THE BENEDICTION OF SHADE II Joburg, City of Trees
This catalogue was published on the occasion of the exhibition The Benediction of Shade II: Joburg, City of Trees, David Krut Projects, Parkwood, 2014 Text: Linda Chernis Design: Doreen de Klerk In-house photographer: Bongy Makabeni www.davidkrut.com www.davidkrutprojects.com David Krut Projects 142 Jan Smuts Avenue, Parkwood t. +27 (0)11 447 0627 264Fox Street Arts On Main, Johannesburg t. +27(0)11 334 1208/9
ON THE COVER Untitled linocut from 1974 Willem Boshoff
THE BENEDICTION OF SHADE II Joburg, City of Trees
Introduction David Krut Projects (Johannesburg) is pleased to present The Benediction of Shade II: Joburg City of Trees A group exhibition featuring a large selection of artists who have engaged with the figure, idea or metaphor of the forest or the tree in different ways and through various media. Also running as a subtext through the exhibition is the interplay between nature and the urban environment, and Joburg in particular. The exhibition is an extension of the successful The Benediction of Shade exhibition curated by David Krut Projects (Cape Town) in 2013. The exhibition will run across all three David Krut spaces in Johannesburg (gallery, bookstore and print workshop), with the gallery space at David Krut Projects (DKP) being the focal point of the exhibition. Joburg is known for its trees, boasting an estimated 6 million of them, and is reputed to be the largest man-made urban forest in the world. However, Joburg was established on typical Highveld terrain, with no naturally occurring trees. Trees were planted in large numbers in Joburg’s early years in the area surrounding what was to become Parkwood (where DKP is situated), in order to supply vast amounts of timber to the booming gold mining industry. As the northern parts of the city became suburban, the multitudes of trees were generally retained, as is still evident in the older, tree lined suburbs, and their names. 1 November 2014 - 31 January 2015
Featured Works (Alphabetical, by artist) 1. Michael Amery 2. Beth Diane Armstrong 3. Lynda Ballen 4. Willem Boshoff 5. Justin Fox 6. Mischa Fritsch 7. St. John Fuller 8. Sandile Goje 9. Bob Gosani 10. Stephen Hobbs 11. Eva-Lotta Jansson 12. Gawie Joubert 13. William Kentridge 14. David Koloane 15. Jason Larkin 16. Carla Liesching 17. Khehla Chepape Makgato 18. Ramarutha Makoba 19. Maja Maljević 20. Dillon Marsh 21. Oliver Mayhew 22. Michael Meyersfeld 23. Joshua Miles 24. Andrew Munnik 25. Lorenzo Nassimbeni 26. Robyn Penn 27. Dan Perrone 28. Senzo Shabangu 29. Sean Slemon 30. Sidelle Willow Smith 31. Nathaniel Stern 32. Chris Swift 33. Joe Tilson 34. Merwelene van der Merwe 35. Dominique Watson 36. Quinten Edward Williams
Michael Amery In Michael Amery’s Trees, By Man – 10 the structured, man-made effect of planted trees is vividly portrayed in great detail. The rows of trees are emphasised by the grid that Amery has used in his work, with the gridlines done in India ink left clearly visible. The perfectly evenly planted trees distinguish such a planted forest, from the more naturally occurring placement of trees.
Trees, By Man – 10 Michael Amery India ink (grid only) and charcoal Size: 125 x 180 cm
Beth Diane Armstrong Johannesburg sculptor, Beth Diane Armstrong works primarily with metal, exploring “lines in relation to lines in various densities and looseness”. In her sculpture Will Suddenly Trees Leap from Winter and Will (from the poem by EE Cummings with the same title) Armstrong began the work as an abstract, architectural sculpture, experimenting with lines moving vertically through space and encountering an object, but when she stood back from the work, she saw that a weeping willow tree with a tree house had emerged. This process of experimentation and works forming and evolving over time is common to Armstrong’s methods. Armstrong prefers to work with steel in an organic way, not shining it up, working with the natural colours of the steel that emerge from the welding process. “Fascinated by process, change and structures, I am primarily a sculptor working in steel. I also work in printmaking and other media. My work is not defined by a particular idea-set or source of inspiration. I am however fascinated with process and change and with structures, internal/external, psychological/physical and organic/ architectural. I have had two solo exhibitions and I have been involved in a number of group shows and projects, as well as private and public commissions.” – quote by artist, 2014.
Will Suddenly Trees Leap from Winter and Will Beth Diane Armstrong 2012 Round bar, wire and wood Size: 177 x 45 cm
By Three Beth Diane Armstrong 2013 Welded 4mm wire and tin copper pipe Size: 36 x 36 x 36 cm
Lynda Ballen Lynda Ballen’s works Strata formed part of her 2012 Concerning Preciousness exhibition at David Krut Projects. In this exhibition, Ballen grappled with centuries old philosophical issues that attend the enterprise of mining. The works pay homage to the Renaissance geological scientist and theorist, Georgius Agricola and appropriate the drawings from his texts to acknowledge traditional European linear techniques and explore the graphic aesthetic as a potential for narrative. Ballen, working in ink and glitter as opposed to the traditional woodcut medium, traces these lines onto intricately constructed handmade paperworks which describe the despoiling of nature for humanity’s gain, whilst simultaneously acknowledging the value of these subterranean metals and gems. These paperworks are created from recycled archival paper and metallic substances which seek to draw attention to the nature of workmanship and the crafted object, while the use of threads and braided fibre allude to the value inherent in traditional African textiles, but, moreover, as a metaphor for the preciousness of the earth’s surface. Ballen works confront the contentious current issues and environmental concerns posed by mining, topics particularly relevant to the artist’s home city of Johannesburg.
Strata Lynda Ballen 2012 Ink and glitter drawing on reconstituted pigmented handcrafted paper laminated over twine. Size: 169 x 119 cm
Willem Boshoff The lino tile exhibited in The Benediction of Shade II was first cut by artist Willem Boshoff in 1974, but printed and editioned by the David Krut Print Workshop in 2008. At this time Boshoff also began working on his Highveld etchings, finally published in 2010 for his show Big Druid in His Cubicle at Arts on Main in Johannesburg. Boshoff explains that a druid is a healer, diviner and teacher as well as a man of the trees and plants. The name itself relates to trees; in Greek drus is ‘tree’ or ‘oak tree’. As the Big Druid, it is his duty to know and recognise all trees and plants. Over a period of seventeen years of Druid Walks, Boshoff studied and identified tens of thousands of plant species. In his etching Highveld, Boshoff lists every known tree and plant found on the Highveld. Although Johannesburg is known for its abundance of trees, the Highveld on which the city was built is a grassland area with no naturally occurring trees. When talking about his reasons for focusing so much on the flora of this particular region, Boshoff states, “This is where I was born and I like it more than any place on earth.” Although he exhibits extensively abroad, Boshoff continues to work from his studio at his home in Johannesburg.
Highveld Willem Boshoff 2010 Etching Edition Size:: 25 Size: 91.5 x 120.5 cm
Tree Willem Boshoff 1974, 2010 Lino tile and print Size: 37.8 x 40 cm
Justin Fox Cape Town based travel writer, photographer and novelist Justin Fox took the photographic image CJR Baobab on one of his many travel expeditions. The tree is located on Mmamagwa Hill, a site of archaeological interest in the Northern Tuli Game Reserve, Botswana. Carved into the ancient baobab’s trunk are the initials ADS and CJR, most likely belonging to colonial mining magnate Cecil John Rhodes and his aide, Antonio de Silva, c. 1893.
CJR Baobab Justin Fox 2005 Digital Photographic Print Edition Size: 5 Size: 52.5 x 69 cm
Mischa Fritsch Better known as a sculptor and jewellery designer, Mischa Fritsch has in recent years begun experimenting with video and photographic imagery. The words Is It Dead invite the viewer to interpret the work in their own way, with either literal or metaphorical meaning. The title of the work, Renaissance I, implies the possibility of a rebirth, reflected in the possibility of rain giving life-giving sustenance to the seemingly dead tree. Fritsch’s copper sculpture Tree of Life explores the relationship between life and death, with the tree being a recognised symbol of life, juxtaposed with the branches of the trees ending in skulls, symbolising death. Furthermore the tree is contained, protected, isolated and almost sterilized.
Renaissance I Mischa Fritsch 2013 Photograph with handiwork Size: 37 x 37 cm
Tree of Life Mischa Fritsch 2013 Cast copper Size: 6.4 x 5 x 5 cm (tree) 27.8 x 10 x 10 cm (including case)
St. John Fuller In his work Fire St. John Fuller continues with his experimentation with the sensory, physical and metaphysical qualities of time and light. Fuller has been building his own pinhole cameras and camera obscurae for many years, several of which have multiple apertures, allowing him to capture moments in time from multiple perspectives. Fire is a pinhole photograph shot with ‘Helga’ – the largest of Fuller’s multi-aperture pinhole cameras. Fuller mounts a sheet of Ilford multigrade paper into Helga in a darkroom and then moves her outside. Once positioned and secured into place, Fuller opens the shutter (in this case a blanket was used as a ‘shutter’ for all the apertures) and after 20 minutes re-covers Helga and takes her back into the darkroom where the paper is removed and then processed.
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Fire St. John Fuller 2014 Photographic print shot with a multi-aperture pinhole camera Size: 100 x 150 cm
Sandile Goje Grahamstown artist, Sandile Goje was commissioned to do Making Democracy Work for the new Constitutional Court in 1996. Goje was tasked with incorporating the court’s logo of a group of people taking shelter under a tree. The logo was a major influence on the design of the building, in which the tree runs as a design element throughout. The tree symbolises the protective nature of the court as well as referencing the idea of traditional African justice being carried out under a tree, where people would gather to resolve disputes. In the words of Justice Albie Sachs: “The tree protects the people, and they look after the tree. Besides, in South Africa, justice has traditionally taken place under a tree.”. Goje’s linocut continues with the metaphor of the tree as justice and places it contemporary society (as is evident by the cameraman, for example).
Making Democracy Work Sandile Goje 1996 Linocut Edition size: 100 Size: 52.5 x 36.5 cm
Bob Gosani Bob Gosani’s Love Story tells a layered story. On one level the image captures a moment between two lovers, standing at a bus stop, on a tree-lined street. However, placed in a historical context, the photograph tells a deeper story. The shot was taken in Sophiatown in 1956, the year that the mixed-race suburb in Johannesburg was demolished and made a ‘white’ area according to the apartheid Group Areas Act. The street scene captured by Gosani would have disappeared by the end of that year, along with the line of trees, perhaps also a remark on the impermanence of love? Furthermore, the couple stand beneath a sign reading ‘Native Bus Stop’, again an obvious reference to the segregated apartheid laws of the time. Bob Gosani worked as a photojournalist for Drum magazine – his photos of 1950s South Africa defied the apartheid mentality and authority. Gosani died in 1972 at the age of 38.
Love Story Bob Gosani 1954 Photographic print Size: 53 x 58.5 cm
Stephen Hobbs Multi-media artist, Stephen Hobbs’ work has a focus on landscape and architecture and the nature of the interplay between both. In his photographic work Midrand Mosque Diptych Hobbs describes how the developers for this building travelled the world in search of an appropriate site for the demonstration and exhibition of an Ottoman Style Mosque. According to Hobbs, “In keeping with the historical exactitude of the construction methods of that era, the scale of the juxtaposition between wooden supports and scaffolding structures casts momentarily, a medieval eye on the state of the building.’’. This idea is then carried forward in his architectural model Flat Church, Full Tree: “It’s not impossible to imagine the emergence of a tree, amidst the ruins of a church.” In his woodblock prints In the Canopy and A Gap In the Canopy Hobbs explores the dappled effect of light shining through a canopy of trees, while at the same time reflecting military themes of camouflage.
Flat Church, Full Tree Stephen Hobbs 2014 Mixed media sculpture Size: 17 x 27.5 x 28 cm
Gap in the Canopy Stephen Hobbs 2014 Woodblock Edition Size: 9 Size: 127 x 95.5 cm
In the Canopy Stephen Hobbs 2014 Woodblock Edition Size: 9 Size: 127 x 95.5 cm
Midrand Mosque Diptych Stephen Hobbs 2014 Photographic Prints Edition size: 3 Size 54 x 71 cm
Eva-Lotta Jansson These works form part of Johannesburg based photographer, Eva-Lotta Jansson’s series Africa: The ground beneath my feet - ten images taken over a period of several years on her travels through the continent. Speaking about the series, Jansson has the following to say, “Although it’s quite recently that I’ve started to think more consciously about the ground as the abode of the ancestors, the spirit world, as is the traditional belief here in Africa - It seems I have quite deliberately made these pictures over the years. I just didn’t know that I was working on a series. I’ve been to some amazing places during my travels, and no doubt, many of them must have been sacred sites - to now living peoples and the ancient ones.”. The final image shows the cracked earth of town, Johannesburg. The dry, cracked earth, with dried leaves captures the thirst that is Highveld earth after a long, dry winter, just summer rains come to bring green back to trees. (Courtesy of: www.lottaimage.com)
her homeembedded felt by the before the the city of
The Ground Beneath My Feet - Joburg Eva-Lotta Jansson 2014 Photographic Print Edition size: 5 Size: 42 x 59.4 cm (ten in the series)
Gawie Joubert Joburg artist, Gawie Joubert has the following to say about his series of small sketches: “Joburg is renowned as the largest man-made forest in the world. The city’s construction engages with delicate contradictions and juxtapositions that lend itself to a quiet exploration of the rigidity of man-made structure with the intertwining of organic spaces. The contradiction between the hard lines and materials of the city clashing with the softness and natural lines of the forest creates the potential to start questioning the concept of “naturalness”. In these untitled works I explore the placing of natural objects like twigs and branches in a more constructed and controlled way creating abstract growth patterns that call into question what is organic and natural, and its necessity, in our contained, technological, man-made existence.”
Untitled I – X Gawie Joubert 2014 Ink drawings Size: 9 x 14 cm
William Kentridge William Kentridge has used the theme of the (indigenous) tree extensively in his Universal Archive series. The Universal Archive linocuts began as a series of small ink drawings on old dictionary pages. The ink drawings were then transferred onto linoleum plates and printed onto dictionary pages, which depending on the size and complexity of the works, then needed to be assembled. As a result of the meticulous mechanical translation of the gestural marks of the original ink drawings, the linocuts push the boundaries of the characteristics traditionally achieved by the medium. The identical replication of the artist’s free brush mark in the medium of linocut makes for unexpected nuance in mark, in contrast with the heavier mark usually associated with this printing method. Furthermore, the paper of the non-archival old book pages resists the ink, which creates an appealing glossy glow on the surface of the paper. The parallel and displaced relationships that emerge between the image and the text on the pages of the dictionaries and encyclopaedias relate to Kentridge’s inherent mistrust of certainty in the creative processes. In the large tree works like Lekkerbreek and If You Had No Eye between 20 and 30 printed pages are assembled to form the tree image. This means that each tile has to be carved and then printed onto a separate page, the pages are then cut/torn and assembled according to a template – a lengthy and intricate process undertaken at the David Krut Print Workshop.
If You Had No Eye William Kentridge 2014 Linocut printed on a selection of non-archival dictionary pages, collaged and attached with archival tape to a backing sheet Edition Size: 24 Size: 202 x 108 cm
David Koloane Iconic South African artist, David Koloane produced his mixed media drawing Fantasy III for The Benediction of Shade II. Koloane’s distinct loose style is evident in this work, which plays with the mystical and mythalogical associations of trees throughout history.
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Fantasy III David Koloane 2014 Mixed media Size: 108 x 150 cm
Jason Larkin The two photographic works by Jason Larkin featured here are taken from his book Tales From The City Of Gold, which explores the relationships between the effects of gold mining and urbanisation on the landscape. “Long after the mining has finished, its environmental and social impact is still embedded in the fabric of modern Johannesburg. Tailings dams, the by-product of past extractions, now exist as manufactured mountains of waste. Six billion tonnes of these ‘mine dumps’ form the backdrop of Southern Africa’s largest city. These vast monuments are a constant reminder of the productivity of the past, whilst attracting a plethora of contemporary activities. With around four hundred thousand people currently living around the six billion tonnes of toxic waste, the resurgence of re-mining the dumps for remaining gold is stirring an already fragile existence for many. Tales From The City Of Gold explores these tailings as an integrated extension of the thriving metropolis that surrounds them. Anthropological in its approach, this project is the result of living in Johannesburg for two years, observing the ordinary and extraordinary nature of life alongside the dumps. Focusing on the coexistence between past and present allows a unique perspective on the actions of previous generations and reveals that impact on our society and environment today.”. (Courtesy of artist’s website: www.jasonlarkin.co.uk)
Neutralised AMD Water Jason Larkin 2010 Digital Photographic Print Edition Size: 5 Size: 90 x 90 cm
Israel Mosala, Environmentalist Jason Larkin 2012 Digital Photographic Print Edition Size: 10 Size: 45 x 45 cm
Carla Liesching The three photographic works featured here originate from Carla Liesching’s Nihiliphobia - Expeditions Into the Unknown series (Nihiliphobia – Fear of ‘nothingness’). Liesching had the following to say about the series: “I use fictional characters and theatrical narrative as a means to examine the ways that identity is constructed, and also to scrutinize the role that visual representation plays in the process. I am drawn to the idea of the artist as an explorer or researcher of unfamiliar terrain, and I borrow methods of representation from anthropological and ethnographic practices. The subsequent image functions as a metaphor for our relationship to both physical geographies and other more intangible structures of knowledge and language. The work I present here is part of a larger project that charts the inhabitants and artefacts of an imaginary future. Influenced by science fiction genres, the series envisions an environment in the midst of a great shift - a world in the process of disintegrating. Through this body of work I aim to explore human relationship to geography, creating an illustration of my generation caught up in the instability of our time and place. If there was a total annihilation of all familiar structures, what possibilities could arise from the rubble?” (Quotes from: www.brundyn.com)
In Which Sophie Let Go Of The Rope Carla Liesching 2014 Photographic print Size: 144 x 125 cm
In Which Tinkerbell Discovers The Shortest Distance Between Two Points Carla Liesching 2014 Photographic print Size: 144 x 125 cm
In Which Mmakgosi Is The Wreck Of Hope Carla Liesching 2014 Photographic print Size: 144 x 125 cm
Khehla Chepape Makgato Artist, Khehla Chepape Makgato has the following to say about his charcoal tree drawings done for The Benediction of Shade II: “Whenever I look at trees I don’t habitually treat them merely as objects of aesthetic enjoyment but also as a successive deposit of the nature spared to human imagination. My works in this exhibition are inspired by my rural surrounding, where I always wake up to the delight of appreciating the landscapes. Mothimakoscapes depicts my nostalgic, phenomenal way of learning to interact with nature, especially when I was a little boy during the time when we took pride in hunting birds, not for pleasure but for relish. I walked across the vast landscapes of Makotopong and Mothimako, a combined neighbourhood of villages where their meeting point is called Mothimako Secondary School, a place that still today holds a dignified presence for me. These landscapes bear witness to fundamental autobiographical sketches from my childhood.�. (Artist statement, 2014)
Seasons: Winter, Spring, Autumn Khehla Chepape Makgato 2014 Charcoal drawing
Mothimakoscapes I Khehla Chepape Makgato 2014 Charcoal drawing
Ramarutha Makoba Makoba sees trees as symbolic of family on a personal level, as well as progress on a broader level. Trees, often used to symbolise life, gain an extended meaning within the urban context. Makoba incorporates the urban Johannesburg skyline into the background of his works, symbolising progress and development, however he also adds his own ‘imagined’ buildings to the existing skyline, envisaging future progress. The use of red lines running through his works represent map lines, a metaphor for families finding their way in the urban setting. For Makoba personally, trees illicit emotions and he hopes that his works will illicit emotions in his viewers in return. Makoba, who grew up in rural Limpopo, recalls that families and communities would regularly gather under the shade of trees to discuss important matters. In the urban context, this use of trees is lost. The placing of a hut in front of the cityscape in A Place in My Heart I refers back to his rural roots, and is in fact a representation of his grandmother’s home.
A Place In My Heart I Ramarutha Makoba 2014 Acrylic, charcoal and pastel on paper Size: 108 x 150 cm
A Place In My Heart II Ramarutha Makoba 2014 Acrylic, charcoal and pastel on paper Size: 150 x 108 cm A Place In My Heart III Ramarutha Makoba 2014 Acrylic, charcoal and pastel on paper Size: 108 x 150 cm
Maja Maljević Maja Maljević’s Tree formed part of a body of work she did with the David Krut Print Workshop in 2013. During this time Maljević experimented with monotype prints using the additional method of chin collé, assembling the work in layers (an important element in her work) to resemble a mosaic. Maljević was pleased with the result of the contrast of this technique with the flatness of drawing. For Maljević’s the symbolism of the tree is diverse, she sees trees as witnesses to history, as they stand silently and observe man and time. On a more personal level, a book from Maljević’s childhood, The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein, has remained with her, along with its humbling and inspiring message.
Tree Maja Maljević 2013 Monoprint with chine collÊ and ink Size: 39.5 x 56 cm
Dillon Marsh The Benediction of Shade II features photographic prints sourced from two bodies of work by photographer Dillon Marsh. Marsh had the following to say about Invasive Species and Limbo . Invasive Species In 1996 a palm tree appeared almost overnight in a suburb of Cape Town, South Africa. This was supposedly one of the world’s first ever disguised cell phone tower. Since then these trees have spread across the city, the country and the rest of the world. Invasive Species explores the relationship between the environment and the disguised towers of Cape Town and its surrounds. Limbo Limbo is a series of photographs showing trees that have died, but not yet fallen. All these trees were photographed in various suburbs of the Cape Flats area of Cape Town, including Bridgetown, Bonteheuwel, Ruyterwacht, Windermere, and The Hague.
Invasive Species 2, 3, 12 Dillon Marsh 2009 Photographic Print Edition size: 10 Size: 30 x 30 cm
Limbo 6, 7, 9 Dillon Marsh 2011 Photographic Print Edition size: 10 Size: 30 x 30 cm
Oliver Mayhew Pretoria-artist, Oliver Mayhew has the following to say about his ‘This is a chair’ drawings and etchings: “Personification is a mediator between the world and our understanding of it; by giving objects a human quality we allow the object to become something part of us and therefore make it a familiar and an understandable/ useable object … we can note a bunch of landscapes melting and morphing into one another. We can also define it as a landscape with an anxiety crisis. When walking in a landscape we are confronted by its openness and we have to use our own history and language to interpret it, in order to prevent an anxiety crisis, but unfortunately the real and very unsettling truth is that a landscape is always as open as a blank canvas. We can’t empathize with it, we can never understand it in an objective manner, it will always be our own prejudice that allows us to confront the vastness of possible interpretations of the landscape.” (Quotes from: www.sasolsignatures.co.za)
This is a chair: composition in black Oliver Mayhew 2014 Linocut Edition size: 10 Size: 116 x 78 cm
Michael Meyersfeld Photographer, Michael Meyersfeld’s works on exhibition at The Benediction of Shade II form part of a larger body of work that documented landscapes and natural vegetation around the world – including various locations in South Africa, Ireland and the Seychelles. The Blue Gum trees were inspired while visiting his late friend, sculptor Edoardo Villa at his home. Meyersfeld saw a relationship between the bluegums and the sculptures in Villa’s garden. When he returned home, Meyersfeld saw a ‘mimicry’ in the Jacaranda tree in his own garden, relating to Villa’s blue gums and sculptures.
Jacaranda Michael Meyersfeld 2004 Photographic Print Edition size: 50 Size 65 x 80 cm
Blue Gum Michael Meyersfeld 2004 Photographic Print Edition size: 50 Size: 65 x 60 cm
Twin Trees - Ireland Michael Meyersfeld 1979 Photographic Print Edition size: 12 Size: 24.5 x 17.6 cm
Seychelles Forest Michael Meyersfeld 1995 Photographic Print Edition size: 10 Size: 25.11 x 23.11 cm
Joshua Miles Artist, Joshua Miles’ uses his woodcut prints to document his environment, including urban scenes, nature and the coastline of his native Western Cape. Trees feature consistently in his work, partly due to his home surroundings of the small village of Baardskeerdersbos. Miles says that he chose to move to this rural settlement with his family for the peace, quiet, small community of artists, and also describes this rural settlement “to be close to the sea but just far enough inland to have great soil for his other passion, his garden, where he and his family spend many hours working together” . (Quotes from artist’s website: www.joshuamiles.co.za)
Tydloos Joshua Miles 2011 Woodcut Edition Size:10 Size: 44 x 33.5 cm
From Boyes Drive Joshua Miles 2010 Woodcut Edition Size: 10 Size: 27 x 44 xm
Knysna Forest Joshua Miles 2011 Woodcut Edition Size: 10 Size: 56.5 x 42 cm
Andrew Munnik Artist, Andrew Munnik has the following to say on his work Laocoön I: “The tree image has been laid on Dutch tile shapes, a motif I’ve used since 2000, to imply the imposition of man-made form (geometric) on the landscape (organic), and the attempt thereby to re-form, correct or organise the natural world.” The tree featured is an 80 year old pomegranate tree that was chopped down in the town of Darling, where Munnik was living at the time, to make way for shops to be built. Munnik uses imagery from the Greek sculpture, The Laocoön, where the struggle of the Trojan priest Laocoön becomes the struggle of this old tree for survival. In Munnik’s second work, To See Forests For Trees – To See Trees For Wood he continues with the theme of trees struggling for survival amidst spreading urban development. He has the following to say about the work: “The twig shapes in white which are meant to form a ghost-like image, become the result of either necessity or insensitivity. The woodcutter hovers just behind the forest waiting to wield a small-axe.”. (Artist’s statement, 2013)
Laocoön I Andrew Munnik 2013 Ballpoint pen with watercolour on paper Size: 115 x 68.5 cm
To See Forests For Trees – To See Trees For Wood Andrew Munnik 2013 Acrylic on paper Size: 116 x 82 cm
Lorenzo Nassimbeni In this series of drawings, Nassimbeni is interested in the study of the quality of the light around Johannesburg. His drawings show the journey the light takes through the trees, the forest and filtering down to water, and into the ground. This relationship between light, sky, tree, forest and water form the central themes of these drawings, and continues with his previous explorations of how the subterranean infrastructure supports life above ground. These drawings were done on site in the landscape surrounding the Cradle of Humankind, near Johannesburg.
Forest Minora Lorenzo Nassimbeni 2013 Pencil, Indian ink and gouache Size: 50 x 67 cm
I Thought It Was You Lorenzo Nassimbeni 2013 Pencil, Indian ink and gouache Size: 69. 5 x 95.5 cm
La Candela Lorenzo Nassimbeni 2013 Pencil, Indian ink and gouache Size: 50 x 67 cm
Robyn Penn Robyn Penn’s Vaderlandswilg (Bush willow in English) captures a nostalgic effect, reminiscent of an old photograph, drawing on memories of Penn’s childhood and planting trees with her father. Her second work is titled by the GPS co-ordinates of the site it captures, namely the War Memorial next to the Johannesburg Zoo. Her abstract rendition shows the memorial at a distance, in the middle of the leafy surrounding suburbs of Forest Town, Parkview and Saxonwold. Robyn Penn reflects on her inspiration for Vaderlandswilg: “Vaderlandswilg draws on early childhood memories of planting trees on the rocky outcrop my parents bought when our family first moved to Johannesburg in 1980. I grew up in Northcilff above Albert’s Farm with a 180 degree view of Johannesburg. It was a view that took in the whole of Johannesburg, from the affluent suburbs of Sandton, Rosebank, and Saxonwold, through to Hilbrow, the CBD, Brixton and Fordsburg, with Melville and the Melville Kopjies, Sophiatown, the mine dumps, SOWETO and Westpark Cemetry, a quiet mass in the centre of the landscape. Our home stood on a ridge and below was typical Highveld rocky grassland. When my father built the house he planted a forest of indigenous trees that spilled out into the conservancy of Albert’s Farm. He did this so that there might be a seamless transition between his property and the rest of Johannesburg. The trees blurred the line between what was ours and what was our country. As a family we planted that forest and the memory and significance of that time has remained with me. Recently, when my husband and I bought our first home, the first thing we did was buy eleven trees to plant with our young family in our treeless garden.”
Vaderlandswilg Robyn Penn 2014 Oil on canvas Size: 100 x 100 cm
26°09’55.39”S, 28°02’25.18E Robyn Penn 2014 Oil on canvas Size: 31 x 25.5 cm
Dan Perrone US photographer, Dan Perrone uses a method of shooting, projecting and reshooting in his work Warm Static #112, giving the feeling of movement and uncertainty to the snowy treescape in his photograph.
Warm Static #112 Dan Perrone 2012 Digital Photographic Print Size: 111 x 90 cm
Senzo Shabangu In his two new works featured in The Benediction of Shade II, Senzo Shabangu uses familiar themes and symbolism. In God Bless JHB Shabangu returns to his exploration of urban versus rural, alluding to the many people who move to ‘the big city’ in search of jobs and a better life, with the tree representing the rural, standing alongside the Johannesburg city skyline. In We are a team, One body Shabangu uses the tree to symbolise hope and togetherness, as well as incorporating one of his recurring images of a man in a graduation gown, symbolising being a graduate of life, ‘surviving’ the city.
God Bless JHB Senzo Shabangu 2014 Monotype Size: 59 x 54, 5 cm
We are a Team, One Body Senzo Shabangu 2014 Linocut Size: 75 x 52 cm
Sean Slemon Multi-media artist, Sean Slemon is particularly preoccupied with the notion of space and creates work based on facts and statistical data that set imaginary boundaries for the way in which we occupy both our personal and public surroundings. Nathaniel Stern writes: “Sean Slemon’s work attempts to interrogate our relationship to the spaces we inhabit, and the land we possess. Mostly in the form of sculpture or installation, but often supplemented by drawings and etchings, he asks viewers to explore these as politically charged concepts. Sean believes that space and land create meaning, uncover history, facilitate change and transformation, and provide opportunities for power. As a young man growing up in South Africa, Sean always understood that provocative discourses surrounding space and land can lay bare turbulent histories or lead to contemporary legacies of disparity. He pushes the physicality of his work to change the space it inhabits, for an experiential impact on its viewers, and in order to accent this reality.” (www.davidkrutprojects.com)
Assets Sean Slemon 2012 Hardground etching Edition Size: 12 Size: 48 x 36 cm
Holding onto Shadow Sean Slemon 2012 Hardground etching Edition Size: 12 Size: 48 x 36 cm
Sydelle Willow Smith Photographer, Sydelle Willow Smith took this series of photographs for Greenpop, in Zambia in 2012. Smith and her partner, Rowan Pybus were responsible for documenting this expedition, using both photographic and video imagery. “In July 2012 a group of volunteers from all over the world gathered for the first time in Livingstone Zambia to plant over 4000 trees. Zambia faces massive deforestation problems in part due to high energy prices and people relying on charcoal and firewood as forms of fuel and survival. Greenpop is a South African enterprise that worked with local activists in educating people on conservation, alternative energy options and sustainable methods of conservation farming. It was an epic life changing experience. My boyfriend Rowan Pybus’s production company was there to document it, I helped on the film, and took the photographs for the project.”. (Artist website: www.sydellewillowsmith.com)
Greenpop Series Sydelle Willow Smith 2012 Digital photographic prints Size: 26 x 32.5 cm
Nathaniel Stern Four More Trees by Nathaniel Stern (installation and video artist, net.artist, printmaker and performance poet) is described as a performative digital scan turned into an aquatint etching, engraving and drypoint, produced at the David Krut Print Workshop. The work formed part of his Compression Studies series, described by AOP Gallery’s press release as follows: “Stern compresses’ bodies, spaces and objects by traversing their surfaces with an image scanner, virtually ‘tracing’ or performing their various 3-dimensional shapes. After these have been compressed into digital images the size of a small sheet of paper, the files are stretched, cropped and digitally colour manipulated. These digital images are used as his ‘performative’ prints. They are ‘collected’ by hand with a custom-made scanner appendage and battery pack, often strapped around his neck, with which Stern scans images in straight, long lines…The images become a digital archive from which Stern draws and selects and manipulates, to print with various photographic and inkjet processes. These images have … been ‘iterated’ or repeated, utilizing traditional techniques such as etching, aquatint, engraving, monotype and lithography. Stern sometimes affectionately refers to these as ‘retro-Compressionist prints,’ produced with a ‘500-year-old digital process.’ On show are 17 archival lambda prints on metallic paper, as well as 13 hand-made works using traditional printmaking techniques.”
Four More Trees Nathaniel Stern 2006 Aquatint, Engraving and Open Bite Drypoint Size: 133 x 148 cm
Chris Swift The three etchings by Chris Swift featured in The Benediction of Shade II were originally part of Umlungu (2011), a solo multi-media exhibition featuring installations, sculptures, lithographs and etchings, all exploring the theme of trees as metaphors for the alien.
“Umlungu - white man. This foreign species that has taken root in the South African landscape, transforming its vista forever… The tree emerges as a loaded symbol in Swift’s work referencing both the physical importation and impact of foreign plant species on the environment as well as the more ambiguous politics of cultural imperialism.” (Quote by Natasha Norman – www.chrisswift.co.za).
Umlungu ‘Chaos’ Chris Swift 2011 Softground etching Edition Size: 20 Size: 46 x 35 cm
‘Umlungu’ Forest Texture Chris Swift 2011 Hardground etching Edition Size: 10 Size: 35 x 46cm
Umlungu ‘Blue Gum’ Chris Swift 2011 Hardground etching and aquatint Edition Size: 20 Size: 35 x 46 cm
Joe Tilson US artist, Joe Tilson’s Oak Mantra is the tenth and last in his series of Mantra prints, the first being Pool Mantra in 1976. Oak Mantra was also the first print published by David Krut (1981). The Mantra prints reflect a single word repeated in a formal stencilled plan and set in rich colours. Tilson was inspired by the four elements of earth, water, wind and fire, as well as by the landscapes, architecture and mythology of Ancient Greece. Tilson’s use of string reflects his rebellion against the rigidity and formality of print making at the time.
Oak Mantra Joe Tilson 1981 Soft-ground etching and aquatint in colour, with collage of a single steel stud, string and painted plaque Size: 104 x 73 cm
Merwelene van der Merwe Photographer, Merwelene van Der Merwe took this photograph of artist Willem Boshoff for the front cover of De Kat magazine, which featured an article on the artist. Van der Merwe captures Boshoff, ‘The Druid’ in a playful manner, adorned in nothing but leaves.
Willem Boshoff Merwelene van Der Merwe 2013 Photographic print Size: 55 x 68 cm
Dominique Watson These works by Dominique Watson are inspired by her father, Patrick Watson’s, landscape gardens. Patrick has compared landscaping to the workings of an orchestra, “The notes are the plants, the elements are the instruments and the designer, the conductor; they all come together to create a symphony.”. Dominique describes Interlude as a moment captured in her father’s garden, much like a musical piece between two acts. In The Midden Dominique looks at the history of man leaving his mark on nature by creating organic sites, such as middens, only to rediscover his own nature years on. This structure, sourced from one of Patrick’s gardens (in the Cradle of Humankind area outside of Johannesburg), is reminiscent of such a relationship.
Interlude Dominique Watson 2014 Photographic print Size: 68.5 x 49 cm
The Midden Dominique Watson 2014 Photographic print Size: 28 x 80 cm
Quinten Edward Williams Quinten Edward Williams made this work of 34 sketches, Sketsboek: Koppie, tussen seisoene (Sketchbook: Hill, between seasons) during a time spent in the Limpopo bushveld. Williams has the following to say about his book of sketches: “I worked on a koppie for a few weeks aggregating various perspectives, proximities, textures, lines, contrasts and forms of areas of the koppie. I was responding to sensations of the koppie in a slow movement over the koppie. The linear quality of the drawings echoes that of a series of painting-drawings I made in 2009, the Environments series: there is a fragmentation of recognisable forms as a way to grapple with the complexity of relationships in environments.” (Artist’s statement, October 2014)
Sketsboek: Koppie, tussen seisoene Quinten Edward Williams Sketchbook with pen 34 sketches Size: 29.7 x 42 cm