SOUTH AFRICAN
GALLERY GUIDE SEPTEMBER 2011
SOUTH AFRICAN
GALLERY GUIDE Art Lovers admiring the surrealist art of Fred Page at the Fred Page book launch, Port Elizabeth. See more at www.fredpage.co.za Photo: Basil Brady
Experience the abundance of South African artistic talent by prominent South African Artists.
TRANSCODE // DIALOGUES AROUND INTERMEDIA PRACTICE COLLEEN ALBOROUGH / CELIA DE VILLIERS & INTUTHUKO SEWING GROUP / FRIKKIE EKSTEEN LAWRENCE LEMAOANA / CHURCHILL MADIKIDA / SELLO MAHLANGU , / GWEN MILLER MARCUS NEUSTETTER / CAROLYN PARTON / NATHANIEL STERN / MINNETTE VARI / FABIAN WARGAU
Curated by Gwen Miller
PIETER VAN DER WESTHUIZEN Oil on Canvas, 90 x 75 cm, ‘Hanover Street’
www.artandwine.co.za anton@artandwine.co.za Tel/fax: 058 256 1298 Cell: 082 341 8161 279 Main Road, Clarens
This exhibition is presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for a practice-led Dlitt et Phil degree and hosted by the UNISA Art Gallery and the Department of Art History, Visual Arts and Musicology
7-30 September 2011 UNISA Art Gallery
Kgorong Building, Main Campus Preller Street, Pretoria, 0003 Tel: (012) 441 5683 ukun1@unisa.ac.za // www.unisa.ac.za/gallery Gallery Hours: 10:00 - 16:00 Tuesday - Friday
Free State
FREE STATE, GAUTENG, MPUMALANGA | GALLERY GUIDE
Bloemfontein Oliewenhuis Art Museum 15 August – 30 October, “The White Monday Disaster” (Main Building) A series of exquisite woodcut prints created by Cecil Skotnes. 25 August – 11 Sept, “23rd Sophia Gray Memorial Lecture and Architecture Exhibition 2011: Learnt in translation” by Peter Rich (Main Building). 9 September, “Construct your Skin” (Sculpture Garden) 20 September – 6 November, “Zak Benjamin: Retrospective” (Main Building) 23 September – 9 October, “Freshford House Museum Photographic competition and exhibition” Free State Heritage in Pictures (Reservoir) 16 Harry Smith Str, Bloemfontein. T.051 447 9609
Clarens Art & Wine Gallery on Main The Gallery houses an exquisite collection of art by well-known artists like Gregoire Boonzaier, J.H. Pierneef, Pieter van der Westhuizen, Erik Laubscher, Jan Vermeiren, Marjorie Wallace, Eben van der Merwe, Conrad Theys, Hennie Niemann, Hannetjie de Clercq, ceramics by Laura Du Toit, sculpture by Fana Malherbe & Jean Doyle, glass by David Reade & Shirley Cloete and numerous others. 279 Main Str, Clarens T. 058 256 1298 or Anton Grobbelaar. C. 082 341 8161 anton@artandwine.co.za www.artandwine.co.za
An image from Dave Southwood’s N1 Show at The Goethe-Institut, Johannesburg. See www.johannesburg.goethe.org for more
Blou Donki Art Gallery A vibrant contemporary art gallery, housing a wide variety of contemporary artworks, functional art, steel sculptures, bronzes, handmade glass and specializing in photography. Windmill Centre, Main Str, Clarens T. 058 256 1757 manager@bloudonki.co.za www.bloudonki.co.za Johan Smith Art Gallery The gallery permanently exhibits a wide variety of classical and selected contemporary art works featuring Johan Smith, Elbè van Rooyen, Elga Rabe, Graham Carter, Nicole Pletts, Gregoire Boonzaier, Otto Klar, and various others. Specializing in ceramics, the gallery supports artists such as Hennie Meyer, Karen Sinovich, and Heather Mills, among others. Collectable bronzes, and handmade glass by David Reade, also available. Windmill Centre, Main Str, Clarens T. 058 256 1620 manager@bhm.dorea.co.za www.johansmith.co.za
Gauteng Johannesburg Alice Art Upcoming exhibitions: 3&4 September, Esté Mostert. 10&11 September, Harry Erasmus. 17&18 September, Elsbeth. 217 Drive Str, Ruimsig. T. 083 331 8466/ 083 377 1470 aliceart@global.co.za www.aliceart.co.za Art Afrique Art Afrique specialises in fine collectable African art by a wide variety of southern African artists. Shop no. U45, Legacy Mall, Cnr Maude & 5th Streets, Sandton T. 011 292 7113 art@artafrique.co.za www.artafrique.co.za Artspace –Jhb 3 September– 1 October, “(Man)nerism” featuring sculpture by Louis Olivier. 1 Chester Court, 142 Jan Smuts Ave, Parkwood, Jhb. T. 011 880 8802 artspace@wol.co.za www.artspace-jhb.co.za Christie’s International Auctioneers. Gillian Scott Berning, Independent Consultant. T 031 207 8247 Gillian.gsb@mweb.co.za www.christies.com
The White Monday Disaster series by Cecil Skotnes Oliewenhuis Art Museum A series of exquisite woodcut prints called The White Monday Disaster, created by Cecil Skotnes - one of the main pioneers of modern art in South Africa, is currently on show as part of the Permanent Collection on the first floor at Oliewenhuis Art Museum. Cecil Skotnes collaborated with well-known South African poet, playwright, editor, and novelist, Stephen Gray to create the White Monday Disaster series, which took the form of what the artist called a ‘block book’. By this, Skotnes implied a work in which the content was to be conveyed through prints and words simultaneously. Comprising 13 prints and 13 stanzas in ballad form, this work commemorates the heroic efforts of Wolraad Woltemade, who, on horseback, rescued 14 of the shipwrecked from the ship the Jonge Thomas, when it sank in Table Bay in 1773, before he himself drowned. Cecil Skotnes was born in East London in 1926. He studied painting and drawing in Florence, Italy after World War II and at the University of the Witwatersrand from 1947 to 1950 on his return to South Africa. Skotnes moved to Cape Town in 1978 where he resumed painting after decades as a print-maker. He died on 4 April 2009 at the age of 82. The White Monday Disaster series will be on show until the end of October 2011.
Mbongeni Buthelezi maNyauza
Silent messages to my mother
Johannesburg Art Gallery 4 Sep - 15 Jan 2012
CIRCA on Jellicoe 8 September – 31 October, “Horse: Multiple Views of a Singular Beast” An Exhibition of works by 60 artists curated by Ricky Burnett 2 Jellicoe Ave. T. 011 788 4805 gallery@circaonjellicoe.co.za
SA ART TIMES. September 2011
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GALLERY GUIDE | FREE STATE, GAUTENG, MPUMALANGA David Brown Fine Art A two week show from the 20th September, “Works on Paper” by the artists from the Artist Proof Studio Newtown and The Blue Door Studio –Collin Cole and students. T. 011 783 7805 david@dbfineart.co.za www.davidbrownfineart.co.za David Krut Projects Until 10 September, “Skin” photography by Gary Schneider and “Naked Pressure” an exhibition of prints by Senzo Shabangu. 140 Jan Smuts Ave., Parkwood, Jhb. T. 011 447 0627 www.davidkrutpublishing.com Everard Read Jhb 8 September – 31 October, “Horse: Multiple Views of a Singular Beast” An Exhibition of works by 60 artists curated by Ricky Burnett 6 Jellicoe Ave, Rosebank, Jhb. T. 011 788-4805 gallery@everard.co.za www.everard-read.co.za Gallery 2 Over the last 17 years, Gallery 2 (previously known as Gallery on the Square) has established itself as one of South Africa’s leading fine art galleries. Built on a strong affection for the arts, it strives to promote a cross-section of both established and emerging contemporary South African artists across a variety of disciplines, as well as supporting various local development projects. 140 Jan Smuts Ave, Parkwood. T. 011 447 0155/98 gots@mweb.co.za www.gallery2.co.za Gallery AOP Until 3 September, “Take a walk with me” Linocut prints by Sandile Goje. 44 Stanley Ave, Braamfontein Werf (Milpark) T. 0117262234 www.artonpaper.co.za Gallery MOMO Until 19 September, “Projection Surface” a solo exhibition of photography & mixed media installations by Ayana Vellissia Jackson. 22 September - 17 October, a solo exhibition of paintings by Ransome Stanley. 52 7th Avenue, Parktown North, Jhb. T. 011 327 3247 info@gallerymomo.com www.gallerymomo.com The Gerald A Lee Gallery CC For Genuine African Art Contact Jason - 0828514783 By private viewing in Johannesburg. Or at the Waterfront in Cape Town
Johannesburg Art Gallery Until 30 October, an exhibition of selected work of the top artists from a 3 year art programme based in rural northern KZN. Artists exhibiting: Lucky Jambi, Nhlanhla Mabaso, Nokuthula Gumede & Muzi Nomandla to name a few… King George Str, Joubert Park, Jhb. T. 011 725 3130 tinym@joburg.org.za www.joburg.org.za Manor Gallery “Black Like us 8” Exhibition runs until September 3rd. Little Artists Exhibition will open on Sunday 11 September at and closes on Friday 23 September. Artists include: Keletso Matlakala and Ndivhuo Mununqufhala and Bheki Mtetwa Norscot Manor Centre, Penguin Drive, Fourways. T. 011 465 7934 gallery@wssa.org.za www.wssa.org.za Resolution Gallery Until 17 September, “S’phara Phara” an exhibition of new work by photographer Chris Saunders. Unit 4, 142 Jan Smuts Ave, Parkwood, Jhb. T. 011 880 4054 info@resolutiongallery.com www.resolutiongallery.com Standard Bank Gallery Until 1 October, “Water, the [Delicate] Thread of Life” a group exhibition comprises work by a host of artists, such as Deborah Bell, Penny Siopis, Mmakgabo Helen Sebidi, Jackson Hlungwani, Walter Oltmann, Norman Catherine, William Kentridge, Georgie Papageorge, Simon Max Bannister, Alan Crump, David Goldblatt, Andrew Verster, Noria Mabasa, Strijdom van der Merwe, Moshekwa Langa, Marcus Neustetter, Karel Nel, Willem Boshoff and Durant Sihlali. Through their collective artworks, the exhibition traces water’s role on earth, from sustaining life and fuelling economies to its presence in belief systems, religions and rituals. Cnr of Simmonds & Frederick Str.’s, Jhb. T. 011 631 1889 www.standardbankarts.co.za Stephan Welz & Company Auctioneers of Decorative & Fine Arts. 13 Biermann Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg. T. 011 880-3125 jhb@stephanwelzandco.co.za www.stephanwelzandco.co.za
Goodman Gallery Until 24 September, “SWAT” by Willem Boshoff. 163 Jan Smuts Ave, Parkwood, Johannesburg T. 011 788 1113 jhb@goodman-gallery.com www.goodman-gallery.com Grahams Fine Art Gallery The gallery houses one of the finest collections of art in South Africa, their focus is on absolute quality and are proud to offer an extensive selection of works for sale. Unit 46, Broadacres Lifestyle Centre, Cnr Cedar & Valley Rds, Broadacres, Fourways, Jhb. T. 011 465 9192 sarah@grahamsgallery.co.za www.grahamsgallery.co.za Grayscale Gallery Until 7 Sept, “Taxi” an exhibition of sculpture & prints by Gordon Froud. 33 De Korte Str, Braamfontein, Jhb. T. 011 403 0077 www.pressurecontrol.co.za/NET 16 Halifax Works by Michael Heyns, Leon Muller & Mimi van der Merwe can be viewed by appointment in Johannesburg at 16 Halifax Str, Bryanston. Dana MacFarlane 082 784 6695 www.16halifaxart.co.za In Toto “POW: Perfect Heroes, Noble Causes and other Half Truths” by Bruce Donald will be on show from the 1st September to the 7th October 2011. 6 Birdhaven Centre, 66 St Andrew Str, Birdhaven. T. 011 447 6543 megan@intotogallery.co.za www.intotogallery.co.za Isis Gallery Featuring Modern African Contemporary Art and Ceramics by leading Artists: Junior Fungai, Derric van Rensburg, Errol Westoll, Brian Rolfe, Ulrich Schwanecke and Hynes Matshoba. Works can be viewed by appointment. Shop 163, The Mall of Rosebank. Contact Daniel Erasmus T. 011 447 2317 info@isisgallery.co.za www.isisgallery.co.za
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SA ART TIMES. September 2011
FREE STATE, GAUTENG, MPUMALANGA | GALLERY GUIDE The Ringmaster of the Imagination, biography on Fred Page will be launched in Johannesburg on the 7th of September. Dr. Fred Scott will be talking at the event. He is a well acclaimed collector. Jack Rosewitz, Deputy Chairman of Stephan Welz & Co (Pty) Ltd will be the emcee on the evening. Cecil Kerbel (publisher and friend of the artist) will do a speech followed by Jeanne Wright (art biographer). Date: Wednesday, 7 September 2011 Venue: 13 Biermann Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg Time: 18:30 -20:30 Opening dates: Opening on the 7th of September, closed event by invitation only. Invitation requests: ivan@greaterthan.co.za Exhibition dates: 8th and 9th exhibition open to the public. www.fredpage.co.za Stevenson Johannesburg Until 16 September, an exhibition of new and recent video works by Dineo Seshee Bopape. 62 Juta Street, Braamfontein, Jhb. T. 011 326 0034 jhb@stevenson.info www.stevenson.info Strauss & Co. Fine Art Auctioneers & Consultants. Country Club Johannesburg, Corner Lincoln Rd & Woodlands Drive, Woodmead. T. 079 407 5140 jhb@straussart.co.za UJ Art Gallery 7 – 28 September, Christiaan Diedericks “Balancing Heaven and Earth (with apology to Robert A. Johnson)” With this exhibition Diedericks challenges viewers not only about art, but also their personal (dis)comforts about gender, sexuality, sexual orientation, body politics, desire, geography, place and memory. Cnr Kingsway & University Rd, Auckland Park, Jhb. T. 011 559 2099 aedempsey@uj.ac.za www.uj.ac.za/artscentre The White House Gallery The gallery has a wide ranging portfolio featuring renowned masters such as Chagall, Marini, Miro, Moore, Portway, Pasmore, Stella, Picasso, Dine & Hockney - to name a few. Also the more affordable works of up and coming artists in Britain and France, along with globally acclaimed South African artists. Shop G11 Thrupps Centre,Oxford Road, Illovo,Johannesburg. T. 011 268 2115 www.thewhitehousegallery.co.za
Pretoria Alette Wessels Kunskamer The Alette Wessels Kunskamer operates as an Art Gallery and Art Consultancy, specialising in South African art as an investment, dealing in Old Masters, and selected contemporary art. Maroelana Centre, 27 Maroelana Str, Maroelana, Pretoria. T. 012 346 0728 www.artwessels.co.za Association of Arts Pretoria Until 7 September, an exhibition of paintings by Willie van Rensburg. Until 14 September, an exhibition of ceramics by Minette Zaaiman. 173 Mackie Str, Nieuw Muckleneuk, Pretoria. T. 012 346 3100 artspta@mweb.co.za www.artsassociationpta.co.za Fried Contemporary Until 1 October, “Aperture.” The participating artists are: Nicola Grobler - Bronze sculpture installation and Ink Drawings, Strijdom van der Merwe - Video and printed Video Stills, St John Fuller - photography (Ilford multi-grade photographic paper (pearl) as well as works by Kai Lossgott. 430 Charles St, Brooklyn, Pretoria. T. 012 346 0158 art@friedcontemporary.com www.friedcontemporary.com Front Room Art & Artists Sun 4 Sept – Sat 1 Oct, “Bloom : a celebration of Spring” an exuberant exhibition of paintings and garden sculptures. Participating artists: Retha Buitendach, Caryn Childs, Frans Cronje, Lesley Deysel, Olusola Johnson, Nan Spurway, Marina Louw, Minette van Rooyen & others. 116 Kate Ave Rietondale. Jennifer Snyman 082 451 5584 www.frontroomart.co.za
Pretoria Art Museum Until 2 October, Weaver’s Guild 60 Years Anniversary Exhibition. 1 Sept to 2 October, Sasol New Signatures Competition Exhibition. 7 Sept to 2 October, an exhibition of paintings by Michael Selekane (supported by Ifa Lethu). T.012 344 1807/8 art.museum@tshwane.gov.za www.pretoriaartmuseum.co.za Salomi Prinsloo Signature Gallery 1 -12 September, “The Land: Exploring Realities of Co-Existence” Paintings by Salomi Prinsloo as an exploration of interactive ecological issues. 397 Roslyn Str, Waterkloofglen, Pretoria. T. 012 9985783 C. 0828780441 salomiprinsloo@gmail.com www.salomiprinsloo.com St Lorient Fashion and Art Gallery Opening Saturday 3rd September, “Rooftop lll” curated by Gordon Froud, featuring the following artists: Lucas Thobejane, Sanna Swart, Craig Muller, Kay Potts and Sybrand Wiegers. Closes 25th September. 492 Fehrsen Street, Brooklyn Circle, Brooklyn, Pretoria. T. 012 4600284 anastasi@iafrica.com www.stlorient.co.za University of Pretoria 7 September - 30 November, an exhibition of the sculptures by Fanie Eloff (1885 - 1947). Mapungubwe Museum, Old Arts Building, Hatfield Campus of the University of Pretoria. T. 012 420-2968 marie.breedt@up.ac.za www.up.ac.za UNISA Art Gallery 7-30 September, “Transcode// Dialogues Around Intermedia Practice” a group exhibition. Kgorong Building, Ground Floor, Main Campus, Preller Str, Pretoria. T. 012 441 5683 ukun1@unisa.ac.za www.unisa.ac.za/gallery
Mpumalanga Dullstroom Art @ sixty seven A selection of fine art, ceramics and blown glass art pieces, by well-known local artists. Shop no9, 67 Naledi St, Dullstroom, Mpumulanga. T. 013 254 0335 mikek@boardwalkmanor.co.za www.shopat67.com Dimitrov Art Gallery Lifestyle Complex, shop no.4 on Cnr. Teding Van Berkhout & Hugenote/ Naledi Street, Dullstroom, Mpumalanga T. 013 254 0524 C. 082 679 5698 info@dimitrovartgallery.co.za www.dimitrovartgallery.co.za The New Dimitrov Art Gallery is situated in the Trams Alley shop no.1 , along the R 540 ( Naledi Drive ). Opening exhibition “Expression of Freedom” by renowned artist Dimitrov.
White River The Artists’ Press Professional collaboration, printing and publishing of original hand-printed artists lithographs, by the Artists’ Press. Also artists books, monotypes & letterpress prints, particularly for artists working in SA. Waterfield Farm near White River, Mpumalanga T. 013 751 3225 print@artistspress.co.za www.artists-press.net The Loop Art Foundry & Sculpture Gallery A collaboration and network for the avid art patron and collector as well as a full service facility for the artist. This is the place where you will find a unique and superior item or have something commissioned that you have always envisioned. Casterbridge Complex Corner R40 & Numbi Roads White River T. 013 758 2409 www.tlafoundry.co.za
Gallery Michael Heyns The Gallery has moved to 194 Haley Str, Weavind Park, Pretoria. Contact for more info: T. 012 804 0867 michael@michaelheyns.co.za www.michaelheyns.co.za
SA ART TIMES. September 2011
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GALLERY GUIDE | WESTERN CAPE / CAPE TOWN
Western Cape Cape Town Absolut Art Gallery Permanent exhibition with the best Masters and Contemporary artists. Namely : JH Pierneef, Gerard Sekoto, Hugo Naude, Adriaan Boshoff, Frans Oerder, Tinus de Jongh, Gerard Bhengu, Ephraim Ngatane, Cecil Skotnes, JAE Volschenk, Conrad Theys, William Kentridge, to name a few. Shop 43 Willowbridge Lifestyle Centre, Carl Cronje Drive, Tyger Valley, Bellville. T. 021 914 2846 www.absolutart.co.za. Alliance Française Cape Town 2 – 17 September, “Metamorphosis” an exhibition of works using various artistic techniques by Nyaniso Lindi. 155 Loop Str, CT. T. 021 423 5699 capetown@alliance.org.za www.alliance.org.za Art b 24 August – 30 September – Vuleka Exhibition of Selected works from the 2011 Vuleka Art Competition. The Arts Association of Bellville, The Library Centre, Carel van Aswegan Str, Bellville. T. 021 918 2301 info@artb.co.za www.artb.co.za/gallery.htm Artvark Gallery Until end September, “Gugulethu Men” sketches by George Frederik Myburgh. 48 Main Rd, Kalk Bay T. 021 788 5584 artvark@iafrica.com www.artvark.org Barnard Gallery Opening 8 September, “Reality or illusion” by Maeve Dewar until 18 October. 55 Main Str, Newlands. T. 021 671 1666 www.barnardgallery.com Blank Projects. Opening 8 September @ 18:00 “Independent Publishing Project” by Jonah Sack and Francis Burger. Exhibition closes 1 October. 113-115 Sir Lowry Rd, Woodstock, CT. T.072 1989 221 info@blankprojects.com www.blankprojects.com Cape Gallery Until 10 September, “Wild Life Exhibition” a group exhibition showcasing some of the finest interpretations of the love of the land. Opening Sunday 11th September at 4.30 p.m. A Group Exhibition. Participating Artists include: Adolfo Mcque, Geoff Price, John Robert, Louis Ströh van der Walt, until 1 October. 60 Church Str, CT. 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. Visit the new gallery at Cape Quarter Square, 27 Somerset Rd, Green Point. T. 021 4213333 www.carmelart.co.za Casa Labia Until 9 October, “Intimate Surfaces - An ArtSideIn Exhibition” Main Featured Artists: Makiwa Mutomba (oil on canvas with palette knife),Nicole Susan Pletts (oil on canvas), Sol Smook (oil, acrylic & mixed media on canvas) and Sue Greeff (oil on canvas, mixed media & charcoal on paper). Africa Nova at Casa Labia Cultural Centre, 192 Main Rd, Muizenberg. T. 021 788 6068 info@casalabia.co.za www.casalabia.co.za Cedar Tree Gallery Contemporary Fine Art Gallery at Rodwell House. Rodwell Rd, St. James, CT. T. 021 797 9880 cedartreegallery@gmail.com www.cedartreegallery.co.za The Cellar Private Gallery The Cellar Private Gallery of Art deals exclusively in original & investment art, offering works by a variety of renowned & upcoming SA artists. 12 Imhoff Str, Welgemoed, Bellville T. 021 913 4189 info@thecellargallery.co.za www.thecellargallery.co.za Christie’s International Auctioneers. Juliet Lomberg, Independent Consultant. T. 021 761 2676 jlomberg@iafrica.com www.christies.com
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Commune.1 Gallery Opening 1 September until 13 October, “Umlungu” featuring large scale installations by Christopher Swift. 64 Wale Str, CT. T. 021 423 5600 info@commune1.com www.commune1.com Constantiaberg Art Society Until 8 September Constantiaberg Art Society will be holding its 20th Anniversary Exhibition in the Sanlam Hall at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens showcasing members work. Entrance to the exhibition is free after paying entrance to the garden; Tuesday is pensioners day with free entry into Kirstenbosch. Inquiries: Yvonne Martin 082 455 8727 or 021 712 0956 David Krut Projects Cape Town Until 1 October, “Countermeasures, Part 2” paintings by Johannesburg artist Mary Wafer. Montebello Design Centre, 31 Newlands Ave, CT. T. 021 685 0676 alastair@davidkrut.com www.davidkrutprojectscapetown.com Ebony Visit the new gallery for a fantastic selection of art and some very exciting new furniture designs. 67 Loop Street. Cape Town. T. 021 876 4477 info@ebonydesign.co.za www.ebonydesign.co.za Erdmann Contemporary /Photographers Gallery Until 24 September, “Present History II” featuring: Paul Weinberg, Jurgen Schadeberg, Willie Bester, Johann Louw, Jan Neethling, Laurina Paperina, Nicola Vinci, Erik Chevalier & many more, in multiple mediums. 63 Shortmarket Str, CT. T. 021 422 2762 galleryinfo@mweb.co.za www.erdmanncontemporary.co.za Everard Read CT 8 – 22 September, “From Lion’s Head to Meiringspoort - The Cape Pierneef Sites” by Carl Becker. J H Pierneef’s Station Panels, done in the early 1930s, are cornerstones of South African landscape painting. They were initially situated in the old Johannesburg Station as adverts to travel the Union of South Africa. But did these alluring places ever really exist? And how have they changed? Taking up Pierneef’s invitation 80 years later, painter Carl Becker set out to find out. Searching for the elusive Cape Pierneef sites, the artist sometimes found only traces of the original place. But in others, the Pierneefian grandeur remains. 3 Portswood Rd, Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, CT. T. 021 418 4527 ctgallery@everard.co.za www.everard-read-capetown.co.za 34 Fine Art 13 - 17 September exclusive preview in Cape Town of Micro Cluster Picnic Asha Zero Solo Exhibition. 20 September - 22 October, New Arrivals - Group Exhibition. 2nd Floor, The Hills Building, Buchanan Square, 160 Sir Lowry Rd, Woodstock. T.021 461 1863 info@34fineart.com www.vgallery.co.za / www.34fineart.com G2 Art New artists and artworks by Nicole Pletts, Samantha Brown, Benjy Furawo, Khayalethu Witbooi, Hendrik Gericke, Gareth Humphreys, Frans Groenewald and Kristen McClarty, together with regular contributors Roelie van Heerden, Vanessa Berlein, Gilbert Pearse, Andrew Sutherland, Mongezi Gum, Anthony Gadd & Jenny Merritt to name a few, as well as beautiful sculpture by Victor Harley, Steven Andrews & Uwe Pfaff amongst others. 61 Shortmarket Str, CT. T.021 424 7169 di@g2art.co.za www.g2art.co.za Gill Allderman Gallery The Gallery has 7 rooms which carry a mix of works by various artists. During September: David Meyer - a collection of acrylic, oils and mixed media. Bright clean lines define Meyers work, David Liknaitsky – sculptures, Jill Trappler - ink on canvas, Donna McKellar - oil Karoo landscapes, Dathini Myziya - charcoal, paint, wash on paper, Judy Conway - acrylics on canvas, Leboana Lefuma - ceramic sculptures, Simon Stone - 30 x 30 oils on card/linen, Alice Sarembock, Val de Klerk and others. Concord House (Pam Golding Building), Cnr Main & Summerly Rds, Kenilworth. C.083 556 2540 gallery@new.co.za www.alldermangallery.co.za Goodman Gallery Cape Until 10 September, “EAT ME” a group show featuring the following artists: Ghada Amer & Reza Farkondeh, Joel Andrianomearisoa, Reza Aramesh, Adam Broomberg & Oliver Chanarin, Kendell Geers, Frances Goodman, Sigalit Landau, Kalup Linzy, Gavin Turk, Hank Willis Thomas, Mickalene Thomas and Tracey Rose. 3rd Floor, Fairweather House, 176 Sir Lowry Rd, Woodstock. T. 021 462 7573/4 cpt@goodman-gallery.com www.goodman-gallery.com
SA ART TIMES. September 2011
Anton Kannemeyer new lithographs
Peekaboo, hand-printed lithograph, 57.5 x 57.5 cm. Edition 25.
The Artists’ Press
Box 1236, White River, 1240 7HO 083 676 3229 PDUN#DUWLVWVSUHVV FR ]D ZZZ DUWSULQWVD FRP
Gallery
Art Times Anton Aug 2011 advert.indd 1
19/08/2011 9:41 AM
Red, Black and White
(Bosman’s Crossing)
presents - The Memory of Strength a collection of Body prints
by Marna Lourens Opening with a performance by Marna
on 8 September 2011 @ 18h00
Speaker - Carina Stander
Exhibition ends 23 September
The Antique Warehouse
5A Distillery Road Bosmans Crossing
Stellenbosch
Tel: +27 21 883 9730
www.pierrabe.co.za
thewarehouse@mweb.co.za
The Cape Gallery, 60 Church Street seeks to expose fine art that is rooted in the South African tradition, work which carries the unique cultural stamp of our continent. Featured above is artist Louis Ströh van der Walt
THE CAPE GALLERY
Open: Mon - Fri: 9h30 - 17h00 Sat: 10h00 - 14h00 Tel: 27 21 423 5309 Fax: 27 21 424 9063 E-mail: cgallery@mweb.co.za Web: www.capegallery .co.za
American express, Mastercard, Visa & Diner cards are accepted. Reliable arrangements can be made to freight purchaces to foreign destinations.
WESTERN CAPE | GALLERY GUIDE Hout Bay Gallery New artworks by Sarah Danes Jarrett, David Kuijers, Koos De Wet and many more. Open 7 days a week. 71 Victoria Ave, Hout Bay. T. 021 790 3618 F. 021 790 3898 info@houtbaygallery.co.za www.houtbaygallery.co.za iArt Gallery 6 September-26 October, “Hartland” by Stephan Erasmus. 71 Loop Str, CT. T. 021 424 5150 info@iart.co.za www.iart.co.za iArt Gallery Wembley Until 21 September, “Victor Victor” by David Brits. 28 September - 26 October, “A House is not a machine for living” by Liam Mooney. Wembley Square, Gardens, CT. T. 021 424 5150 info@iart.co.za www.iart.co.za
Irma Stern Gallery Opening Sat 3 September at 11am, “Confluence” an exhibition of ceramics by Ian Garrett and paintings by Rae Hearn, until 24 Sept. Cecil Rd, Rosebank, CT. T. 021 685 5686 www.irmastern.co.za Iziko SA National Gallery Until 11 Sept, “Through the Lens of Durban’s Veteran Photographer” photography since 1945 by Ranjith Kally. Until 25 September, “Tretchikoff: The People’s Painter” a retrospective exhibition of works by Vladimir Tretchikoff. 7 September 2011 until 29 January 2012, “Ever Young” photography by James Barnor. 25 September - 7 November, Standard Bank Young Artist For Visual Art 2011: Nandipha Mntambo. 25 Queen Victoria Str, CT. T. 021 467 4660 www.iziko.org.za Iziko Michaelis Collection Ongoing, Dutch treat: Dutch works from the 17th–20th centuries in Iziko collections Iziko Michaelis Collection, Old Town House, Greenmarket Square, CT. T. 021 481 3800 hproud@iziko.org.za
REALM
07/09 - 01/10/2011
91 Kloof Street | CPT M| +27 82 679 3906 info@salon91art.co.za www.salon91art.co.za
image: “castle” by gabrielle raaff for “realm”
Infin Art Gallery A gallery of work by local artists. Wolfe Str, Chelsea Village, Wynberg. T. 021 761 2816 & Buitengracht Str. CT. T. 021 423 2090 www.infinart.co.za
AN EXHIBITION OF WORKS BY GABRIELLE RAAFF & LORENZO NASSIMBENI
Iziko Good Hope Gallery (The Castle) Ongoing exhibition of oil paintings, furniture, ceramics, metal & glassware from the William Fehr Collection. Buitenkant Str, opposite the Grand Parade, CT. T. 21 464 1262 kmooney@iziko.org.za Iziko SA Museum Until November, “Made in Translation: Images from and of the Landscape.” 25 Queen Victoria Str, Gardens, CT. T. 021 481 3800 info@iziko.org.za
1st oor Cape Quarter Square 27 Somerset Road, Green Point Ph: 021 421 3333
email: carmel@global.co.za website: www.carmelart.co.za
wide selection of works by leading South African contemporary artists
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Exclusive distributors of
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Delivery Worldwide Restorations Art Courses Valuations Art Shop Framing Books SA Art
Tel: 044 874 4027 • www.artaffair.co.za 79 Market Street, George • GPS 33°57’42.66’’S | 22°27’24.54’’E
WESTERN CAPE | GALLERY GUIDE Johans Borman Fine Art Currently showing a selection of works by SA Masters Hugo Naudé, Maggie Laubser, Gerard Sekoto, Walter Battiss and Cecil Skotnes. New works by Walter Meyer, Jacobus Kloppers and Hussein Salim. In Fin Art Building, Upper Buitengracht Str, CT. T. 021 423 6075. art@johansborman.co.za www.johansborman.co.za Kalk Bay Modern From 7-14 September, “Bathini Abantu: What are the people saying?” by Imiso Ceramics. 1st Floor, Olympia Buildings, 136 Main Rd, Kalk Bay. T.021 788 6571 kbmodern@iafrica.com www.kalkbaymodern.com Lindy van Niekerk Art Gallery A large selection of artworks by new and prominent South African artists and SA old Masters. 31 Kommandeur Rd, Welgemoed, Bellville. T. 021 913 7204/5 lindy@artpro.co.za, www.artpro.co.za Martin Osner Fine Art Gallery Archival photographic prints, mixed media & collectable imaging. Shop A14, Cape Quarter Piazza, 72 Waterkant Str, Green Point, CT. T. 021 790 6494 info@martinosner.com www.martinosner.com Michaelis Gallery Opening 22 September, “A Conversation with the Bolus Collection: Science, sensibility, sensuality” closes 13 October. Opens 22 September until 3 October, “Threshold” an exhibition of environmentally conscious art. UCT, 31 – 37 Orange Str, CT. T. 021 480 7170 nadja.daehnke@uct.ac.za www.michaelis.uct.ac.za MM Galleries MM Galleries offers a platform that showcases a wealth of talented artists whose works are affordable and of high quality; the art is available in a mix of mediums with options to suit all budgets. Shop 3, 31 Palmer Rd, Muizenberg, CT. T. 021 788 8370 www.mmgalleries.co.za
Rose Korber Art On view until 30 September is a superb selection of recent lino-cuts by William Kentridge. These rivetting works, in black and white, are a welcome return to this powerful medium by the maestro, after some twenty years. Also on show, until the end of September, is “The Language of Colour” an exhibition featuring oils, watercolours, mixed media and collage by noted Cape Town abstractionist, Cynthia Villet, who has been described by writer, Roger Lipsy, as ‘one of the foremost artists of her time, a brilliantly creative, poetic spirit in the tradition of Paul Klee, Ben Nicolson and Jules Bissier’. 48 Sedgemoor Rd, Camps Bay, CT. T. 021 438 9152 C.083 261 1173 roskorb@icon.co.za www.rosekorberart.com Rust-en-Vrede Gallery Until 8 September, In Salon A: Kiki Kemp: “The artist’s confession” works in Ink on Korean paper, In Salon B: Talitha Deetlifs: “She is beautiful” Lead sculptures of the feminine form and In Salon C: Marianne Burger: “Being in Africa” mosaic works. In The Office Showcase: Ceramic work by Hennie Meyer. In the Cube: Ceramic Jugs by various potters. 13 – 30 September: Wendy Gaybba & Veronica Reid: “Being” and Sonja Frenz: “Life in Colour.” In the Office Showcase: Ceramics by Alessandro. In the Cube: Hennie Meyer & Students. 10 Wellington Rd, Durbanville. T.021 976 4691 www.rust-en-vrede.com Salon 91 Until 3 September, “Figuring Difference” a group exhibition of painters: Lara Feldman, Patsy Groll & Daniel Popper to name a few. Opening 7 September at 19h30 “Realm” watercolour and ink on paper by Gabrielle Raaff & Lorenzo Nassimbeni until 1 October at 2pm 91 Kloof Str, Gardens, CT. T 021 424 6930 info@salon91art.co.za www.salon91.co.za South African Jewish Museum Until 27 November, “Zapiro: Jiving with Madiba” an exhibition of work by the well-known cartoonist, Jonathan Shapiro, all of which depict or otherwise involve Nelson Mandela. 88 Hatfield Str, Gardens, CT. T. 021-465-1546 info@sajm.info www.sajm.info
Gallery hours: Monday – Friday 08:00 – 17:00 saturdays by appointMent. tel 021 887 3385 e-mail 101dorp@slee.co.za
SA ART TIMES. September 2011
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GALLERY GUIDE | WESTERN CAPE South African Print Gallery A wide selection of fine art prints by South African masters and contemporary printmakers. Until 08 September, recent prints by Jane Eppel. Hats Off Show: Work from The Cavisham Press 10 September - 06 October 109 Sir Lowry Rd, Woodstock, CT. T. 021 462 6851 info@printgallery.co.za www.printgallery.co.za StateoftheArt.co.za Online Art Gallery A curated online art gallery bringing you original and affordable artwork created by selected Fine Arts students and graduates emerging from South Africa’s most prestigious art schools. With an extensive selection of styles and genres to reflect your taste, budget and requirements, and a range of services to support your choices, buying art couldn’t be any simpler. T. 0724709272 info@StateoftheArt.co.za www.StateoftheArt.co.za Stephan Welz & Company Auctioneers of Decorative & Fine Arts. The Great Cellar, The Alphen Hotel, Alphen Drive, Constantia. T. 021 794 6461 ct@stephanwelzandco.co.za www.stephanwelzandco.co.za Stevenson Cape Town Until 3 September, “Second Nature” an exhibition of new photographs by Guy Tillim. 8 September – 15 October, Conrad Botes solo exhibition and a Forex Project show by Keren Cytter. Ground Floor, Buchanan Building, 160 Sir Lowry Rd, Woodstock, CT. T. 021 462 1500 cpt@stevenson.info www.stevenson.info Strauss & Co. Fine Art Auctioneers & Consultants. 26 September, Auction of South African Art, Furniture, Silver, Ceramics & Jewellery. Day Sale at 4pm, Evening Sale at 8pm, The Vineyard Hotel, Newlands, Cape Town. The Oval, 1st Floor Colinton House, 1 Oakdale Rd, Newlands. T. 021 683 6560 ct@straussart.co.za www.straussart.co.za Worldart Until 3 September, “Urban aesthetic” by artists Ricky Lee Gordon, Paul Senyol & Linsey Levendall of Bison. The exhibition will consist of four large paintings – one work by each artist and a fourth which is a collaboration. 54 Church Str, CT. T.021 423 3075 charl@worldart.co.za www.worldart.co.za
Franschhoek Ebony The Ebony Gallery shows classic and contemporary artworks by some of the most recognised and collectible South African artists. 4 Franschhoek Square, 32 Huguenot Str, Franschhoek. T. 021 876 4477 info@ebonydesign.co.za www.ebonydesign.co.za Galerie L’ Art A permanent exhibition of South African old masters & contemporary art. Shop no 3, The Ivy, Kruger Str, Franschhoek T. 021 876 2497 www.galart.co.za The Gallery at Grande Provence Opening on Sunday, 11 September at 11h00, “How To” by eminent artist and academic, Emma Willemse and distinguished artist, Hester Viles, with artworks executed in a wide range of materials, techniques and formats. ‘The Shop’ at the Gallery, will showcase the avant-garde, Dillon and Jada, prêt à porter collection which include a range of Vivienne Westwood shoes.‘The Cathedral’ at The Gallery, will showcase a selection of large scale paintings and sculptures by Henry Hopkins, Gavin Rissi, JP Meyer and Johann Moolman among others.Main Rd, Franschhoek. T. 021 876 8630. gallery@grandeprovence.co.za www.grandeprovence.co.za Is Art Until 6 September, “Evolution” an exhibition of new works by Andre Stead. 16 Huguenot Str, Franschhoek. T. 021 876 8443 isart@lqf.co.za www.is-art.co.za
George Strydom Gallery SA and Master artists on display until October 2011. Painting, sculpture, photographs, jewellery, ceramic & glassware on show by the following artists: Simon Stone, Brad Gray, Hanneke Benade, Gregory Kerr, Greg Schultz, Leigh Voigt, Piet van Heerden, Pierneef & Erich Mayer. 79 Market Str, George. T. 044 874 4027 info@artaffair.co.za www.artaffair.co.za
SA ART TIMES. September 2011
Hermanus Abalone Gallery During September: Main gallery: Group exhibition with Gail Catlin, John Clarke, Christo Coetzee, Hannes Harrs, Judith Mason, Lynette ten Krooden, Carl Roberts, Susanna Swart. Annex: Graphic and photographic exhibition with Cecil Skotnes, Pippa Skotnes, Lucky Sibiya, EL Loko, Andrew Verter & Lien Botha (photography). 2 Harbour Rd, The Courtyard, Hermanus. T. 028 313 2935 info@abalonegallery.co.za www.abalonegallery.co.za Originals Gallery The art studio and gallery of Terry Kobus. See the artist at work in his studio and view his latest paintings in an intimate gallery space. Shop 22 Royal Centre, 141 Main Rd, Hermanus. T. 083 259 8869 originals@hermanus.co.za www.originalsHermanus.blogspot.com Shelley Adams Studio & Gallery A permanent exhibition of artworks by Shelley Adams in her personal studio space. She also offers ongoing art courses, crit classes and workshops. 19A Royal Centre, Main Rd, Hermanus. C. 072 677 6277 www.shelley-adams.com Walker Bay Art Gallery View the wide selection of paintings, sculpture & ceramics by established as well as up and coming South African artists. 171 Main Rd, Hermanus. contact: Francois Grobbelaar 028 312 2928 francois@walkerbayartgallery.co.za www.walkerbayartgallery.co.za
Klein Karoo Sheena Ridley Open Studio and Sculpture Garden Sculptures and Paintings N9 Langkloof near Uniondale, Klein Karoo T. 083 5892881 www.ridley.co.za
Knysna Dale Elliott Art Gallery Exhibition of new images of the Garden Route by Dale & Mel Elliott Woodmill Lane Shopping Centre, Knysna. Anneline: T. 044 382 5646 dale@dalelliott.co.za www.daleelliott.co.za Knysna Fine Art During September, “New Acquisitions:” Egon Tania, Claire Menck, Herman van Wyk and Nico Masemolo. Thesen House, 6 Long Str, Knysna. T. 044 382 5107 C. 082 5527262 gallery@finearts.co.za www.finearts.co.za
Langebaan Bay Gallery Local artists work exhibited. Featured Artist for September is Gerda Claassen, well known for her Abstracts mixed with Realism. 6 Marra Square, Bree St, Langebaan. Contact: Daphne 073 304 8744 baygallery@xsinet.co.za www.baygallery.co.za
Oudtshoorn Artkaroo Gallery A selection of authentic Karoo fine art by various established and emerging artists. 107 Baron van Reede, Oudtshoorn. T.044 279 1093 janet@artkaroo.co.za www.artkaroo.co.za
Paarl Hout Street Gallery The Hout Street Gallery specialises in South African paintings and fine art and offers an extensive range of ceramics, sculpture, creative jewellery, glass, crafts and functional art. 270 Main Str, Paarl. T. 021 872 5030 zetler@icon.co.za www.houtstreetgallery.co.za
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HENK SERFONTEIN URBAN TENSION Recent paintings
27 Oct - 25 Nov Galeria Alex Telese, Barcelona, Spain www.alextelese.com www.henkserfontein.com
The South African
Print Gallery Leaders in the selection of SA master investment fine art prints. presents:
New releases:
Hats Off Show: 25 Years of Linocuts from The Cavisham Press 10 September - 06 October with Julia Meintjes Fine Art.
Alice Goldin Selected work from a colourful life time of printmaking 12 November - 08 December 2011
109 Sir Lowry Road, Woodstock Art Strip, Tel 021 4626851. www.printgallery.co.za
Anton Kannemeyer: Peekaboo : Hand painted lithograph, Edition of 25
Photos by Basil Brady
Nico Swart SA ART TIMES. September 2011
Ashwin Ramhith
Basil Brady and Roly Pattle
Jimmy Smith and Willemien Green
Theresa Alvarez and Dominique Platt
Roly Pattle, Theresa Alvarez and Eddie Byron
Theresa Hardman and Ian Visser 34
WESTERN, EASTERN AND NORTHERN CAPE | GALLERY GUIDE
Piketberg (West Coast) AntheA Delmotte Gallery Until 25 October, a group exhibition with AntheA Delmotte, Clare Menck, Mary Duncan & Jeanette Unite. 47 Voortrekker Str, The Old Bioscope, Piketberg. C. 073 281 7273 anthea@lantic.net
Plettenberg Bay Lookout Art Gallery A fine selection of interesting contemporary paintings, sculptures & blown glass. The Courtyard, Lookout Centre, Main Str, Plettenberg Bay. T. 044 533 2210 mwdawns@mweb.co.za www.lookout-art-gallery.co.za
Pringle Bay
Pringle Bay Art Route 10 & 11 September, Local artists’ and crafters’ studio doors are now open in the picturesque little coastal village of Pringle Bay! You are invited to come and meet them personally to view their work and discuss their philosophies and experience their way of living. They are eagerly waiting to share their creativity and passion. Share in the artists’ and crafters’ love of their surroundings which is inevitably also their inspiration. Contact person: Ina le Roux T. 028 273 8941/082 462 3409 inaleroux@global.co.za
101 Dorp Gallery 12-30 September, “Nudes from the Nineties” by Jan Visser. 101 Dorp Str, Stellenbosch. T. 021 887 3385 www.slee.co.za Gallery Red, Black & White Gallery Red, Black and White presents “The Memory of Strength” a collection of body prints by Marna Lourens. Opening with a performance by Marna on the 8th September at 6pm. Exhibiton ends 23 Sept. At the Antique Warehouse, 5A Distillery Rd, Bosmans Crossing, Stellenbosch. T. 021 883 9730 www.pierrabe.co.za Stellenbosch Art Gallery An extensive selection of paintings, sculpture, handmade glass & ceramics by selected Western Cape artists are on offer to the discerning buyer. 34 Ryneveld Str, Stellenbosch. T. 021 887 8343 www.stellenboschartgallery.co.za
Villiersdorp Elliott Art Gallery Themed Boland and Overberg Exhibition by Dale and Mel Elliott 80 Main Rd, Villiersdorp. T. 028 840 2927 dale@daleelliott.co.za
Somerset West
Wilderness
Marzé Botha Art Gallery Dealers in original South African Art situated in the Wine Cellar of the Lourensford Wine Estate. Lourensford Rd, Somerset West. T. 021 847 2300 C. 082 847 1022 info@mbgallery.co.za www.mbgallery.co.za
Beatrix Bosch Studio Unique works in leather as well as paintings & photography can be viewed at her studio.57 Die Duin, Wilderness. T. 044 877 0585 www.beatrixbosch.co.za
Stellenbosch
Art on 5 Permanent exhibition of paintings and ceramics by Maryna de Witt, Pera Schillings & Karen Kieviet. 7b Andringa Str., Stellenbosch. T. 021 887 7234
Eastern Cape East London Ann Bryant Gallery Until 4 September, The East London Fine Art Society presents: “The Peep Show Exhibition” an exhibition of works in miniature at the Ann Bryant Coach House. Open for public viewing at the Coach House from 12 September until 17 September, The East London High School’s Art Exhibition. This exhibition brings together the best artworks from Grades 8 to 12 submitted by High Schools in our region. The show includes painting, drawing, sculpture, ceramics and mixed media work. Opening on Thursday 29 September at 18h30, Brian Hammond Solo Exhibition in the Ann Bryant Coach House. The exhibition concludes Saturday 15 October A former matriculate of Potchefstroom Boys’ High Brian de Villiers Hammond paints in oils creating landscapes, expanses, and skies. 9 St. Marks Rd, Southernwood, East London. T. 043 722 4044 annbryant@intekom.co.za www.annbryant.co.za Malcolm Dewey Fine Art Ongoing exhibition of oil paintings by Malcolm Dewey plus works by a selection of local artists. Floradale Centre, Beacon Bay, East London. T. 043 7481229 art@dewey.co.za www.originalart.co.za
Pharoah Art Gallery Following the fire that destroyed the gallery in June last year the newly opened gallery features an exquisite collection of Peter Pharoah’s fine art originals & prints including rich colourful portraits, unforgettable African wildlife and bold textured abstracts that are inspired by his travels around Africa. Wilderness Centre, George Road, Wilderness T. 044 877 0265 C. 076 976 2629 www.peterpharoah.com
work by Eastern Cape artists. 12 – 23 September, in the Lower Gallery: an exhibition by Peter Midlane & Jackie Griffin-Jones and in the Upper Gallery: a solo exhibition by Stephanie Beste. 36 Bird Str, P.E. T. 041 585 3641 gallery@epsac.co.za www.artecpe.co.za Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum Until 4 September, “2011 Standard Bank Young Artist: Nadipha Mntambo” in recent work Mntambo has shifted her focus to the art of bullfighting and her medium to video and photography. The title Mntambo’s award exhibition “Faena” refers to the series of final passes performed by a matador preparatory to killing a bull in a bullfight. Until 18 September, “Rediscovering Fred Page” an exhibition of works by Fred Page to celebrate the launch of new Fred Page book titled Ringmaster of the Imagination (2011) by Jeanne Write and Cecil Kerbel. Until 2 October, “Interiors” exploring the theme of interiors including still life, portraits and narrative. Works by George Pemba, Maud Sumner, Christine Dixie, Rob Duker and Marc Shoul will be included. 10 September 2011 – January 2012, “Painting on Paper” an exhibition exploring works on paper from the Art Museum’s permanent collection. 1 Park Drive, Port Elizabeth. T. 041 5062000 artmuseum@mandelametro.gov.za www.artmuseum.co.za Ron Belling Art Gallery An exhibition of collected works called “Something Beautiful” and curated by Clayton Holliday from 6 September until 6 October. 30 Park Drive, P.E. T. 041 586 3973 ronbelling@mweb.co.za www.ronbelling.co.za
Vincent Art Gallery The gallery houses an exceptional collection of fine arts, sculptures, blown glass, ceramics, exclusive jewellery and decor items. 2 Donald Rd, Vincent, East London. T. 043 726 4356 vinceart@lantic.net www.vincentartgallery.co.za
Northern Cape
Port Elizabeth
William Humphreys Art Gallery 31 Aug- 2 October, “Clare Menck: Hidden Life” 20 years of painting (1990-2010) Cullinan Crescent, Kimberley. T. 053 831 1725
ArtEC (Previously EPSAC) Until 9 September in the Lower & Upper Gallery, ArtEC Annual Exhibition: the “flagship” exhibition of the year, the adjudicated annual highlights the highest standard of
SA ART TIMES. September 2011
Kimberley
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Nic Bladen at Everard Read, CT
By John Bauer : Nic Bladen performs the most magical tango combining bronze and silver, naturally heavy materials, resulting in the lightest wisps of botanical beauty. Rodin was accused of life casting by his enemies but if he had life cast like Nic Bladen the room would have been silent and it would have been seen as a virtue. In this age of technical absenteeism Bladen makes waves by creating works that we could not do ourselves. I assume he does not write reams of literature outlining his concepts, it is unnecessary. He is at the forefront of a market dubbed “Well you could try” it is a reaction to artists who outsource their works to students or their unsuccessful peers delivering a more and more jaundiced product. Nic unlocks the magical world of what we see everyday but never look at. He decontextualises plants allowing their roots to
expand into the room. I found myself unable to resist sniffing a flower, however I may have looked, in that moment I cared not. I had to test the illusion, to see if my mind would trick me into recognizing a heady scent. Nic’s bronzes redefine the botanical art genre, this is history in the making, and the impact of this show has set new standards and revived hope in our jaundiced hearts. Photo: Pierre van der Spuy “Rare”, an exhibition of nature studies incorporating botanical art by acclaimed Cape Town-based artists Lisa Strachan & Nic Bladen Everard Read, 3 Portswood Rd, Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, CT. T. 021 418 4527 www.everard-read-capetown.co.za) The works on this exhibition fit into two series; the first continues in the technique of highly burnished vessels with mussel-shell impressions for which he has gained much acclaim and the coveted VITA Craft Award. The second series works with raised contours of design. Hand-built storage pots from ancient Greece inspired these new forms and motifs. Traditionally this form of raised decoration was not merely for beautification but served to strengthen large storage vessels. However, as his vessels don’t reach the same large proportions, Ian explores these eloquent tactile arabesques purely for their expressive quality. Ian’s interest in his family history led him to discover that his grandmother, who had grown up in India, was of part Indian descent. These works are a musing upon the influence of Indian culture on Europe; and an exploration of his own identity in finding inspiration in them. His earlier vessels were often minimalist, with very simple lines and motifs, however this current work has an explosion of pattern and embellishment. The small polished circles in the burnished series echo shisha mirrors incorporated in richly embroidered fabrics of India. The warm terracotta colours evoke the rich colours of spices and ochres of Indian earthen architecture. He is also inspired by raised wall motifs found in the tribal mud architecture of Kutch in Western India. This mud architecture was almost always white-washed which also inspired the series of white vessels that form part of the raised pattern series.
Confluence Irma Stern Museum, CT
In working out the surface design for each vessel Ian takes a mathematical, musical and visually aesthetic approach. The profile curve of the vessel recurs like a refrain upon the surface within the shape of the motif, integrating form and design. This visual harmony is further enhanced by dividing and repeating patterns in smaller diminishing echoes across the surface of the vessel. Ian plays with and investigates the abstract language of pattern making and precognitive primal recognition. Meaning is derived from layers of associations and influences – which in turn have risen from his wide interests and reading as he investigates deeply. Ian sees his own identity as layered and this is reflected in the accumulation of references and inspirations that form a confluence within his work.
By Cate Wood Hunter : The exhibition of Ian Garrett ceramics, titled ‘Confluence’ on show in September at the Irma Stern Museum, shows the maturation of various influences into a sophisticated reflection of the artist’s varied ancestry and personal interest in archaeology. For the last twenty years he has focused on the purity of ceramic form and its eloquent description through decoration. His ceramic vessels may be read as a mapping of his biography through motifs that form part of an ongoing history.
The vessels are pit-fired - a transformative alchemical event / ritual / art happening that is an essential element of his making process. Each piece is imbued with a precious or miraculous quality that he cannot predict or control and forms an antidote to his perfectionism. The vessels spend so much time within the hands of the artist, being built, decorated and burnished that they seem to absorb the energy of concentration centered upon them that they resonate with this literally and figuratively.
SA ART TIMES. September 2011
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KWA ZULU NATAL | GALLERY GUIDE
Kwazulu- Natal Durban
Underberg
The African Art Centre Until 2 September, an exhibition of mixed media artworks by Dina Cormick entitled “Honouring the Stories within Every Woman – Images for the Journey.” 7 September – 10 October, “Birds of a Feather” featuring a special range of telephone wire, beaded and embroidered birds, jewellery and sculptures produced by crafters supported and mentored by the Development Team of the African Art Centre. 94 Florida Rd, Durban. T. 031 312 3804/5 africanartcentre@afri-art.co.za www.afriart.org.za
The Underberg Studio Set in a delightful garden facing the mountains, the gallery specializes in South African Fine Art landscape photography & Ceramics. Owned by photographer Lawrance Brennon and his potter wife, Catherine Brennon, the gallery is regularly updated with their latest work. The garden and gallery will be featuring the work of sculptor Sarah Richards during the Underberg Open Gardens Festival (28 – 30th October). 21 Ridge Rd, Underberg. Signage from R617 T. 033 701 2440 / 072 141 9924 / 082 872 7830 www.underbergstudio.co.za
ArtSPACE Durban Until 10 September, “Further” - Sculptures and paintings by Sarah Richards and “extra-ordinary” - Photography by Sally Giles. 12 – 24 September, “Means of Passage:” - Paintings by Grace Kotze’s Art Students and “Into the Light” - Photography by Peter Bendheim for the Community Chest. 26 September – 15 October, “Sifundakwabadala” (Learn from the Elders) - Paintings by Sibusiso Duma and “The Space In between” - Print, video and sound by Wayne Reddiar and Sita Suzanne. 3 Millar Rd, Stamford Hill, Durban. T.031 312 0793 info@artspace-durban.com www.artspace-durban.com Christie’s International Auctioneers. Gillian Scott Berning, Independent Consultant. T 031 207 8247 gillian.gsb@mweb.co.za www.christies.com
KZNSA Gallery From 13 to 30 September in the main gallery and the multi-media room: Peter Rich “Learnt in Translation.” This exhibition traces the development of Rich’s work to date, showing architectural drawings, models, photographs as well as the sketches that form the inspiration to his architectural design work. In the park gallery: Andrew Nair, “Withdrawings” Graphite pencil drawings on paper, of incredible detail and beauty. 166 Bulwer Rd, Glenwood. T. 031 277 1705 gallery@kznsagallery.co.za www.kznsagallery.co.za Tamasa Gallery A small commercial gallery, Tamasa exhibits a broad variety of contemporary KZN artists. 36 Overport Drive, Berea, Durban. T. 031 207 1223
Pietermaritzburg The Blue Caterpillar Art Gallery The gallery exhibits a wide range of styles and mediums covering both established and up and coming artists from South Africa and beyond. At Butterflies for Africa, 37 Willowton Rd, Pietermaritzburg. T. 033 387 1356 art@butterflies.co.za/ bluecaterpillarart@hotmail.com www.butterflies.co.za Tatham Art Gallery Until 18 September, “Meeting the Makers: Contemporary Craft of KZN” an exciting and groundbreaking exhibition of crafters from throughout KZN including established designers such as Andrew Early, Egg Designs & Sibusiso Mbhele to unknown artists from remote parts of the province. Cnr of Chief Albert Luthuli (Commercial) Rd & Church Str. (Opposite City Hall) Pietermaritzburg. T. 033 342 1804 www.tatham.org.za
Umdloti The Audrey Rudnick Gallery Surrealist Paintings, Sculptures and Pod People by Audrey Rudnick. 77 North Beach Rd, Shop no.10 Upper Level, Umdloti Centre, Umdloti. T. 031 568 2445 audrey@thehoozoo.com www.audreyrudnick.com
9973 Initiative
The Collective 5 September –1 October, “Follow Your Art” – Group Show (Danti Daxi & the Otherwise). First Opening: 5 September, Comic Workshop by Allistair Laird & Warren Raysdorf: 10 & 11 September, Second Opening: 19 September. 48b Florida Rd, (entrance in 4th Avenue) Greyville, Durban. T. 031 303 4891 thecollectivedurban.blogspot.com
Vulindlela Nyoni AFRICAN ART CENTRE 94 Florida Road, Morningside, Durban 4001 Mon. - Fri. 8.30 am-5 pm. Sat.- 9am-3pm T: 031 312 3804/5 F: 031 312 3818 africanartcentre@afri-art.co.za www.afriart.org.za
Vulindlela Nyoni at the African Art Centre Section 21 Not for gain company
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Judith Mason: Rictus Sardonicus Wilhelm van Rensburg : One of the most striking images in the latest suite of drawings by Judith Mason is of an elongated jack-saw, with real, worn teeth in the place of its own teeth in what appears to be an extended lower jaw bone with a curling bit of lower lip. Suspended in mid-air above this saw is a small fret-saw, or jigsaw, with a twisted blade. The drawing is one in a series of open-mouthed sketches, many with snarling bared teeth in what looks like a set, sardonic smile, or grimace. “The Rictus Sardonicus drawings” says Mason, “are a response to a delightful file of rictus tooth x-rays sent to me by a collector friend, Dr Shaun Beecroft, who is a trauma surgeon in the U.K. These anonymous images suggested distinct personalities, and not just skeletal heads, as some of them presented themselves as mischievous or monstrous, and the fracturing and occasional prosthetic hardware added an extra frisson to the subject matter. When I drew from them, using the plates and a light table, I began to see that some sets of teeth conveyed power or malice, and when I juxtaposed sets of teeth against or opposite each other, particular narratives suggested themselves.” The teeth of the jack-saw are more than just a mere visual pun. One can almost hear the barking commands coming out of a wide open mouth, with a double set of teeth, in a drawing entitled “Mouthpiece: Commandant”. “The teeth in the Commandant are his fighting force, giving effect to his words” says Mason. Or they could be the words from the mouth in another drawing, “Mouthpiece: Manipulator”, with entangled figures dangling like puppets on a string from the bared teeth in the gaping mouth of what was the face of a human being. But look at the eyes of the Commandant: they are weary and vulnerable, belying what comes out of his mouth. Eyes, incidentally, do appear between the teeth of an open mouth in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, acting as point of convergence of the external and internal worlds, and symbolizing the protection of the inner spirit. Mason is concerned about her own eyes: “My drawing style has changed a bit. Partly because I have taken such a lot of time, several months, on each drawing, using pencils which range from 3B to 6H in each work, and probably because I am in dire need of cataract operations and have had to discipline myself to get all the marks as ‘right’ as I can.”
The eyes of the Commandant ‘hear’ the voices of the people. They ‘see’ the power of these voices. Look, for instance, at another one of Mason’s singular drawings: “Mouthpiece: The laughter of others”. Repeated sets of grimacing teeth form a type of vortex, swallowing the viewer entirely, yet at the same time suggesting the opening out of the petals of a delicate flower. This is perhaps the central paradox in Judith Mason’s drawing: the mouth, the teeth, the tongue, the voice all combine into very powerful speech, the product of mana, or psychic energy. Yet, the mouth, these teeth can equally powerfully devour, destroy and consume. Creativity ameliorated and tempered, softened and hardened, by destruction, in other words. . How devastating, then, when looking at yet another drawing of hers in which the mouth, the teeth are absent: “Mouthpiece: Saying no”: a vulnerable self-portrait with the mouth erased, or never drawn, for that matter. “The mouth-less self-portrait” she says, “is a comment on my inclination to say yes and regret the consequences.” However, it signifies much more: it references her moral obligation for visual, aesthetic articulation, rather than a reluctant verbal undertaking. The Rictus Sardonicus suite of drawings holds up ironic images of the role of the artist in contemporary society. “Mouthpiece: Artist aka sacred shroud seller”, and “Mouthpiece: Prophet”. In terms of the former drawing Mason comments wryly, “I enjoy employing humour in art work, along the lines of a ‘comic novel’ rather than a swiftly realized cartoon. Such is my intention in my portrayal of the artist as creator and seller of mandilions. The history of religious relics inspires me, not so much devotion, as great admiration for generations of entrepreneurs throughout the ages who created objects of veneration for the gullible/innocent. Some of them, like the shroud of Turin, possess great gravitas.” “Unlike the other drawings,” Mason goes on to say, “ ‘The Prophet’ is toothless, his mouth is a foul and gaping orifice, inhabited by flies, to suggest the damnation he promises.” The mouth of “The Prophet” is a rotting trap, containing its own destruction and the destruction of others. It is akin to what in slang terms is called a ‘bugchaser’, a person who seeks sexual partners who are HIV positive for the purpose of having unprotected sex and becoming HIV positive himself. Artist: Exhibition: Opens: Where:
Judith Mason Rictus Sardonicus 10 September 2011 GALLERY AOP, Johannesburg
ARTLife THE SOUTH AFRICAN
Helmut Starcke: Ritual, 2011 Acrylic on canvas (detail). Photo: Julian Kruger. The Exhibition was held at The University of Stellenbosch Art Museum, Stellenbosch
ARTLife |
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SA ART TIMES. September 2011
| ARTLife
SA ART TIMES. September 2011
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Over the last 15 years, Gallery 2 (previously known as Gallery on the Square) has established itself as one of South Africa’s leading fine art galleries. Built on a strong affection for the arts, it strives to promote a cross-section of both established and emerging contemporary South African artists across a variety of disciplines, as well as supporting various local development projects. In May 2010, the gallery relocated to what has become known as the ‘Art Strip’ on Jan Smuts avenue in Parkwood, Johannesburg, and rebranded as Gallery 2. It continues to draw on the ever-present talent and energy of South Africa’s visual artists, finding its niche within the South African art market, as well as providing an environment that is enjoyed and supported by artists, private and corporate patrons alike. Gallery 2 looks to mediate between formalist ideals and the theoretical artistic discourse of contemporary art. It is our goal to promote a re-appreciation of not only the aesthetic but also a return to the essence of production in art as well as any conceptual discourse that the work may signify.
John Moore: The Ferryman, Hard-Ground Etching, 114cm x 200cm
Artists associated with Gallery 2, amongst others, are: Paul Blomkamp, Hannelie Coetzee, Wilma Cruise, Karin Daymond, Bronwen Findlay, Kate Gottgens, Phillemon Hlungwani, Grace Kotze, Dumisani Mabaso, Nelson Makamo, Colbert Mashile, Hermann Niebuhr, Annette Pretorius, Carl Roberts, Jenny Stadler, Reney Warrington Contact Details: Gallery 2: 140 Jan Smuts Avenue Parkwood Johannesburg Tel.: 011 447 0155/98 Web: www.gallery2.co.za e-mail: gots@mweb.co.za
Jenny Stadler: Buffalo Bill, Mixed Media on Canvas, 140cm x 160cm
Kate Gottgens: Merry Hell, Oil on Canvas, 92cm x 130cm
Gallery 2 140 Jan Smuts Avenue, Parkwood Tel.: + 27 11 447 0155/98 Web: www.gallery2.co.za Mail: gots@mweb.co.za
Discovery, oil on canvas, 120 x 20 www.karindaymond.com +27 (0)83 301 8887 daymond@nelweb.co.za
00cm
KARIN DAYMOND
T H E L A N D S C A P E O F
Delmas Dawn (400x300)
Vaalrivier Dawn (400x300)
In the South Africa painting aesthetic, some would argue that the landscape holds pride of place. The works of Pierneef and Walter Meyer are emblematic of what the country embodies, with sweeping vistas, colours that are almost indescribable, and a horizon line that both beckons and mystifies. The American Regionalist tradition follows a similar path, with painters like Grant Wood and Thomas Hart Benton bending the collective midwestern farmscapes to their visual will. The urban landscapes of Edward Hopper, which slightly pre-date the Regionalists, are often even more informative of the American painting tradition. It is into this latter class that the paintings of Daniel Human fit. Human’s landscapes are eerily similar to what we see around us in South African vistas, when one is not really searching for anything specific, but is confronted with an arresting image that locks into our psyche. Human has been painting since he was 9 years old,
and his early works show a strong eye for composition and detail, especially in works like ‘Tannie with Chickens.’ This work, which was done when Human was 16, was completed during studies toward a Fine Art diploma which the artist started when he was 12, and completed when he was 17. With his love of the long road, his favourite being the N6 to East London, Human would scour the land for scenes and vistas. Currently he is working on numerous landscapes, some which he calls “peri-urban landscapes”, sporting radar towers, street-lamps, stop signs, power pylons and methane-tinted skies. He seems to be fascinated by the interesting colours produced by the early-morning smog on the highway to Joburg, by veld fires in winter and by the glow that the towering Highveld cumulus-nimbus clouds pour down on a landscape. The current series Human is working on, which are landscapes of industrial and semi-industrial views around
A N A R T I S T
Bashewa Road (600x400)
Jozi Thunderclouds (470x500)
Nottinghill Road Cold Morning (600x400)
Pretoria Radio Masts (600x400)
Clarens Dawn (420x300)
Lynnwood Rd (470x430)
Gauteng, have a quality that suggests a dynamic new visual direction for the artist. In these paintings, he is unlocking an inner aesthetic which draws us as viewers into his visual interpretation of scenes with which we are strangely familiar. However, the familiarity of the landscapes is veiled by the emotive use of sfumato-like brushwork, which takes the work in a different direction, away from the traditional
interpretation of this subject matter. This series is an exciting portent of things to come from this artist, as he is finding a style which he is very comfortable to explore and expand, both as an artist, and a son of South Africa. Written by Tim Mostert, American Art Historian and well known cartoonist, creator of Speedy and Papsak.
Daniel Human 282A Mamanthane Street, Erasmusrand, Pretoria 082 412 5868 / D@it.co.za
Zwartkops Dusk (450x350)
Veld Fire (440x300)
Paradise
Experience the Artist, Glendine with Alice Art Gallery Desolate landscapes of the soul Glendine captures the elusive vastness of the Namib and Karoo with a beautifully balanced use of detailed line work and generous swaths of sky and texture. Her landscapes are inspired by crumbling and deserted homesteads, rusty windmills and dust-laden red sunsets. Glendine’s more abstract masterpieces focus on personal experiences of loss and gain and are mostly selfportraits. She also does expressive portraits of women like Frida Kahlo, Ingrid Jonker and Helen Martins whose lives influenced society in a powerful and lasting manner. Glendine is able to communicate an array of emotions, while her studies of women are sad, passionate, lonely and haunting. To highlight the intimacy of her work the artist often combines images and words to convey a personal image and touch. Her relationship with God is revealed in her latest works depicting death, life and heaven after suffering a deep personal tragedy. She studied and taught Fine Arts and currently lives in De Rust in the Klein Karoo. She has participated in numerous group and solo exhibitions in South Africa and in New York. Her work adorns homes and embassies in the UK, USA, Australia and South Africa. Glendine’s work is on display at Alice Art Gallery in Ruimsig. You may well be surprised by her latest work in bold colours and daringly different subjects. Invest in a Glendine Painting from Alice Art and surround yourself with an inspiring interpretation of the world around you.
For further enquiries contact Alice Art Gallery at (011) 958 1392, 083 377 1470 aliceart@global.co.za, www.aliceart.co.za
Selfportret
Karoo landscape
Tree of life
ARTLife | A MONSTEROUS DAVID BROWN GIFT TO UCT
David Brown : A Key Moment in our history Graven in steel A magnificent gift of sculpture to UCT
All photo’s Jim Wolf
On the third of November, 1991, a stranger pitched up out of the blue at sculptor David Brown’s studio. No sooner did he see the mass of sculptures, than he wet his lips in amazement, and promptly commissioned David to create the most ambitious sculptural ensemble of his entire career. By Lloyd Pollak His “Dialogue at the Dogwatch”, recently installed at the middle campus at UCT, comprises four separate fascist figures manning lumbering engines of war, or presiding over towering observation posts, searchlights, platforms and ladders. It rises up to a height of 6.5 meters, and the spaces between the figures extend as far as 15 meters, so that when it is described as half as big as rugby field, this is not hyperbole. The only other monument of comparable scale in the Mother city is Rhodes Memorial (1912), a not entirely dissimilar synthesis of architecture and sculpture expressive of a very different ethos. While “Dialogue at the Dogwatch” portrays the death rattle of apartheid and the Nationalist state, Rhodes Memorial is a soaring flight of triumphal imperialism. Eight solemn lions guard a Doric temple ranged around G. F. Watt’s all-conquering equestrian effigy of Cecil John Rhodes gazing proprietorially over this remote pocket of the British Empire. Almost a century separates these two monumental landmarks, and during that period, nothing of commensurate grandeur has graced our city. Such enterprises are so astronomic in cost that we simply cannot afford them. It was only through the munificence of Charles Diamond, the dream patron who came knocking at David’s door, that the university recently acquired the sculptural complex as a gift. Diamond, an expatriate South African and graduate of UCT, founded the international investment company Iconostat, and this is the source of his wealth. Soon after Diamond commissioned the piece, he flew David to England to survey the site. His former residence, ‘Hennerton House’, near Henley on Thames, is a Regency seat set in a seven acre English riverside garden
SA ART TIMES. September 2011
bordered by ancient elms. The Deco and antique Japanese furniture, the Warhol’s, Lichenstein’s, Yves Klein’s and Julio Gonzalez’s cramming the house, and the garden punctuated by Henry Moore’s and Victorian garden sculpture, discreetly intimated that money was no object. Brown experimented with crates, stepladders and boxes on the broad lawns in order to grasp the character and potential of the space. 15 months later he installed the work. Its raw power and aggression was in absolute contradistinction to the mellow pastoral mood of the country garden with its mossy marble nymphs, dryads and fauns. The sculpture’s shuddering impact owes much to Brown’s insistence on executing every single detail – all the cutting, drilling, welding and polishing – himself, rather than leaving it to hired executants. He regards his way of drilling a hole, or soldering metal together, as handwork as deeply personal as a brushstroke. They manifest his unique touch and make every inch of his sculpture as individual as his thumbprint. Violence and aggression are the hallmarks of “Dialogue at the Dogwatch” which is indebted to German Expressionism and the immense physical force of Ernst Barlach’s carved wooden figures. The Sturm und Drang emerges explosively from the sculpture’s new site, an open piazza surrounded by formal terraces, walkways, pergolas and steps. The contrast between the reserve of the collegiate architecture and the manically overwrought bronze figures in the grip of incipient panic and hysteria, charges the space with wracking tension. A sense of imminent catastrophe invades the campus, for the sculpture portrays the immediate prelude to the climax - the split second before it takes place. The final event is largely left to our imagination, and it reverberates far more thunderously in our minds than it would if enacted before our eyes. A plaque describes the work as “a sculptural tableau-vivant set at the dogwatch, that time at sea when the light is fading, the day gives way to dusk, and the stars appear in the night sky.” Its substance is an imagined “silent conversation in a turbulent yet hopeful period of political transition.” The sculpture captures the febrile mood of hope, fear and tension that swept over the country before the ANC took power, when no one knew what the future held. Although the work possesses universal meaning as a parable about the inevitability of retribution awaiting wrong-doers, it is also grounded in a particular place and a particular time. This is Brown’s Gotterdammerung, his twilight of the Gods, revealing how the apartheid’s night finally came down. Although ‘Dialogue at the Dogwatch’ comprises four components set far apart, it nevertheless defines the cardinal points of a laager, albeit a highly pregnable one. One warrior stands alone, while the other three are scattered amongst look-out posts, searchlights and ladders where they execute some defensive manoeuvre. The distances that separate the isolated men from each other, invoke a last stand, establishing them as embattled ‘bittereinders’. Brown’s four militarists are generic, rather than particularized. Pose is open: the figures bend their knees, part their legs and stretch out their arms, and the splaying of their squat, dumpy anatomies gives them the regressive air of heavy, earthbound, troglodytes. All sport cumbersome boots, knee-guards, mittens, goggles or eye shields, and their uniform is a bizarre amalgam of armor, corsetry and prosthetic equipment. This thick, leathery battledress exposes as much of their flesh as it covers, furnishing scant protection. The exposed areas of flesh are criss-crossed with fine incised lines imbuing the skin with the pachydermous toughness appropriate to weathered veterans of a rough and tumble world of combat and duress. One soldier wears a codpiece. The shorts of his mates centre on a chunky mount encircling their exposed genitalia, and emphasizing their sexual organs in the way a ring emphasizes a gemstone. The dangling phallus and scrotum represent the men’s Achilles heel, their soft underbelly of vulnerability, and its lewd blatancy cocks a snook at the censor-ridden ethic of the crumbling Nationalist state.
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A figure with a propeller attached to his back stands at the summit of a rusting metal tower. His arms are outstretched before him in a diving pose, and he is about to launch himself into space. His brother in arms occurs opposite him seated on a traditional dunce’s stool rising from a tank-like, military apparatus. The fourth combatant is perilously poised on the tip of a platform atop the highest, tower. His arms are outstretched as if he were playing blind man’s buff and feeling his way in the dark. His tilted head looks skywards, as he martials all his forces to make a supreme effort, and cast himself – wittingly or unwittingly – into the void. Like the figure with the propeller, he is a doomed Icarus, an incarnation of either foolhardy hubris or the Freudian death drive.A fearful engine of war, part plough, part reaping machine, with a huge, serrated blade, stands by the tower. It suggests the men assault the very earth itself. Dark associations with the Grim Reaper and the biblical warning ‘what ye sow, shall ye reap’, leech onto it, steeping it in baleful overtones of death and last judgment. The silvery expanses of this stainless steel behemoth reflect the light, and contrast with the duller hues of bronze, brass and copper. It points in the direction of all four sculpture groups, generating lines of force that weld the separate parts into a single whole. Tense, braced musculatures, screaming mouths, lolling tongues and distended eyes gazing heavenward in entreaty, reveal the men are in extremis. Nevertheless they doggedly continue to relay signals of the hand to each other, but this sign language is so riddled with ambiguity, it is meaningless. A frantic cranked-up vitality goes hand in hand with a mounting loss of control that makes rout inevitable. Brown’s figures with their gross bull’s necks, protruding Adam’s apples and thick cauliflower ears, conform to the dumpy, thick-set anatomical canon whereby the Northern Gothic imagination portrayed an unidealized Rabelaisian humanity irremediably mired in its own carnality, unable to resist the baser summonses of the flesh and transcend its fallen condition. The febrile SA ART TIMES. September 2011
exuberance of his sculptural invention and the ghoulish relish with which it is executed, establish him as the heir of Brueghel and Bosch, and his Nationalist oppressors are the remote progeny of their Beelzebubs and succubi. His world comes cloaked in hoary medievalism, and his towers and ladders hazily remind one of the creaky poles, ladders, wheels, gallows, fishing rods and lances their Satanic figures use to harrow sinners into hell. Such overtones of doom and damnation provide an ideal framework for Brown’s vision of the insanity of apartheid and the inevitability of its collapse. However the sculptor also evokes a recognizable, if increasingly rare, South African type, the big-bellied, beer-swilling, blue collar Afrikaners of the Reef – all small-town bigotry, ignorance and verkrampte prejudice. The quadvirate effortlessly bear their symbolical weight as embodiments of the volk, the entire Afrikaner collective. The tackle of knee-guards, braces, straps, belts, earphones, goggles and helmets, have become part of their physical being, endowing them with the mecanomorphic rigidity appropriate to those who unquestioningly obey directives, and act as cogs in the wheels of state machinery. Brown handles them in a surreal amalgam of tragedy, slapstick and farce. Sinister, macabre and grotesque they may be, but what gives them substance and density is the way they both resist, and invite, their own destruction, as though some inextirpable Raskolnikovian urge to expiate their dim sense of guilt lay submerged deep within them. This faint glimmer of finer feeling prevents them from collapsing into mere caricatures, and reveals their creator’s essential humanity and faith in mankind. Where to see David Brown’s sculpture ? : The sculpture is next to the New Administration building on Cross Campus Road reached either via the Woolsack Drive turn off on De Waal drive, or turn from Main Road into Burg, and then Stanley Road. After 6p.m, the floodlit sculpture assumes a dramatic new guise. 51