pre-sale estimate of R2 500 000 - 3 500 000 and sold for R4 678 000. total yet for any of its six auctions to date, since the company’s founding in Hot on its heels two remarkable paintings by Maggie Laubser achieved late 2008. With the year’s total thus far standing at R120 million, Strauss excellent results: Flamingos on the Beach sold for R2 673 600 and a second and Co have already passed their previous highest annual turnover figure, landscape sold for R1 782 400, both well beyond their pre-sale estimates. with two sales to go. This firmly establishes them as the leading auction The highlight of the evening, Irma Stern’s Gladioli, was sold for R13 368 house worldwide for South African art by turnover, expertise and quality.

000, far beyond its pre-sale estimate of R5-7m, the highest price ever paid for any South African painting on auction. When Welz’s gavel went down, All prices quoted are inclusive of Buyer’s premium. spontaneous applause erupted both for the buyer and in recognition of the For a post sale video by Strauss & Co’s Stephan Welz see here auctioneer’s expertise. Two late paintings by Stern also performed well with www.straussart.co.za/videos the innovative Yachts and Houses achieving R2 673 600 and her Figure on For more information visit Strauss &Co’s website at www.straussart.co.za a Beach selling for R1 448 200, comfortably beyond the pre-sale estimate of or call 021 683-6560 R1,2m.

Irma Stern’s Gladioli, was sold for R13 368 000, far beyond its pre-sale estimate of R5-7m, the highest price ever paid for any South African painting 59 on auction.

BUSINESS ART

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Art Times Subscriptions Make Great Christmas Gifts That adds thrill for a whole year

7th – 30th November 2010 To be opened by Sidney Abramowitch, award-winning architect of the Apartheid Museum at 16.00 hrs on 7th November Visit www.thompsongallery.co.za for events When the human spirit and the creative process come together the soul speaks.

Sheila Jarzin has exhibited through the years at the Everard Read and other galleries. She studied with Guiseppe Cattaneo for six years.

This exhibition is a homage to her son Dan and a celebration of his life. She has punctuated her journey through her canvases and they Abstract #1, 2009, Oil on canvas, 92 x 122 cms. express the rich range of emotions with integrity and love.

Ubuntu!

Share the art beauty and the drama for a whole year with someone special, at a sprecial price of R 320 Makes a lasting Christmas present for a whole year !

Purchase a year’s subscription from Tracey Call Tracey on 021 424 7733 or click onto www.arttimes.co.za and then subscriptions

Gallery hours | 10:30am - 17:00pm | Tues to Sat The Thompson Gallery | 78 3rd Avenue | Melville | JHB | 011 482 2039 | 011 482 9719 www.thompson gallery.co.za | info@thompsongallery.co.za

The thrust behind this exhibition is to assess Louis Maqhubela’s place in and contribution to, South African art and to return a great artist from obscurity. When he won the ‘Artist of Fame and Promise’ Award in 1966, Maqhubela became the rst to cross the divide between black and white artists. Through a personal iconography and abstraction, he showed the way to a world and a discourse beyond the familiar.

“In spite of trials and challenges he faced during his life, Maqubela’s art is characterised by a profound humanism, inner joy and afrmation of life; [his works] spring from a deep spiritual and metaphysical well.”

Curated by Marilyn Martin Iziko South African National Gallery, Government Avenue, Cape Town

27 October 2010 – 13 February 2011 A fully illustrated catalogue with essays by Martin, David Koloane and John McLean accompanies the exhibition

Enquiries: Joe Dolby Telephone +27 (0)21 481 3966 Email jdolby@iziko.org.za web www.iziko.org.za

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STEPHAN WELZ & CO.| SOUTH AFRICAN ART AUCTIONS | BUSINESS ART

Next Stephan Welz & Co Sale: Johannesburg Tuesday 17 - Wednesday 18 November Decorative & Fine Arts, Ceramics, Silver, Furniture, Jewels & Books Location: Johannesburg Sale Dates: Tuesday 16 November, 2010 until Wednesday 17 November, 2010 Auction: 961 Lots in 4 Sessions One of the Sales highlights: Shangaan by Van Wouw It is likely that Van Wouw inherited a comfortable sum of money after the death of his father in Rotterdam in November 1907 that allowed him to have bronze castings made at the Massa and Nisini foundries in Rome of all the small sculptures he had made in 1906 and 1907. When he received the bronze castings six months later, he held his first one man exhibition on 7 July 1908, where he exhibited no less than sixteen small bronze sculptures, inviting interested patrons to order any of them.

It is, however, remarkable that it was these very works that brought Van Wouw fame as a sculptor of folk and indigenous types. Amongst these were Shangaan and Kruger in Exile.

Shangaan – This nude half-figure shows a Shangaan with intense concentration on his face, his shoulders drawn up and his arms tightly folded around his chest. This is a typical supplicatory posture and it attest’s VanWouw’s keen observation of the various postures of the African miner in early Johannesburg. Conspicuous in the best Massa and Nisini castings are the distinctness of the frown on the forehead, the protruding mouth, the exact lines of the armband, the well modeled right thumb and ears and the contrast between the dark patina of the hair on the head and the light patina of the rest of the body. This man was also the model for ‘The mealiepap eater’.- Edited from A.E. Duffey, Anton van Wouw Download the sales catalogue on www.swelco.co.za

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DECORATIVE & FINE ARTS

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CAPE TOWN The Great Cellar | Alphen Hotel | Alphen Drive | Constantia 7806 PO Box 818 | Constantia 7848 | 021 794 6461 | ct@swelco.co.za | www.swelco.co.za Currently consigning for our February 2011 Auction. Closing date: 19 November 2010 Selected images from our October 2010 Auction

JOHANNESBURG 13 Biermann Avenue | Rosebank 2196 PO Box 52431 | Saxonwold 2132 | 011 880 3125 | jhb@swelco.co.za | www.swelco.co.za Next Auction: 16 & 17 November 2010 Viewing dates: 12 November 10h00 - 17h00 | 13 November 10h00 - 14h00 | 14 November 10h00 - 17h00 Selected images from our forthcoming November 2010 Auction

Johann Louw New Paintings

8 December 2010 - 27 February 2011