Seen at the opening of Lindokuhle Sobekwa’s exhibition Umkhondo: Going Deeper: Art Fairs are more than about art these days

By Edward Tsumele, CITYLIFE/ARTS Editor

On Saturday a friend who could not make it to the official opening of multi-award-winning photographer Lindokuhle Sobekwa’s exhibition Umkhondo: Going Deeper, an event to which only the media and other key people within the country’s vibrant contemporary art scene were invited, seethed with anger spitting fire. This is after she had realised coming at 1pm to the event, she had missed the official opening of the exhibition. The public though was expected at 1pm, and that is the time when she arrived. She is a gallerist and was not impressed that she missed the official opening.

You can dismiss this as the feeling of someone whose ego has been bruised, but the reality though is that art gatherings in the country, such as exhibition openings, art dinners, art fair openings or art prize giving functions, are no longer just functions that focus on art only. These days they do carry social status, and a sense of social relevance in the art eco-stem. The fact is they now elevate the attendees to another level, and are a big deal for those who consider themselves to be part of the art eco-system, such as the media, curators, artists, collectors, art dealers and sponsors.

Such status was previously the preserve of so-called celebrity events such as the Metro FM Awards, The Feather Awards or the South African Music Awards, which somehow have lost their spark with a society that keeps on evolving and its tastes continuously changing and becoming sophisticated. For the serious-minded individual being seen at an art auction, art fair or exhibition opening for a to artist comes with some social gravitas. It does not matter whether one is a collector or wannabe collector. Just being seen there is the now thing, and these events are now where those who would like to be taken serious in society would want t be see.

This is because, it is now these places, spaces and moments where those invited to attend make an effort to look good, feel good and truly hope to be noticed, and even complimented for their dress sense, accessories and all- and where news about the latest developments on the contemporary art sceneis shared with each other. You do not invite them, you are damned. Yu must see how artists these days even outdo fashionistas at these events by dressing up elegantly as they put aside their brushes and paints, forgetting them in their mainly modest studios to go out, have fun and be seen and appreciated beyond their work.

This is understandable. After all these events are spaces where not only networking within circles takes place, but also moments of social value where selves are taken and shared on social media platforms, where for those who are lucky, they can even appear on legitimate influential art publications, not only demonstrating the guests’ ‘connectedness’ in the sector, but also their fashion taste and sophistication.

In all of this, the media plays an important role, and it therefore boggles my mind that with the exception of the FNB Art Joburg (do not know about Investec Cape Town Art Fair), all the other art fairs in this country exclude the media on so called VIP nights, preferring rather to have the media come on separate days, usually when the VIPs are either not there or not visible to the media in a sea of the public, and therefore denying both that collector, art dealer, sponsor or top curator his moment to appear in the media- and the media an opportunity to tell their readers, who themselves are inevitably part of the art eco-system, which artists were dressed in what, which high flying curator was seen at the fair, and which collector was seen eyeing which artist’ work.

All these things are part of a vibrant contemporary art scene, and if one of the elements is lacking, that tends to diminish the gravitas of an art event such as an art fair. After all, no matter how much we try to hide it, we all desire our one minute of fame, and therefore do not take kindly to those that find ways of excluding us.

And therefore, the organisers of such events need to know that being as inclusive as possible to those who matter in the contemporary art eco-system in South Africa, is equally critical to the continued vibrancy and even sustainability of these events.

Art fairs are more than about art these days. Good or bad, that is what it is. They are also now about fashion, food, drink, business networking, and even about flexing one’s ego a bit.

I therefore understand why my friend felt left out on Saturday when she missed the official opening of Lindokuhle’s exhibition Umkhondo: Going Deeper,a powerful body of work which demonstrates the photographer’s ever-growing stature within the local and international art scene.

.FNB Art Joburg will take place at  from September 6-8 at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg. Tickets to the fair are now available at tickets.tixsa.co.za/event/fnb-art-joburg