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intro  isintu ceremony, identity and community forward: Marilyn Martin essay: Tumelo Mosaka essay: Zayd Minty thanks |
South African artistsBernadette SearleGirl, 1999Colour digital print, plastic bottles, spices Collection of the artist  The use of spices in this work has a historical significance in terms of the trade in commodities via the Cape Dutch colony in the 17th century. Using spices to express ideas about identity also stem in part from her heritage, Bernadette's maternal great-grandfathers having come from Mauritius and Saudi Arabian, each married Cape Malay women. She explains that very little connects her to this heritage in terms of a lived tradition, one of the tentative aspects being food. The work from the series called "Colour Me" is a critical play on the racial classification "coloured' under apartheid legislation, a term which has become highly contentious in post-apartheid politics, particularly in the Western Cape. In the work Bernadette chose to cover herself with various colours (red, yellow, white, brown) in an attempt to resist any definition of identity which is static or can be placed in neat categories. The series as a whole can be seen as a celebration of diversity, acknowledging the rich and overlaying strands of her heritage, while not necessarily being bound by it. There is also the uncomfortable suggestion that the spices have the ability to smother of suffocate. biography: Born in Cape Town In 1964, Berni Searle studied Fine Art at the University of Cape Town where she completed her undergraduate and postgraduate studies. She taught art at secondary school level and has worked informally with various community organisations. She has exhibited at the Johannesburg Bienalle (1997) and the Cairo Bienalle (1998) amongst others. Her sculptures and installation work involves itself with the relationship between the individual and the community, highlighting questions around issues of identity, representation and power. She lives and works in Cape Town and is currently teaching sculpture in the Fine Art Department at Stellenbosch University. Usha PrajapatMother-Land, 1998mixed media Collection of the artist  Usha Prajapat often includes found objects in her work. Through the use of found material her work deals with issues of context, displacement, permanence and process. An important theme for the artist is that of a journey. In the work on view the found materials include bags which have physically traveled from India to South Africa. As a South African of Indian descent the work can be seen as a metaphor for her heritage. However, the work should not merely be seen as specific to her history alone but as applying as well to the journeys of other South Africans with an Indian heritage and, indeed, to journeys in the broadest possible sense as the work also deals with issues of belonging and identity. "A journey can be physical, external, internal, mental, emotional, spiritual or even unconscious. While referring to movements between points, it also involves process : especially of ideas and of growth." biography: Usha was born in 1974 in Gauteng. She graduated with a diploma in Fine Art from the Technicon of Witwatersrand. Usha has been a child art educator for a number of years and has continued as a teacher and facilitator of teacher training through the Curriculum Development Project. She lectures part time at the Technicon. She works mainly with found objects and is an avid collector. Her works use the themes of spirituality and of journeys. Ayanda MjiUbuhle I, 1998Earthenware Collection of the artist  The artist regards her work as being very personal and in her work expresses her feelings incorporating ideas from dreams, birds, the African landscape, angels and masks. The artist has said, "I have lived through much pain for many years suffering from poverty, living in a racist country, struggling for my freedom as a single woman. I have suffered especially the tragic loss of my loved ones, my father and my younger sister. Now I am wearing my masks just to hide or cover my facial expressions so that the enemy cannot see. I wish for these masks to heal my soul as well". Ubuso Bokhanyo II, 1998 Earthenware Collection of the artist Sad Face II, 1998 Earthenware Collection of the artist Sad Face I, 1998 Earthenware Collection of the artist Different Face, 1998 White stoneware Collection of the artist Different Face, 1998 White stoneware Collection of the artist Ingelosi Yokhonyo, 1998 Terra Cotta Collection of the artist Hoping for Beauty, 1998 White earthenware Collection of the artist Umthandazo, 1998 White earthenware Collection of the artist I am bringing light to my people, 1998 White earthenware Collection of the artist biography: Growing up in Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape since her birth in 1970 in King Williamstown, Ayanda has been involved since 1992 in a range of arts disciplines. While she has studied clothing design, she has specialised in ceramic design having completed her studies at the PE Technikon in 1997. Ayanda expresses her work using ideas from the African landscape, birds angels and dreams and uses white stoneware and red earthware clay decorated in ethnic colours. She is concerned about the expression of the role of women in society as well as the freedom of women through independent work. Nndweleni Ezekiel BudeliPoint of no Return, 1998Mixed media Collection of the artist  Ezekial's themes deal with African myths and folklore. The works in this exhibition are concerned with the history and need for unity in our country. "The peaceful transformation into a new democracy was a miracle, which so many of us had dreamed of. I needed to pay homage to all those heroes that gave themselves to the struggle for democracy: a democracy that has given most black South Africans new hope for a better life. These works articulate my past and present experiences, reflecting on the traumas, failures, triumphs and great joys of life. It is also a celebration of life and symbol of the continuous hope for a better South Africa". Untitled, 1998 Mixed media Collection of the artist biography: Ezekial was born in 1965 and received a Fine Art diploma at the African Institute of Art (Funda Centre), where he has been a lecturer in prints and sculpture. Teaching extensively - having completed a teacher training course at the Johannesburg Art Foundation - he has done numerous childrens workshops. He is trained as a master printmaker at the Artist Proof Studio and has worked as an illustrator. He exhibited at the Africus Biennale Johannesburg and has work in a number of collections. Ezekial deals with a range of African themes especially myths and folklore tales. Sandile ZuluCamouflage with antelope , 1998Mixed media Collection of the artist  Sandile Zulu works with materials in his immediate environment and juxtaposes the debris of industrial culture with natural objects and forces. The tension brought about by the combination of rural and urban materials makes for interesting aesthetic and conceptual combinations. The artist utilizes natural materials, fire and industrial waste to create pieces that suggest the redemptive power of nature. "Fire, water, wind and soil are essential elements of life. They allude to creation and destruction, to colonisation, to revolution and liberation, to purgation and cleansing, to purification and renewal. My interest is in evoking the idea of human existence and experience of the social and psychological struggle for freedom of creativity, desire and imagining the essentials that stand for life." Indluyengwe II, 1998 Mixed media Collection of the artist biography: Sandile was born in 1960 in Ixopo, Kwazulu-Natal. He has exhibited widely : Solo Exhibitions: Atomic Project 1: Santon Civic Gallery, Johannesburg, S.A (1997), Atomic Project 2: Zola Gallery, France (1997) Fire! : Rembrandt van Rijn Art Gallery, Johannesburg, S.A. Group Exhibitions: 1997 NEW ART FROM SOUTH AFRICA: Talbot Rice Gallery, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland. COLLECTING OURSELVES: Wits Galleries, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, S.A. GRAFT-2nd Johannesburg Biennale: South African National Gallery, Cape Town, S.A. FNB VITA ART NOW: Johannesburg Art Gallery, Johannesburg, S.A. COMMON AND UNCOMMON GROUND: Atlanta, U.S.A. IDENTIFICATION: Reunion Island 1994 ART/OMI OPEN DAY: New York, U.S.A Isaac Nkosinathi KhanyileIsintu, 1998Mixed media Collection of the artist  The artist's work is inspired by his South African cultural heritage as well as the experience gained from research conducted in rural areas. He uses European and African techniques and materials such as beads, grass, recycled paper and terracotta. The artist states that "My work expresses the possible alliance between African and European traditions. They carry a message of hope and peace to those in Africa who have suffered so much. They also try to unite the world under the notion of humanity by the use of universal symbols". The artist believes that his work reflects the notion of "ubuntu" - "Everything is related to a person's human-heartedness, one's faith, one's courage, one's generosity, one's lack of individualism, one's positive visions that generate energies which are directed to community building, one's magnanimity, and so many other things." biography: Nathi was born and raised in Umlazi Township, Durban. He is currently doing his masters at the Natal Technikon where he has obtained a diploma in Fine Art. Having grown up in an impoverished background with many difficulties, he has drawn on and worked with artists and issues affecting the rural and the urban underprivileged in South Africa. Amongst these has been starting a skills development programme for women. Nathi's work is inspired by the South African cultural heritage in particular his experiences with fusing European and African techniques and materials such as beads, grass, recycled paper and terracotta amongst others : "my works express a message of hope and peace … tries to unite the world under the notion of humanity, by use of universal symbols." In 1997 Nathi won the Volkskas Bank Atelier Award for young artist and spent some time at the Studio Cite's de International des Arts, Paris. He has exhibited in France, Germany, Johannesburg and Durban. |
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South African artists Australian artists |