2005 Brett Kebble Art Awards launched
by Kresta Tyler Johnson
The third Brett Kebble Art Awards (BKAA), or the Kebbles as they have come to be known, was launched at a glitzy evening affair held in the foyer of the JCI head offices in Johannesburg. The patron himself, Brett Kebble, was at the centre of it all and seemed to be relishing what has become one of the most prestigious and controversial art awards.
An evening of short speeches, tasty bites and much schmoozing was capped with a performance by Sibongile Mngoma in conjunction with a performance choreographed by Jay Pather. After opening remarks, 2005 co-curator Kathryn Smith was introduced, along with the Awards Curatorial Fellow, Nandipha Mntambo. Mntambo is a young, female artist who recently graduated from the Michaelis School of Fine Arts.
Changes were immediately evident, starting with the announcement of a new theme-based award category worth R60 000, bringing the whole purse up to R620 000. The inaugural theme is 'Beauty'. I am a bit sceptical about the idea of an intangible, thematic award on as broad a topic as 'beauty' with the diversity of entrants that the awards encourage. I think it may prove a bit contrived and trite.
Van den Berg detailed several other major changes to the competition. Since the awards now require artists to produce a new work specifically for the competition, entries will be received until August 22, 2005 and the finalists' exhibition will not take place until February 2006. This will alter the annual event into a biannual event. It will still be held in Cape Town although a permanent home is being sought.
This may prove a challenge for artists with limited resources to create an original entry that has been completed in the last 12 months and never shown before. By the same token, this may result in a spectacular show of work never before seen.
A smaller group of individuals will also be in charge of the selections and judging of the finalists. Selection will be done by Clive Kellner, director of Johannesburg Art Gallery, Tanya Poole, co-winner of the top honour in 2004 and Sipho Mdanda, curator of Pretoria's Freedom Park Museum. Judging duties will fall to Julia Charlton of Wits Art Gallery and Frank Ledimo. A third judge may be named at a later date.
In his address, Kebble spoke of the need for a dual venue, in Cape Town and Johannesburg respectively. This past year a small sampling of finalists were shown in Jo'burg.
The Kebbles have certainly taken on a life of their own, but it will be a wait-and-see to discover how these changes affect the awards. At least for now the awards continue to provide a significant pot of money for the arts and artists alike.
