Archive: Issue No. 113, January 2007

15.01.07 Sotiris Moldovanos at Artspace Gallery

3.12.06 Berni Searle at JAG
3.12.06 'Turn the Table' at Artspace Fine Art Gallery
3.12.06 Laurence Blogg, Thomas Dunn and Gregory Wright at JAG

5.11.06 'Women: Photography and New Media - Imaging the Self and Body through Portraiture' at JAG

Sotiris Moldovanos presents a colourful, narrative description of South African people. Moldovanos works in oil on corrugated metal sheeting and wood, creating surreal studies of people. The works, generally life-size, make use of cut-outs and create an interaction with the viewer by equating their own physicality with that of the viewers. The works encourage the viewers to enter into the reality and lives of others and 'encounter their spaces and dreams'.

These works by Moldovanos, who is represented in several private collections in Europe and the USA, make up a show that is being touted as the strongest yet at Artspace.

Opens: February 3
Closes: February 24

A mid-career Berni Searle retrospective opens at the Johannesburg Art Gallery this month. 'Approach' is part of a series of solo exhibitions the JAG is mounting of SA artists that are gaining international recognition. Curated by JAG director Clive Kellner, the show collects together a number of Searle's most important recent works, such as Snow White (2001), Profile (2002), About to Forget (2005) and Night Fall (2006). As Kellner stated, 'Searle is part of a generation of South African artists who are transcending the dictates and limits of identity politics to create powerful images that resonate within a global cultural discourse, while still referencing particular aspects of home and place. Her artistic production, although always personal and encompassing the human form, most often the artist's own body, has evolved from overt concern with body politics and identity framing to gestural, poetic subject matter.'

The show is accompanied by a full colour catalogue.

Opens: November 19
Closes: February 28 2007

The success of the 'Oppitafel' series of group exhibitions over the last four years has encouraged the curators to shake things up a bit this year. This year's show is to be called 'Turn the Table', and sees participating artists working with an old vinyl LP record as a starting point. Artists have been encouraged to utilize the record to create their contribution, yet to retain their own established artistic concerns. Thus, one can be assured of a range of responses to this brief.

Participating artists include Chris Diedricks, Johan du Plessis, Gordon Froud, Jaco Sieberhagen, Luan Nel, Landi Raubenheimer, Mandla Mabila, Musha Neluheni, Nirupa Sing and Paul Boulitreau.

Opens: December 1
Closes: January 31

A collaboration between young artists Laurence Blogg, Thomas Dunn and Gregory Wright has produced this show, an installation of film and related photographic prints entitled The Man. The film, immersive in its sound component and positively brutal in its lo-fi visuals, reads as an indictment of power and its consequences. The disjointed narrative takes as its backdrop a hypothetical urban space, devoid of human presence, yet retaining the trace of human activity. While I'm not in the habit of offering opinions in LISTINGS, this one is a must-see for many reasons, not least of which is that it challenges the fey nebulousness to which many art videos/films fall prey.

Opens: November 2
Closes: February 4

An exhibition that explores the work of women artists working in photography and new media opens at the Johannesburg Art Gallery this month. Specifically, the show focuses on works that image the self and body through portraiture, dealing with identity and mirroring the self. Featuring work by established and emerging artists, the works on show are drawn in part from the JAG's collection. Artists represented include Bridget Baker, Zanele Muholi, Usha Seejarim and Nontsikelelo Veleko.

Opens: November 9
Closes: February 28