OP HIERDIE
ROTS
Pierre le Riche
Contents
Figure 1 (Front page) Strata (op hierdie rots) [detail] Figure 2 Kliptafel fragments (detail)
Artist statement
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Curator’s interpretation
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In conversation with Mandy Conidaris
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List of Illustrations
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Biography
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Contact
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Artist statement The concept behind this collection has its roots in a previous body of work entitled Broederbond (2012), which dealt with homosexuality as deviation of Afrikaner masculinity and was mainly influenced by my own life experience as a gay Caucasian Afrikaans male. Op hierdie Rots strives to be more universal by removing problematising factors such as sexual and personal identities, rather focusing on the exploration of how history has shaped post-apartheid Afrikaner masculinity as a whole. The art making process of this body of work was approached as a type of archeological excavation whilst the ‘findings’ were cleaned up and displayed in a pristine, museum-like manner. I have deliberately used this process to create constant reference between history and the present. The act of digging and the use of chisels and other tools to excavate and engrave are rather masculine acts and are emphasised by the use of materials such as concrete, pulverised sandstone and marble. Like Broederbond, these works reference masculinity through textual and visual references to rugby. Through research I found that rugby is a relevant reflection of the historic Afrikaner male ideal which required the Afrikaner male to be religious, hard working, honest, successful and a resilient leader. Rugby is also a reflection of the common ground that was shared by Afrikaners during apartheid: a common past, the promotion of a common language, the promise of a utopian future for the Afrikaner nation and the unity of Calvinism as religion. Through the use of format as well as textual elements the range of ‘kliptafels’ (stone tablets) reference Calvinist structures more directly, but upon closer inspection the importance of rugby is still emphasised. I have deliberately used specific texts that are popular in Calvinist teachings to juxtapose these two concepts.
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Figure 3 Kliptafel series (Detail)
Curator’s interpretation This brief interpretation of Op Hierdie Rots (Upon this Rock) is based on a conversation held between me, Pierre le Riche and Emma Willemse in his studio on 26 November 2013. Mandy Conidaris Pierre le Riche’s newly created works come out of a year-long period of technical and conceptual experimentation by the artist. His focus here is the identity of the Afrikaner male in post-apartheid South Africa, and this is explored through the metaphor of rugby. Op Hierdie Rots - the name of this thought-provoking exhibition –– is translated as ‘Upon this Rock’, which comes from a New Testament passage in Matthew 16:18. Rugby and their Calvinistic religion represent two significant aspects of the identity of the model traditional Afrikaner male. As the head of the family, he must embrace and commit to the ‘rules’ of these two institutions without deviation. Historically, the Afrikaner fought hard to achieve political dominance and Rugby’s notion of ‘standing together’ as a group typifies this. At the same time, their religion underpinned the need for an unquestioning commitment to the volk (people). It was discussed among the three of us that these two institutions formed the cornerstone of Afrikaner identity, as well as their ‘teachings’ being staunchly adhered to at school level. Historically, the traditional young Afrikaner male (and female) grew up non-conflicted about their cultural identity, with a clear understanding of its goals and value system – but as a result, unquestioning. At the height of the apartheid era, the government of the time undertook many architectural projects consisting of large State and corporate buildings as well as monuments to solidify their position and symbolically build the nation. Figure 4 Strata (op hierdie rots)
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Figure 5 Kliptafel i
Pierre’s considered use of concrete as material refers to this era of building. Strata references a simple block, the building blocks of a nation, as well as to the inherent layering process of a developing social culture. But he had cast rugby ball in concrete (training balls and match balls) and placed fragments of them inside the block. Painstakingly he excavated parts of the block to reveal the ball fragments as archaeological artefacts, even as fossils within the layering, almost as witness to this culture’s existence. Pierre maintains that the “visuals of rugby are particularly prominent for their reference to the political and social issues surrounding the history of the sport”, and by presenting them this way refers to their lack of relevance today. Also in Kliptafel, he subverts the idea of strength as inherent in this material by laying down thin sheets of concrete, which he then laser-cut with text, as pages of a book. The pages have the layout of a Bible as indicated by the names at the top of each page, for example Leviticus, but the text consists of the rules of rugby, the rules of play. Interestingly, the act of laser cutting did not damage the book, rather pieces chipped off during handling by the artist – a serendipitous reference to social imprinting and the fragility of the individual. The name Kliptafel also refers to religious stone tablets, as in the Old Testament story of The Ten Commandments. These well-considered works have developed from Pierre’s last exhibition, Broederbond, where he explored his own experiences as a young gay male growing up in a traditional Afrikaner society. That exhibition was a colourful and witty performance installation; whereas this was created in his studio, with a good deal more introspection, and the resulting work has more mature and sober leaning.
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Figure 6 Kliptafel ii
In conversation with Mandy Conidaris Your new body of artwork Op Hierdie Rots currently being exhibited on outoftheCUBE has its roots in Broederbond, your 2012 exhibition at The Lovell Gallery (see catalogue). You comment in your artist’s statement that Broederbond dealt with aspects of homosexuality as deviation of Afrikaner masculinity, and is based, in part, on your own experiences. It must have taken courage to explore something as personal as sexual identity and turn it into a tangible art form. At what point did you feel ready to make these artworks? Do you remember a specific trigger? Up until 2011 my work has always been quite personal and introspective due to the fact that I was struggling to find acceptance within the gay subculture of Cape Town on top of dealing with acceptance from family and friends, which caused doubt and instability within my own identity. It was only natural to explore this through my art-making processes. These explorations led me to the realisation that by making introspective art I was in fact disconnecting from the viewer. Broederbond was my first true attempt at making something as personal as sexual identity, as experienced within a subculture, an open and universal matter. On the surface, your installation Broederbond seems to present a more light-hearted approach to the subject, due mainly to your use of bright colours (such as those of the Gay Flag) and the pink covers you knitted for the Voorkamer furniture and rugby balls. Was this intentional? Absolutely, from a design point-of-view I knew that most viewers would react well to a brightly coloured display, but the bright colours also functioned on a more metaphorical level: in certain cultures, like Afrikaner culture, a natural way of dealing with social deviations such as homosexuality is to sweep it under the rug and pretend it doesn’t exist, but this installation made the subject unavoidable and was emphasised by the specific use of the brightly coloured gay pride rainbow: the viewer was forced to consider the context.
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Figure 7 Kliptafel iii
And this sense of light-heartedness was enhanced by your yarn-bombing performance. Please could you explain what yarn-bombing is, and how you used it as a performance tool? Yarn-bombing is a way of enhancing cold, unwelcoming objects or spaces by covering it or incorporating colourful knitted yarn into the space. In the case of Broederbond yarn-bombing was used as a playful subversion of the serious subject of Afrikaner masculinity and rather a social tool to encourage homosexual and cross-cultural acceptance. This was done by means of performance where I sat in the installation on a daily basis knitting colourful covers for rugby balls whilst interacting with the viewer. The viewer was also invited to knit with me and this action, which led to interesting conversations, allowed me to get a deeper understanding of the viewer’s experience of the artwork, and the life experiences they wished to share with me. Could you comment briefly on the significance firstly of the Voorkamer and knitting/ gossip/ yarn-bombing, and then of the way you see rugby as a metaphor for Afrikaner masculinity. The Voorkamer has always been an almost sacred space reserved for adult social gatherings like afternoon tea or the occasional knitting/sewing party where gossiping was the usual topic of choice! I deliberately juxtaposed the ideas of knitting and femininity with the more masculine rugby in attempt to merge the two concepts. In Afrikaner culture you were not considered masculine if you did not engage with rugby whilst growing up. The professional rugby player depicted an almost super-Afrikaner male. Rugby also has many socio-political connotations to Afrikaner culture which you can read about in the Broederbond catalogue. At the time (during 2012) did you have any creative influences, e.g. the concepts, work or techniques of other artists? In terms of technique I was definitely influenced by Gabriel Dawe’s Plexus installations and also Steven Cohen’s explorations of identity within queer and Jewish sub-cultures. I found his performance piece Ugly girl at the rugby (1998) particularly relevant to my own work. 12
Figure 8 Kliptafel iv
Moving onto your new work Op hierdie Rots, visually it appears more sober than Broederbond. The metaphor of rugby is the sole subject matter here. Could you explain why you have shifted to cement as a medium in terms of this focus on rugby and Afrikaner masculinity? Cement has very strong metaphorical connotations to structures and foundations which I intentionally combined with Afrikaner masculinity in order to emphasise the pressures Afrikaner males experience to uphold the norms of this hegemony. Not only do I use rugby as a visual reference to Afrikaner masculinity, but also the aggregates added to the concrete: marble, pulverised sandstone and Dutch gold. Sandstone has particular reference to Afrikaner political structures as it can be seen as a prominent building medium in many important South African buildings such as the Union building and the Voortrekker monument. In Strata, you cast fragments of rugby balls into a cement block, and then you painstakingly excavated them as would an archaeologist on a dig. Why did you use this process? The making of this work was quite an emotional journey for me, not only because of the sheer amount of time I spent excavating the fragments (which was incredibly frustrating at times), but also the care and time I spent creating the fragile concrete balls only to inevitably shatter them in order to cast them in layers of concrete. The excavation, like an archaeologist on a dig, is representative of my research and explorations to discover more about Afrikaner masculinity where the findings are fragments, which is metaphorical for the fragmented history we have come to call our heritage.
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Figure 9 Kliptafel v
In your Kliptafel series, again you use cement, but here cast as thin laser cut sheets to read as pages of a Bible – though the texts are from Die reëls van die spel - Rugby/Voetbal. You have commented that it refers to often the Calvinistic aspect of Afrikaner culture. Could you comment on your subversive substitution of the expected text? And then on the incongruity that arises because of the usual association with cement being hardy and durable – almost unbreakable in fact - and the fragility of the cement pages, how easily they may be damaged. Calvinist principles teaches that all Afrikaner men must be strong leaders and providers for their families, but above all, God-fearing. My deliberate substitution of the text creates a dialogue/ reference between religion and masculinity, whilst the work as a whole explores how much power strong religious men can have in a socio-political environment. Of course these works can also be seen as a tongue-in-cheek referral to the new South African religion that is rugby! When dealing with an issue that is universal, even though as here it may be based in a particular culture, a good starting point is generally one’s specific individual experiences. According to Arthur Koestler, “the artist’s task is to equate the individual with the universal, to find the intersection between what he called the ‘trivial’ and the ‘absolute’ planes. The individual is the microcosm and the universal is the macrocosm. Joining them is essential for the artist’s work to be of any value.” What is your opinion on this statement? I have to agree with Koestler. I think it is important for an artist to find a mid-point between what is universal for himself and the viewer, whilst still being considerate to the subject matter, mediums, and other factors. Making art can easily become a very self-absorbed, almost selfish, process. A good artwork depicts a pinpoint balance between the artist, the universal and the viewer.
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Figure 10 Kliptafel vi
Looking at the idea of creative gestation, the intensity of creating one work often triggers the potential to follow other trajectories around the same issue. My sense is that the creation of Broederbond - although a completely resolved installation in its own right – also functioned as providing a time and space for generating the new seeds of Op hierdie Rots, even though you may have been unaware of this at the time. Would you agree with that, and if so, at what point did you become aware of the potential for creating Op hierdie Rots. When I created Broederbond I was focusing solely on homosexuality as a deviation of Afrikaner masculinity and I always knew there would be the possibility of exploring Afrikaner masculinity as a separate subject due to its immense complexity. Op hierdie Rots became a reality when I started experimenting with concrete as medium for creating art, but also as metaphor for the masculine. Finally, afterwards, on reflection, do you feel that this body of work expresses your intentions? As you know from our earlier discussions this year, this body of work has evolved tremendously from my initial ideas, but although they might have shifted physically the conceptual intentions still remain. Ever since I agreed to do this show with outoftheCUBE I knew I wanted to explore Afrikaner masculinity. If anything the work has become more focused. Is the work’s significance to the viewer important to you? If there is one thing I have learnt from my public interactions with viewers during the Broederbond exhibition it is that the viewer’s insights are invaluable for an artist to further his or her thinking process.
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Figure 11 (previous page) Making of Kliptafel V Figure 12 Kliptafel I (gilded)
Figure 13 Kliptafel III (gilded)
List of illustrations Figure 1. Strata (op hierdie rots) [detail], 2013. Concrete, pulverised sandstone, 200 x 200 x 200mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 2. Kliptafel fragments (detail), 2013. Dutch gold, concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 3. Kliptafel series (detail), 2013. Dutch gold, concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 4. Strata (op hierdie rots), 2013. Concrete, pulverised sandstone, 200 x 200 x 200mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 5. Kliptafel i, 2013. Concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 6. Kliptafel ii, 2013. Concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 7. Kliptafel iii, 2013. Concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 8. Kliptafel iv, 2013. Concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town.
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Figure 14 Kliptafel V (gilded)
Figure 9. Kliptafel v, 2013. Concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 10. Kliptafel vi, 2013. Concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 11. Making of Kliptafel V, 2013. Dutch gold, concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 12. Kliptafel I (gilded), 2013. Dutch gold, concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 13. Kliptafel III (gilded), 2013. Dutch gold, concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 14. Kliptafel V (gilded), 2013. Dutch gold, concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 15. Kliptafel VI (gilded), 2013. Dutch gold, concrete, marble dust, 148 x 210mm. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town. Figure 16. Concrete rugby ball (detail), 2013. Concrete, pulverised sandstone, dimensions variable. Pierre le Riche, Cape Town.
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Figure 15 Kliptafel VI (gilded)
Biography Pierre le Riche was born in 1986 in Port Elizabeth and grew up in Cape Town. Since matriculating in 2005 he has been involved in the art and design industry: he studied interior design at The Cape Peninsula University of Technology before moving to London, where he worked as a student interior architect at KCA International. His achievements include: 2006 a finalist in the Sanlam/Decorex Young Designers Lighting Awards 2013 a top 100 candidate for the ABSA L’Atelier 2013 a merit award at the annual Vuleka art competition Pierre works as a freelance artist and designer from his studio in Woodstock, Cape Town. Currently he is completing his Bachelor of Visual Arts degree at the University of South Africa. Contact him: +27 82 591 5246 info@pierreleriche.co.za www.pierreleriche.co.za www.facebook.com/lerichecreative @lerichecreative 206 Side Street Studios 48 Albert Road Woodstock Cape Town 7925 27
Figure 16 Concrete rugby ball (detail)