August 29, 2006
By Tabisa Mntengwana
THERE'S plenty to delight art lovers at Joburg's art galleries this spring, with exhibitions ranging from photography, paintings and etchings to glitter, tapestries, kitsch and digital prints and collages.
Johannesburg Art Gallery
Four exhibitions are on show at the Johannesburg Art Gallery -
Rembrandt, a tribute to artist Rembrandt van Rijn by the gallery and the Royal Netherlands Embassy and
Kinshasa, the imaginary city, an exhibition of photography, video interviews and films.
Translation is an exhibition by James Phokela in memory of Durant Sihlali and New Painting is a group exhibition of contemporary work by established and emerging artists.
Rembrandt runs until 17 September and consists of 41 copper plate etchings of paintings, prints and drawings illustrating biblical scenes, portraits, self-portraits, figure studies, genre scenes and landscapes.
Kinshasa, the imaginary city is on show until 27 August. The exhibition comments about the city's urbanity, which exists beyond the city's architecture and looks at the city's material infrastructure and urban colonial legacy.
The city's urbanity is illustrated through photography, video interviews and films.
Translation is an exhibition of new works by Johannes Phokela. The works are described as a contemporary take on Old Dutch and Flemish masters, disrupting the images by including African faces and out of place objects.
The exhibition is in memory of his mentor and teacher Durant Sihlali and is on until 1 October.
New Painting is on until 3 September and is a group exhibition of contemporary works by established and emerging artists, showcasing a younger generation of artists who work either exclusively or sporadically in the field of painting. The work is a cross-section of the diversity of practice evident in contemporary South African painting.
New Painting is a response to the resurgent focus on the painted image, both locally and internationally, with prominent examples of exhibitions such as The Triumph of Painting and Expanded Painting.
The works are commissioned by the Kwazulu Natal Society of Art.
A full-colour catalogue with an essay by art critic Virginia MacKenny will be available at the gallery for the duration of the show.
Johannesburg Art Gallery is at King George Street, between Wolmarans and Noord streets, Joubert Park and is open from Tuesday to Friday at 10am to 5pm. For more information, contact 011 725 3130.
The Market Theatre Gallery
A photographic exhibition by well-known photographer Ruphin Coudyzer is on until 31 December.
Stages Calling features images from the theatre's productions from the 1980s and 1990s and recent productions. The exhibition is part of the theatre's 30th anniversary.
Also on display is another photographic exhibition by Zanele Muholi called Only Half The Picture. The exhibition is on until 15 September.
As a gender and sexual rights activist, photographer Muholi confronts the notion that lesbian practices are alien to African cultures and offers a radical break from stereotypical narratives about black female sexualities.
Only Half The Picture coincides with the publication of a book of her photographs by Michael Stevenson and STE Publishers and supported by the French Institute.
The gallery is at the Market Theatre, 56 Wolhuter Street, Newtown and opens from 9am to 5pm Monday to Saturday and 10am to 6pm Sunday.
For more information contact 011 832 1641 or visit www.markettheatre.co.za
David Krut Print Workshop
I Was a Sunbeam runs until 9 September and is an exhibition of 11 artists, Cy Amundson, Glenn Goldberg, Jaya Howey, Suzanne McClelland, Sam Martineau, Dave Miko, Carrie Pollack, Sheila Pepe, Jessica Slaven, Stanley Whitney and Wallace Whitney.
The works are on paper, and feature various standpoints of sculpture, performing arts, painting and printmaking.
Wallace Whitney's works are also on display. The works are paintings with deep and tonal colours corresponding to nature, such as change of weather, and often reflecting emotional states of mind and a collection of moments.
The exhibition runs from 13 September until 21 October.
David Krut Print Workshop is at 140 Jan Smuts Avenue, Parkwood and opens from Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm and Saturday 9am to 4pm.
For more information, contact 011 880 4242 or visit www.davidkrutpublishing.com
Obert Contemporary
Shrines is on display until 30 August at the new satellite gallery in Braamfontein. The exhibition is a collection of new mixed media works by Gina Waldman. The works include mediums like glitter, tapestries, wallpaper, haberdasheries and paintings.
The exhibition explores the concepts of kitsch, decorating, consumerism and culture.
Obert Contemporary is at 14 The High Street, Melrose Arch and the gallery opens daily from 11am to 7pm. For more information, contact 011 684 1214 or visit www.obertcontemporary.com
Gordart Gallery
Free For All, on until 1 September, is a display of collages and prints based on the Apartheid Museum. The exhibition is a series of digital collages based on museum material collected by Brenden Gray.
The works reflect the past from the present moment: a reminder of apartheid and racism and the social future of the museum.
On display at Gordart Gallery are paintings and digital prints during the exhibiton by Aaron and Debbie Cloete and Sybrand Weichers.
All You Need To Know Is Never Enough is an exhibition that deals with the exploration of existing norms and the perceived truths. The works on display are paintings, digital prints and sculptures by Aaron and Debbie Cloete and Sybrand Wiechers.
The exhibition runs from 5 to 25 November at Gordart Gallery, 78 Third Avenue, Melville.
The gallery opens from Tuesday to Saturday at 10.30am to 6pm. For more information, contact 011 726 8519 or visit www.gordart.co.za
Goodman Gallery
Goodman Gallery is hosting a group photographic show with works by Ranjith Kally, Senzeni Marasela and Ruth Seopedi Motau.
Kally's works include images of Tintown, scenes from India, prominent artists under arrest, exiled musicians and beauty queens.
Marasela's works are more personal, tracking her mother's migration from the quiet rural areas of Eastern Cape to the hustle and bustle of Johannesburg. "I attempt to retrace her steps in Johannesburg in my work," she said.
Motau has been photographing scenes in pupils from a disabled school in Limpopo, pensioners on pay dates in Soweto as well as the small but growing Hare Krishna community.
The exhibition is on until 9 September at Goodman Gallery, 163 Jan Smuts Avenue, Parkwood.
The gallery opens from Tuesday to Friday at 9.30am to 17.30pm and Saturday 9.30am to 4pm. For more information contact 011 788 1113 or visit www.goodman-gallery.com
Standard Bank Gallery
The Standard Bank Gallery is hosting two exhibitions until 30 September,
Sound Check and Gerard Sekoto: from the Paris Studio.
Sound Check is a compilation of images of South African musicians performing in various music events in the country over recent years by photographer Pierre Crocquet.
The exhibition features pictures of great names in the music industry such as Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela, Caiphus Semenya, Abdullah Ibrahim, Jimmy Dludlu, Ernie Smith, Freshlyground, Simphiwe Dana and others.
These images were shot at events such as Jazz in the Park, Cape Town Jazz International Festival, Standard Bank Joy of Jazz and Jazzathon.
Gerard Sekoto: from the Paris Studio is an exhibition which consists of a selection of his works on paper and a display of his memorabilia. Some of the works provide fascinating insights into Sekoto's working methods.
Standard Bank Gallery is situated at the corner of Simmonds and Frederick streets, Johannesburg. The gallery opens from Monday to Friday at 8am to 4.30pm and Saturday at 9am to 1pm. For more information, contact 011 631 1889 or visit www.standardbankgallery.co.za
Upstairs at Bamboo
Three exhibitions,
A Common Thread, Tables and Cabinets and Five Ways, are lined up at Upstairs @ Bamboo.
A Common Thread is on until 3 September. The exhibition is comprised of works by textile designer Yda Walt and theatre director, actress and artist Sue Pam-Grant, who have been working together for the last three months.
Pam-Grant has been stitching on rusted enamel pots, discarded beehive frames and anything she finds on dumpsites in the Free State and the Melville Koppies, creating whimsical and poignant sculptures.
Walt has been stitching on traditional Xhosa and Sotho blankets using felt, prints and buttons.
A Common Thread runs from 26 August until 3 September.
Following that is Tables and Cabinets, the latest exhibition presented by The Very Different Furniture Co.
The exhibition comprises dining tables, desks, servers, coffee tables, side table, bookcases, tall boys, CD cupboards, display cases and café style tables.
Tables and Cabinets runs from 19 to 26 September.
Five Ways is a group exhibition comprising paintings, photographs, drawings and sculptures by Clare Haynes, Kevin Lucas, Masako Osada, Rod Shaw and Peter Warring.
The works are influenced by the artists' diverse backgrounds.
Five Ways is on from 30 September until 8 October at Upstairs @Bamboo.
Upstairs @Bamboo is situated at 53 Rustenberg Road, Melville. For more information, contact 083 284 6226.
The gallery opens from Monday to Friday at 10am to 5pm and Saturday at 10am to 1pm.
Gallery Momo
Gallery Momo has lined up a painting exhibition by Sharlene Khan entitled
Previously Disadvantaged until 9 September.
The exhibition showcases portraits of ordinary people - South African and immigrants. The people continue to live on the margins, trading outside notions of formality, economy, safety, security, inner city regeneration and cultural refurbishment.
The exhibition is on at Gallery Momo, 52 Seventh Avenue, Parktown North and opens from Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm and Saturday 9am to 5pm.
For more information, contact 011 327 3247 or visit www.gallerymomo.com
The Absa Gallery
Drawn to Beauty is the latest exhibition of paintings by award-winning artist Ryan Arenson.
The exhibition is about the relationship between desire and identity, what and who we are attracted to. "In this current series of drawings and paintings, I am exhibiting my own analysis of what I am attracted to and who I believe I am," said Arenson.
The gallery is situated at Upper Ground Floor, Absa Towers North, 160 Main Road, Johannesburg and is open weekdays from 9.30am to 3.30pm.
For more information, contact 011 350 5139.
Artspace Fine Art Gallery
Succulent opens on 9 September and runs until 7 October at Artspace Fine Art Gallery.
The three-woman show is an exploration of succulents and includes paintings, mixed media and installation art on the theme. The works on display are by Retha Buitendach, Brownen Findlay and Gina Waldman.
Buitendach's work is a painting of the succulent flora of the country, while Findlay's works are about tradition and its changing roles. Other paintings include Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs facecloths that speak of a different kind of tradition relating to culture. Most of her material is in the form of tray cloths, blankets, facecloths and towels.
"The aim with these artworks is to create a new way of looking at the visible world all around but also to represent that world in a botanically accurate way," she said.
Waldman's work looks at the traditional floral still life and deconstructs the utopian principles that underpin the images. Her materials include glitter, silk flowers and cigarette cards, and explore the concepts of kitsch, decorating, excess and taste.
Artspace Fine Art Gallery is at 3 Hetty Avenue, Fairland and opens from Tuesday to Friday 10am to 4pm and Saturday 10am to 2pm. For more information, contact 082 651 4702 or visit www.artspace-jhb.co.za
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