Welcome to FNB JoburgArtFair 2018

Jake Michael Singer, from But a storm is blowing from paradise exhibition, 2018. Photography

The FNB JoburgArtFair, the continent’s premium visual art event, is going for round eleven this year and it’s looking stronger than ever. From 6 to 9 September, Johannesburg’s Sandton Convention Centre will be abuzz with collectors, curators, artists and art patrons from around the globe.

This year, the FNB JoburgArtFair will feature exhibitions within four categories, including contemporary galleries, solo presentations, limited editions and art platforms, as well as this year’s featured artist Billie Zangewa, FNB Art Prize winner Haroon Gunn-Salie, Sue Williamson’s large-scale installation Messages from the Atlantic Passage, a talks programme, the curator’s feature: Takunda Regis Billiat, and a brand new initiative designed to uncover the new and exciting talent on the African continent – #FNBJAF20.

With #FNBJAF20, the FNB JoburgArtFair has invited the public to participate in recognising artists who are, or could in the future be, shaping and inspiring the global art scene. A selection of artists has been nominated by a group of curators, collectors, gallerists and art platforms. The public can vote for their favourites on the FNB JoburgArtFair website until 4 September, and the top 20 will be announced during the week of the FNB JoburgArtFair.

‘There has been a significant increase of interest in contemporary African art over the past decade since we first launched the FNB JoburgArtFair,’ says Director of Artlogic, Cobi Labuscagne. ‘In turn, this has resulted in an increase in the number of galleries representing artists, foundations, museums, art fairs, installations in urban precincts and exploratory projects – in general, more excitement and energy. Through this process, some African artists will emerge with stronger voices than others – and we’d like the public to help us find out who they are. Ultimately, it is the public’s voice that counts in terms of a more profound and lasting influence.’

Sue Williamson’s Messages from the Atlantic Passage is a large-scale installation based on the accumulated records from both sides of the Atlantic of the late history of slavery in the 19th century. This new work is an extension of Williamson’s acclaimed Messages from Moat (1987), first exhibited on Okwui Enwezor’s 2nd Johannesburg Biennale, which listed the slaves brought to the Cape of Good Hope by the Dutch East India Company between 1658 and 1762.

Messages from the Atlantic Passage took the 2017 visitors of Art Basel, Switzerland, by storm with its powerful narrative of the movements of slaves across the Atlantic ocean. It is critical that this work is also viewed and spoken about on the African continent and it is a triumph for visitors to the Fair to be able to interact with the piece.

Jody Paulsen, The Socialite, 2018. Felt collage

For the curator’s feature, Takunda Regis Billiat (Zimbabwe) will be presenting a new large-scale work elaborating on many themes of his practice, specifically how Zimbabweans can reconcile with their current political, economic and social realities. The installation will investigate how knowledge passed down from the ancestors, a once reassuring guidance, now is becoming less and less of a comfort with the complex problems the country faces while navigating historical upheavals.

This year, 45 galleries from 14 countries across Africa, Europe and the United States will participate in the Fair, creating an all-in-one showcase of fresh perspectives and sought-after content on contemporary African art. There is a particularly strong representation of exhibitors from Angola, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe. New exhibitors from the continent include Namibian artist collective, NJE Collective (based out of Windhoek); and Arte de Gema Contemporary Gallery from Maputo; while This is Not a Whitecube will make their Johannesburg debut as the third Luanda gallery in the line-up (after ELA – Espaço Luanda Arte and MOV’ART Gallery).

There is a strong offering from South African galleries within the contemporary category.

MJ Turpin and Matthew Dean Dowdle’s Kalashnikovv Gallery will be showing works by rising star Jake Michael Singer; and Mxolisi Vusimuzi Beauchamp, a comic artist and an accomplished artist in the broader visual and cultural sector, among others.

Singer is a multidisciplinary artist whose work explores the connection between sculpture, image, and architecture. Using materials related to the built environment such as concrete, steel, glass, silicone, and plastic, he creates disoriented architectural forms. Dystopian landscapes are a recurring theme in Singer’s work. His recent exhibition, But a storm is blowing from paradise, was a meditation on the idea of progress and comprises sculpture and photography. ‘By using symbols such as the wheel, the wing and the staircase as metaphors for futurist idealism, I transport the viewer from chaos to transcendence, from violence to unity,’ he says.

Beauchamp’s paintings are created by using various methods, including spray painting and stencilling, working with materials such as crayons and acrylic paints. His work comments on social issues, politics and events that make up the current South African social landscape. His works are the artistic version of satirical journalism and social critique, often controversial. Humour is an important ingredient, and is heightened through the typical ‘stereotyping’ by the media of our country’s politics and politicians.

Amy Lin, Linking, 2014. Coloured pencil

In celebration of Yinka Shonibare’s first exhibition on the African continent in 15 years, Goodman Gallery will be showing his work Planets in My Head, Music II at the FNB JoburgArtFair. Shonibare’s Ruins Decorated will show at the Goodman Gallery during September and October and consists of sculptures, staged photographs and paintings, film and installation. He will also be participating in the talks programme, which takes place on Saturday 8 September at the Auto & General Theatre on the Square from 11:00 to 18:00, as well as in a series of talks at the Centre for the Less Good Idea.

The ever-controversial Ed Young and the contrasting patterns and vivacious colours of Jody Paulsen’s work are highlights on SMAC Gallery’s stand.

The solo presentations at the FNB JoburgArtFair are one of their most exciting offerings. Here, visitors can experience a body or work by one single artist in order to better understand their full practice. The solo selection in 2018 will present a diverse range of artists, artistic practice and subject matter, representing South Africa, Senegal, Ethiopia, the USA and the Netherlands.

Alida Anderson Art Projects will present work by Amy Lin. Through her drawing/sculpture hybrids, Lin explores the idea of being an outsider. Parts of each drawing are obscured or hidden by layers of cut paper, requiring the viewer to move around and peer into the openings to see the drawing underneath. But just as with any outsider, the viewer can’t fully understand or see the whole picture and can only infer what is happening beneath, based on the tiny glimpses that are visible from the surface.

Unleashed by Roger Ballen and Hans Lemmen will be presented by ARTCO Gallery. Described as unsettling, even brutal, this exhibition is Roger Ballen as never seen before, revisiting the depths of the human psyche in a project together with Hans Lemmen; a project remarkable in every respect. Living thousands of miles apart, the two artists have worked on each other’s works over a period of months. Photos and drawings have been exchanged and re-exchanged, dissected, made into collages, in part re-photographed and drawn over; an intense dialogue involving a camera, scissors, charcoal and pen. The result is spectacular, transcending the boundaries across these several genres.

Aida Muluneh, The Diversity Visa - Passport Photo Series Image courtesy of the artist and David Krut Projects

David Krut will exhibit a solo show by Ethiopian artist Aida Muluneh. The project is a continuation of her series addressing issues of perception relating to Africa that commenced with The World is 9.

Young, emerging artist Ofentse Seshabela will be given a solo showing by Eclectica Contemporary. Born in 1995 in Pretoria, Seshabela creates work that is largely politically motivated. His work explores collage, painting and drawing to articulate concepts of both global and local politics.

Senegalese artist Mamady Seydi will be presented by Galerie GALEA. By illustrating Wolog proverbs, Seyedi creates mythological half-animal, half-human characters that highlight the weaknesses and faults of human beings. His works are a combination of metal and raw materials such as sackcloth and wood.

SMITH will showcase the work of Dale Lawrence. In this presentation, Lawrence questions the sovereignty of professionalism and the commercial product, and suggests that the earnest pursuit of beauty, understanding and enlightenment are more valuable than the results. In this, Lawrence suggests, an artist must be more like an amateur than a professional – the task of the professional being to deliver with efficiency and consistency; the task of the amateur to pursue with wonder and enthusiasm.

Ed Young, Puppies, 2018. Oil on canvas

A solo project of new works by Zander Blom will be presented by Stevenson. This body of work is born from Blom’s growing disillusionment with the limitations of abstract painting. Figurative elements traditionally associated with the artist’s drawing practice dominate his recent canvases, reflecting his desire for a new pictorial language that articulates concerns with art history from a simultaneously personal and cerebral standpoint.

And there is so much more… the FNB JoburgArtFair brings the largest collection of African contemporary art under one roof, and in 2018 will once again fulfil a function beyond that of traditional art fairs. For more information, visit www.fnbjoburgartfair.co.za and don’t forget to book your tickets!