‘Forward>March’

Old Wine Cellar, Spier, Stellenbosch

30th October - 15th November 2009

The fine art exhibition “Forward>March” has as it’s starting point iconic works of resistance to militarisation from the ECC era as well as works by contemporary artists which amplify and extend the historic focus.

Artists include Jane Alexander, Wayne Barker, Willie Bester, Conrad Botes, Stuart Bird, Andries Botha, Kevin Brand, Bongi Dhlomo, Dan Halter, Sydney Holo, Gavin Jantjes, Anton Kannemeyer, Sfiso Ka Mkame, William Kentridge, Andrew Lamprecht, Zan Louw, Michael MacGarry, Christine Nkuna, Sam Nhlengethwa, Brett Murray, Penny Siopis, Paul Stopforth, Guy Tillim, Jill Trappler, Vuyile Voyiya, Roger van Wyk, Sue Williamson, Gavin Younge and Manfred Zylla.

Much of the artwork on display is drawn from the 1980s; the period when thousands of young white men were actively avoiding compulsory military service into the apartheid armed forces. Artists who were activists or supporters of the End Conscription Campaign are represented in works such as Brett Murray’s ‘Soldier Marching Backwards’ (1984), Roger van Wyk’s ‘Pissing into the Wind’ (1986), Gavin Younge’s ‘Botha’s Baby’ (1981) and a maquette of Kevin Brand’s ‘Nineteen Boys Running’ (1988). Satire and irony are shared modes of expression used by these artists to express bitterness and frustration at the regime.

Sfiso Ka Mkame’s ‘Letters to God’ (1988) depicting multiple scenes of township experience under the force of occupation by the army and police is a poignant plea for redemption from brutality, while Zan Louw’s series ‘Washington Street, Langa’ (1986); Sydney Holo’s ‘No Life’ (1989) and Vuyile Voyiya’s ‘Black and Blue II’ (2005) reflect daily life lived out under the shadow of Casspirs and omnipresent military scrutiny.

Sue Williamson’s print ‘Jenny Curtis Schoon’ (1985), from the iconic series ‘A Few South Africans’ (1984-1985), pays homage to exile Jenny Curtis Schoon and her daughter Katryn, blown up by a parcel bomb in 1984. The work ‘Case No. 6831/21’ (1984) further highlights the inhumane circumstances of a migrant worker’s wife living illegally in Crossroads under constant harassment. The stacked decapitated heads of William Kentridge’s ‘Casspirs Full of Love’ (1989 – 2000); Jill Trappler’s ‘Disappearing People’ (1992); and Paul Stopforth’s ‘Interrogation Spaces’ (1980) depict the menace and absolute power of the apartheid security forces. Jane Alexander’s ‘Volk’ (1986) and ‘Corporal’ (2008) are works which, though separated by two decades, speak of alienation and estrangement in a collective identity based on nationalism.

Reflecting on the way that youth are affected by war are Manfred Zylla’s ‘Boys from the Border’ (1983); Guy Tillim’s portraits ‘Mai Mai Militia’ (2002) and Penny Siopis’s ‘Comrade Mother’ (1994).

‘Traditional Weapons’ (2008) an installation by Stuart Bird, questions the conflation of masculine identity, tribalism and aggression in his portrayal of fighting sticks or “knobkerries” as elongated phalluses. Michael MacGarry’s ‘Fetish’ (2008) expresses similar concerns with the commodification of the exotic and the violent in two powerful sculptures; AK47’s are combined with particular materials which evoke stereotyped notions of ethnicity.

Zimbabwean born Dan Halter‘s mesmerizing 2005 video work ‘Untitled (Zimbabwean Queen of Rave)’ juxtaposes shots of 90’s rave culture with footage from Southern African mass rallies. As Kathryn Smith’s catalogue essay describes, “…Stripped of their ideological disparities, both scenarios speak of a desire for an alternative reality. Both harness the psychology of crowds to shift individual sensibilities to mass consciousness…”. Conclusions about outcomes are not foreclosed. The effect is simultaneously stirring, sobering and uplifting.

The exhibition takes place in the Old Wine Cellar at Spier from the 30th October until the 15th November, and includes works loaned from private collectors as well as from the Permanent Collection of the South African National Gallery. Spier Estate has generously made space available for the commemorative weekend.

Contact Clare van Zyl on 0828554314 or Josie Grindrod on 072 2070401 for more information.
 

William Kentridge, Casspirs Full of Love, 1989 - 2000, Drypoint in black, 167 x 94cm, courtesy of private collection