South African and Italian artists to be in conversation with each other through Arte Povera and South African Art: In conversation exhibition at Wits Arts Museum
The exhibition centres South African artists and their art practice as well as their Italian counterparts opening 31 October – 9 December 2023, and is co-curated by Italian curator Ilaria Bernardi and South African curator and academic Thembinkosi Goniwe.
By Edward Tsumele, CITYLIFE/ARTS Editor
Countries around the world often use the power of art to bring their people together irrespective of language and cultural barriers. This is probably not a surprise why countries deploy art as a a tool that is effective, especially in the sphere of cultural diplomacy. For example in music, it does not really matter whether one understands the lyrics in which a song is being rendered, a good song even sung in a language that one does not understand, will connect with you, even touching your-self.
The same happens with other art forms such as dance or visual art. That is perhaps why some will not be surprised, though bound to be curious about a forthcoming exhibition that features South African visual artists with their Italian counterparts, curated in a way that a conversation between these artists must be discernable to the viewer. Perhaps that is the challenge that Italian curator Ilaria Bernardi and South African curator and academic will have to face and hopefully overcome in putting together the exhibition Arte Povera and South African Art: In conversation.
Basically this exhibition that will open at Wits Art Museum in Braamfontein is aimed at centring the art practices of South African artists alongside their Italian counterparts in a way that should stimulate the intellect of the audience and get them curious about the possibility of bridging the cultural gap between South Africans and Italians through the use of this visual language embedded in this exhibition.
Arte Povera and South African Art: In conversation will open on Tuesday 31 October 2023 at 6pm.
Arte Povera and South African Art: In Conversation is conceptualised as an exhibition project which aims to further develop the bridges between Italy and South Africa. By using a universal language, art, it is hoped that during its run, it will stimulate an intercultural dialogue and an exchange of experiences between two geo-cultural regions.
This artistic conversation encompasses the exhibition Arte Povera 1967-1971, curated by the Italian curator Bernardi, and the exhibition South African Innovations, 1980s-2020s, curated by Goniwe.
In many respects, this exhibition is important, for example, it is the first time, Arte Povera artworks will be displayed on the African continent. Arte Povera 1967-1971showcases works by the 13 artists who, after additions and subtractions after 1967, are now considered the canonical representatives of Arte Povera: Giovanni Anselmo, Alighiero Boetti, Pier Paolo Calzolari, Luciano Fabro, Jannis Kounellis, Mario Merz, Marisa Merz, Giulio Paolini, Pino Pascali, Giuseppe Penone, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Emilio Prini, and Gilberto Zorio. The exhibition includes historical works, created between 1967 and 1971 and exhibited during significant group shows of Arte Povera at the end of the 1960s.
ON the other hand, the exhibitionSouth African Innovations, 1980s – 2020s,curated byGoniwe, underscores the trajectory of experimentation, discovery and improvisation in the work of 13 South African artists. Locally grounded and globally orientated, these artists have advanced artistic practices that intersect with international artistic movements such as Arte Povera. They are Jane Alexander, Willem Boshoff, Bongiwe Dhlomo, Kay Hassan, David Thubu Koloane, Moshekwa Langa, Billy Mandindi, Senzeni Marasela, Kagiso Pat Mautloa, Thokozani Mthiyane, Lucas Seage, Usha Seejarim and Kemang Wa Lehulere.
Arte Povera is an artistic research developed in Italy in the second half of the 1960s and was defined as such in 1967 by curator Germano Celant. Even today, Arte Povera is Italy’s most internationally known post war artistic research. The exhibition Arte Povera 1967-1971 is the first on this artistic research on the African continent.
This exhibition is promoted and supported by the Consulate General of Italy in Johannesburg
Parking for the opening event is available in the garage beneath the museum.
Museum hours: Tuesday – Saturday, 10:00 – 16:00
Entrance is free and all are welcome
Exhibition dates: 31 October – 9 December 2023.