CITYLIFE/ARTS reportage on June 16: Gripping exhibitions and great musical and theatrical performances around Johannesburg

Two exhibitions by young artists to check out at Women’s Jail at Con Hill and at 27 Boxes in Melville.

By Edward Tsumele, CITYLIFE/ARTS Editor

Friday was youth day and it was marked by different events in different parts of the country organised by different institutions, including Non-Governmental organisations, the now rather predictable official commemorative vents oragnised by government where the same message is repeated: Promises. Promises and more promise to the youth that never get fulfilled. Personally I stayed away from the official events and chose to attend those organised by other people other than the government. This is in fact where one gets to get a real glimpse of where at as a nation. 

And what better way to get than attending events where personal expression by the youth in different art forms was the main events commemorating what the youth of 1976 started when they fought the apartheid system for trying and failed to impose Afrikaans as a medium of instruction in black schools. The now widely recorded and commemorative event of 1976, when students mainly from Soweto took a stand and made their mark is a reference point for students in contemporary South African unhappy with teething issues in democratic South Africa, particularly when it comes to issues of education.

And so on youth day, I focussed on two events that involved of course the youth active in the arts sector. Fir I attended an exhibition organised by The Arts Company of Soweto at Constitution Hill’s Women’s Jail section, and I was able to have an insight into what the young artists answering to a call put out by TACSs to apply for an opportunity to learn printmaking through a series of workshops, and those that impressed the organisers and curators were given an opportunity to have their work forming part of this exhibition at Con Hill.

And as one would expect from such a young crop of artists, most of whom were born in democratic South Africa, the issue of identity politics punctuated much of the message in the art works on display.

I did not stay long at the exhibition, as after viewing the works, I had to hit the rod immediately to another exhibition taking place at a quirk gallery hidden in the shopping centre made of shipping containers known as 27 Boxes in Melville, where emerging artists, predominantly the youth were also given an opportunity to express themselves artistically through a multi-disciplinary approach by Denzil &Jo’s Gallery.

I went there actually through a chance meeting with a young fashion designer and artist called Rio Anastacia De Freitas about two weeks ago at the ABSA gallery while visiting Khensani Rihlapmfu’s current exhibition there as one of the ABSA L’Atelier Ambassadors for 2019.

Rio then told me excitedly about this exhibition at Denzil &Jo’s Gallery titled What Now, featuring a group show in which her works, comprising fashion and art are part of the works of art on exhibit. What Now tuned out to be a multi-disciplinary exhibition really, featuring musical and theatre acts, in addition to paintings, photography, installations and fashion.

The theatrical production that saw the youth, mainly from universities around the city reinterpret the seminal work Sarafina by theatre icon Mbongeni Ngema capturing what happened in 1976, on stage and film, was an eye opener to watch. One could tell that Sarafina’s footprints was all over the show, but the young artists were innovative to give Sarafina new impetus by reinterpreting it in a new modern way that incorporated burning issues in contemporary South Africa, such as Gender Based violence and rape. It was also interesting to realise that the artists seemed to be coming from art schools of various universities and colleges located in Johannesburg.

For example the curator of the exhibition Abigale Calisses is a Wits fourth year fine art student, and one of the music performers happened to be her roommate studying film and performance at AFDA, Omphile Mhlongo, originally from Nelspruit Mpumalanga. Hers is one of the most beautiful voices to listen to. Her rendition of Beyonce Cover versions just demonstrated how gifted she is vocally.

The art works on exhibit ta the What Now exhibition, just like those at Women’s Jail at Constitution Hill, deal with contemporary issues the youth face in a democratic South Africa, including unemployment.

De Freitas’s works go beyond the borders of South Africa. A painting of a woman, whose nose is pierced and whose head is adorned with horns, is a depiction of tribal women in East Africa, covering countries such as Ethiopia, Uganda and Kenya.

“My mother regularly travelled to East Africa with Patrice Motsepe, doing charity work in the region. She came back with stories that I found interesting about women there belonging to various tribes. This one is a depiction of a Suri women, one of the tribes in East Africa. I spent 18 months researching about the lives of these women and their traditional practices,” De Freitas told CITYLIFE/ARTS.

“This exhibition is about young artists expressing themselves about issues that affect them. The title What Now refers to a situation whereby you complete high school and then you are faced with the issue of money to pay for your university education. Getting employed is not an option either as the rate of unemployment in the country bis quite high.  Even when you get admitted at university under NSFAS (National Student Financial Aid Scheme) you still face numerous problems, such as financial exclusion. I have been a victim of that myself as I have been kicked out of accommodation as they say I owe the university R200 000. This is not the first time that I have had a problem with NSFAS in during this four year degree that I doing,” said Calisse.

At the end the gripping exhibition and the energetic performances by the young artists just demonstrated that the young people of today, often sometimes referred to as the Lost Generation in comparison to the generation of 1976, actually are not given the credit that they deserve. They actually know what they want and know what they need to do to get there, but need assistance to get there. They are actually ambitious innovative and have big dreams that society at large and the powers that be need to recognise and harness for a better South Africa.

One does not need to further than the exhibition at the Women’s Jail at Con Hill and the What Now exhibition at Denzil &Jo’s gallery at 27 Boxes in Melville to realise this.

Both exhibitions are up till the end of June 2023.