art-ist

Saima is the star of Bank Windhoek Triennial

The Bank Windhoek Triennial is perhaps Namibia’s most prestigious contemporary visual art event. Artists exceed expectations. Judges angle their heads, squinting in deep contemplation and when all is hung, said and done, the Triennial’s winners are fêted for a full three years because that’s how long it is until the next one.

Anastacia Karenga

A highly anticipated collaboration between the National Art Gallery of Namibia and Bank Windhoek, the Triennial’s opening and awards ceremony was held at the national gallery on 22 April. The event provides a cross-section of the quality, creativity and diversity of contemporary Namibian art.

Ina-Maria Shikongo - George Floyd

Currently in its fifth iteration, the Bank Windhoek Triennial was scheduled to take place in 2020 but was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic and now makes its return bigger and better.

Under the neat leadership of the national gallery’s acting chief curator Desiree Nanuses, over 700 submissions were distilled into an extensive, multi-gallery exhibition the heart of which is the winners’ exhibition in the main hall.

Ismael Shivute - 3000 Divided by 24

There, Saimi Iita’s winning piece ‘Women Feelings in the 20th century’ stands tall as an ode to the might and resilience of women. Crafted from fire burned metal, engine oil and chains, Iita’s sculpture depicts a woman breaking free from bondage and is symbolic of the African woman’s seemingly innate ability to survive and even thrive despite hardship, violence and oppression.

Ismael Shivute - The Eternity of Childhood

A powerful pinnacle elevated at the centre of the winners’ gallery, ‘Women Feelings in the 20th Century’ won the overall prize as well as the 3-D prize amid a strong submission year that honours artists Peter Mwahalukange and Cathy McRoberts with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

“For me, winning this award is a special gift in my life. It’s my first time winning the first prize and 3-D prize also,” says the Triennial’s star who also entered in 2017.

Kapena Joe - Weary Girl

“The 2017 one made me work hard so I can reach the position where I want to be because, for me, even if I’m working as an artist, I’m not working to win awards. I’m working to give some perspective, message and things that other people have never seen before so people can realise that art is something also beneficial to human life,” he says.

“I’m pushing forward as a permanent, full-time artist and I’m pushing forward to be seen in the world. This is a signal to me that I’m in the world of art now and I’ll be there forever.”

Saima Iita - Heart Sense

Motivated and victorious, Iita stands next to category winners Ismael Shivute (2-D), Anastacia Karenga (Contemporary Customary Art), Ina-Maria Shikongo (Textile Art), Gideon Megameno Kashile (New Media) and Kapena Joe (Newcomer Award).

A multifarious artistic exploration celebrating a distinctly Namibian development of techniques ranging from embroidery to installation, the exhibition touches on themes of womanhood, corruption, politics, social ills, conservation, culture, Covid-19, history, humanity and the state of the Namibian nation.

Saima Iita

For those eager to take the temperature of contemporary Namibian art, the 2021 Bank Windhoek Triennial is not to be missed. It runs until 3 July.

Martha Mukaiwa is a columnist and writer based in Windhoek, Namibia, in between short, spirited sojourns around the world. Her narrative nonfiction, personal essays, travel writing and short stories have appeared in Travel Africa, Quartz, Fields & Stations, Holiday, The Africa Report, Truthdig, Matador Network, Africa is a Country, The Mail & Guardian, The Namibian & The Kalahari Review. Martha is an honorary writing fellow at the University of Iowa. Read more at marthamukaiwa.com.

Photography: Martha Mukaiwa