SBFEST - another 5 releases
artslink.co.za
2. ECHO OF ULYSSES
3. THE STUDIO CELEBRATES EASTERN CAPE TALENT
4. ARTISTS IN RESIDENCE
5. A CELEBRATION OF STUDENT DANCE
TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF SOUTH AFRICAN ART
A conceptual, visual journey through the past 25 years of South African
art is the focus of an exhibition entitled Emergence, on display at the
1999 Standard Bank National Arts Festival.
Gobally, the last quarter of a century has been a period of vast and
tumultuous change. South Africa has witnessed intense political turmoil,
violence and sweeping transformation leading up to the demise of
apartheid, the first democratic elections in 1994 and the adoption of a
new constitution in 1996. During this time a distinctive South African
artistic identity emerged, generated by the divisions within our
society, which declared its complexity through difference. In this
context, it is therefore not surprising that ideology has been strongly
foregrounded in art practice, presentation and scholarship and is the
core theme underpinning Emergence.
The exhibition is not chronologically ordered, rather each decade is
anchored by key works around which interrelated satellite groupings are
positioned. Covering the terrain from the inception of television
broadcasting to the information technology explosion of the Internet,
Emergence takes viewers from South Africa's isolation to its current
position on the centre stage of international attention.
Artists included range from the well-known - Penny Siopis, Jackson
Hlungwane and William Kentridge - to the lesser-known Albert Chauke and
Celani Mchunu.
Curated by Fiona Rankin-Smith and Julia Charlton in consultation with
Marion Arnold, the exhibition will tour to Port Elizabeth and Durban
after the Festival, as well as being presented on the Internet.
ECHO OF ULYSSES
ULISSE: ECHO scan slide bottle, a triptych projection gathered mainly
from the animated material used in the operaThe Return of Ulysses, will
be presented by artist William Kentridge at the 1999 Standard Bank
National Arts Festival.
The triptych encompasses three images, each in motion but projected
separately with three screens forming the three panels.
The images used range from landscpes (from around Johannesburg and from
an idealised view of classical Greece) and historical anatomical
drawings to a selection of contemporary body imaging techniques,
CAT-scans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, sonar, angiogram,
echo-cardiograms and x-ray images.
The three projections have cycles of different durations - one of these
functioning as a drone - a constant or repetitive movement that gives a
basic rhythm and pace to the piece.
"The piece is not a narrative, but rather an associative, both between
the three projections and within each one. I am not interested in the
literal journey of the nostos but rather in the fallibility of Ulisse's
project. The frailty of Ulisse and the possibility of failure. The
hidden but excavatable images of the inside of our bodies give clues to
apprehending the hidden and invisible frailties of the spirit. We take
the surfaces of our bodies on trust, not wanting to peer inside, just as
we hope the surface of our thoughts and conscience will protect us from
wetter, more hurtful and dangerous impulses. Every now and then we
receive a message from the interior side that says your insides are too
human" William Kentridge.
THE STUDIO CELEBRATES EASTERN CAPE TALENT
Community art is important for the development of creative expression in
South Africa as it continually explores new ideas and artistic trends.
In 1994 the festival committee launched The Studio to offer smaller art
groups a platform to perform in the main arena of the Festival. This
year, to pay homage to the 25th anniversary of the Standard Bank
National Arts Festival, it draws on the wealth of skills and talent
within the Eastern Cape region.
The Studio programme for 1999 is launched with a special celebration,
highlighting aspects of the unique atmosphere of the Eastern Cape.
Entitled Potjie Grahamstown!, the entertainment on offer boasts the
talents of the President's Award Gumboot Dancers with their breathtaking
routines; the enchanting and delightful Khumbulani Traditional Dancers;
the Backyard Artists and their amusing stories of township life; the
legendary Sivile Jazz Band known for their township vibe; the Sakhuluntu
Gumboot Dancers who perform with verve and panache; the Masizame
Cultural Group with their particular brand of storytelling and
traditional dance; and the Masakheke Youth Choir who inspire audiences
with their moving choral work.
To round off the event, a traditional Xhosa meal will be served. The
menu includes inyama: a kind of stew, isigwamba: wild spinach and rice
and other mouth-watering delicacies such as mealies and prickly pears.
In South Africa today, cultures clash and customs crumble but on the
streets of Rini a new tradition is born. A group of children experience
a common dream and bring it to life with a dynamic display of song,
dance, drama and theatricality. A Dream of Rini is an explosive
combination of Grahamstown talent with a rich variety of tradition.
Directed by Andrew Buckland and featuring the President's Award Gumboot
Dancers, the Backyard Artists and the Khumbulani Traditional Dancers.
The Uitenhage Cultural Group performs an energetic and professional
musical stage play - The Black Hobos - that highlights the lives of the
homeless, particularly street children. The children who portray the
characters do so with great feeling and humour, often moving the
audience to tears. The Black Hobos featured in the Nederburg Knysna
Festival in 1997 and was brought back in 1998 by public demand. Written
and directed by Oscar Zini.
In Mbala-Bala Magic the various dance styles from gumboot to tap,
traditional and classical to contemporary and afro-fusion, are fused to
create a fresh and exciting dance unique to the Eastern Cape. Young and
old, men and women, black and white, urban and rural come together to
celebrate the millennium and an invigorating new era in dance.
Butterworth's glorious Lusanda Spiritual Group blends gospel singing and
the traditional rhythms of the Eastern Cape to rejoice with uplifting
song. Lusanda Sings Praises! blends vibrant colour, beautiful harmonies
and innovative movement to create a sumptuous delight for the spirit and
soul.
The Studio is always a sparkling part of South Africa's cultural
calendar and promises to be an event that should not be missed.
ARTISTS IN RESIDENCE
The opportunity to discover the complexities of the art-making process
and the passion and dedication of the artist at work is an experience
that can awaken the Picasso in almost everyone. In an open studio
environment, the artists in residence demystify aspects of visual art
from how themes are explored and materials selected to how techniques
are applied.
Deborah Bell studied for a BA and BAHons in Fine Art at the University
of the Witwatersrand and completed her MAFA there in 1986. She is a
lecturer, traveller and internationally acclaimed award-winning artist.
Bell works in a range of media, including painting, drawing,
printmaking, animation and ceramic sculpture. She has exhibited widely
both nationally and internationally, and has work represented in
numerous public collections in South Africa, as well as in private
collections locally and abroad.
At only 30 years of age, Dominic Benhura is considered amongst the most
seriously committed young sculptors of Zimbabwe and has gained much
acknowledgment both at home and abroad. His willingness to innovate and
experiment has led to many new techniques being included in his
sculpture. Inlaying stone with a combination of different coloured
stones; using glue to create the effect of patterns on a garment or
stripes on a zebra; and nails bound together glued into stone depicting
thorns are techniques new to Zimbabwe and painstakingly perfected by
Benhura. His work has featured prominently in major exhibitions and is
sought after by both local and international collectors.
Bronwen Findlay studied Fine Art at the Natal Collage for Advanced
Technical Education in Durban and then at the University of Natal,
Pietermaritzburg where she received her MAFA Cum Laude. Findlay is
involved with various outreach programmes ranging from painting murals
to fabric painting to holding painting classes. She currently teaches in
the printmaking department of the University of Durban Westville.
Findlay has exhibited in numerous group shows both nationally and
internationally including "Panoramas of Passage: Changing Landscapes of
South Africa", USA 1995. She has also held a number of solo exhibitions
in Durban. Findlay considers herself primarily as a painter, working
with oils, but more recently has been teaching and working in a variety
of media and disciplines. It was while working as a metallurgical plant
operator near Swakopmund, Namibia that Joseph Madisia developed a keen
interest in watercolour painting. Since then he has studied drawing,
design, painting and graphics at the Fine Arts Department of the Academy
of Namibia (now known as the University of Namibia). Madisia works in a
variety of different media specialising in printmaking. He has
participated in workshops and cultural exchange programmes in India,
Zürich, Geneva and Norway and has taken part both in group and solo
exhibitions in many countries ranging from Botswana to Slovenia and
Brazil. Madisia is currently enrolled in his fourth year of a BA degree
in Visual Arts at the University of Namibia and is a founding member of
the Tulipamwe International Artists Workshop.
A CELEBRATION OF STUDENT DANCE
Young dancers from Australia, South Africa and Chin will collaborate in
an experiment of exciting and innovative dance at the 1999 Standard Bank
National Arts Festival.
The Dance School from Queensland University of Technology and the Ballet
Stream from Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts will be joining the
Technikon Pretoria Dance Theatre to perform new works representing
cutting edge choreography from the three continents.
The Queensland University of Technology will perform a new piece by
Natalie Weir, a QUT graduate who has created works for all the leading
ballet and contemporary dance companies across Australia. The Honk Kong
Academy has commissioned a project from Jeffery Hughes, the new Artistic
Director of Ohio Ballet in the USA, who has worked extensively in Hong
Kong since 1995.
Andile Sotiya, a 1996 Technikon Pretoria graduate and now member of the
Phoenix Dance Company in Leeds, will choreograph a new piece for the
Technikon Dance Theatre. After completing his studies in Pretoria,
Sotiya spent two years on a Linbury trust scholarship at the Rambert
School in London. During his second year there he was awarded the
Nureyev Foundation scholarship.
A specially choreographed piece by Technikon Pretoria lecturer, Debra
Marriott, will showcase the combined talents of the three companies and
introduce the visiting companies to South African dance styles and
rhythms.
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Arts & Culture Trust of the President Award 1998
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