The Standard Bank Lab’s exhibition SBYA Visual Art 1984- Now captures poignant moments in South African history

By Edward Tsumele, CITYLIFE/ARTS Editor

From Mary Sibande’s famous ‘s bold Sophie series to documentary street fashion photographer Lolo Veleko, William Kentridge’s now internationally reputed drawings to Heleni Sebidi’s boldly painted creations, the Standard’s current exhibition at the Standard Bank Lab at Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton, which opened on Tuesday, 14 October, 2025, is more than art history in display. It is also a portrait of a country in transition, from the turbulent 1980s when townships were under the grip of the State of Emergency to the 1990s period of democratisation and the 2000s, a period of hope as democracy took hold. This is a must-see exhibition.

Curated to coincide with the G20 Conference in South Africa when the country hosts leaders who will descend on our shores to shape global economic and Geo-political discourses, creating a common political and economic global architecture that will hopefully take us away from the current global political instability and uncertainty to a better world, this exhibition will give visitors window into what South Africa is. This exhibition clearly traces where we have been, the years between1984 to 2025, a period that the 40 visual story tellers are visually sketching, all previous winners of the Standard Bank Young Artist Award for Visual Art, covering the 40 year period in which this prestigious award shaped the artistic direction of many a young artist.

Cleverly curated by Standard Bank gallery curator and manager Dr Same Mdluli, those who lived during this period, will, certainly connect with the rich stories captured and frozen by these works in diverse medium, from Nicholas Hlobo’s spiritually grounded installation to the light hearted depiction of street fashion by Veleko, this is a poignant depiction of a country bin transition.

“The Standard Bank Art Lab today unveils a new visual arts exhibition showcasing four decades of South African visual arts history while celebrating 40 years of the Standard Bank Young Artist Award (SBYA) in the visual arts.

TitledSBYA Visual Art 1984 – Now, the exhibition will hang from 14 October until 31 January 2026 at the bank’s newest visual arts space situated at Nelson Mandela Square, Sandton.

The landmark exhibition tracks the dynamics of transformative change undergone by South Africa through the work of SBYA recipients for Visual Arts between 1984 and now (2025). It also invites art lovers to not only reflect on the rich socio-political history and the rich culture it produced but encourages them to celebrate 40 years of artistic excellence through the 40 artworks put together by 40 SBYA’s for Visual Arts from 1984 to 2025.

Compiled by Dr Same Mdluli, Curator and Manager of the Standard Bank Art Gallery and Art Lab, the exhibition entails work from the Standard Bank Corporate Collection, SABC Art Collection, Rupert Museum, Wits Arts Museum, the Johannesburg Art Gallery, and the Iziko Museums, unveiling rarely seen masterpieces of contemporary South African art,” says the bank in a statement accompanying the exhibition.

Mdluli says the SBYA Visual Art 1984- Now showcase not only celebrates the works and artists behind them but also reinforces Standard Bank’s heritage of empowering visionary artistic talents in South Africa and across the continent.

“This exhibition marks a significant milestone for the bank as we forge ahead with our commitment to championing the arts. SBYA Visual Art 1984- Now is a uniquely rich and immersive celebration of the 40th anniversary of the award’s history, featuring 40 artists represented in the show through a single work, each selected from 40 pieces drawn from the art collections of six important institutions in South African art. In this way, the exhibition reflects both the artistic and institutional dynamics that shape our art historical reality,” says Dr. Mdluli.

The tumultuous age of protest and the state of emergency of the 1980s, the violence and terror of the early 1990s and the hope borne of the breakthrough that followed it are all on visceral view at the showing.

The rich diversity of the artworks on display signposts epochal shifts and socio-political transformations that have shaped modern and contemporary histories. By gathering these myriad artistic perspectives by SBYA alumni, the exhibition also provides a unique window into key moments in the development of South African art.

These range from breakthroughs in photography and installation as represented in the work of 2016 SBYA recipient, Mohau Modisakeng and Mary Sibande, who was awarded in 2013; along with drawing-based work of William Kentridge who received the award in 1987, and Dianne Victor who was awarded in 1988.

There are also sculptors like Beth Diane Armstrong, awarded in 2017, and painters like Helen Sebidi who was awarded in 1989 or Blessing Ngobeni who received in 2020.

“This exhibition also affords us an opportunity to present these works in a way that enriches our ongoing conversations about who we are, who we have been, and who we are becoming as a culture and society. As South Africa also gears up to host the G20 and B20, we are also presented with an opportunity to spotlight the arts as a key contributor to economic growth and the responsibility among private and public stakeholders to ensure the industry is sustained and profitable,” adds Dr Mdluli.

The collaboration of the Standard Bank Corporate Art Collection along with the SABC collection’s straddles the public – private dichotomy uniquely because these works are partially accessible to the public enthusiasts of the art.

The Rupert Museum and Wits Art Museum are also collections with a dedicated mission of educational benefit to the greater society, while the Johannesburg Art Gallery and Iziko Museums, as a public art collections, is the third type of collection represented in the exhibition, helping to broaden how we view the way art and heritage is collected, preserved and made available to the public.

In keeping with The Standard Bank Art Lab’s growing role as a place for innovation, exploration, reflection, dialogue and creativity, the exhibition will include a programme featuring Talks by SBYA alumni, activations for school children to engage with the artworks, and the history they embody, along with fun holiday activations for the whole family over the summer season.

Yolisa Koza, Head of Brand Experience, Standard Bank Group adds, “This exhibition underscores our commitment to supporting and enabling the arts not only as a driver of economic transformation, but as a key component of building a shared cultural heritage. It   allows us to hold up these great artists as an example of the benefit of affirming the creative vision of the youth through the award.”

Certainly you will through these works witness the difficulty period when the country was in tenterhooks in the 1980s as apartheid resisted the change that was clearly on the march, the period of hope in the 1990s leading to the 1994, elections when the apartheid machinery cracked, its grip on state power loosening, giving in to the country’s yearning for democracy and justice for all in 1994. But you will also be taken into the period of hope and triumph of the 2000s, the so called Rainbow Nation Years.

And so this exhibition is powerful and needs to be attended by those who want to see how far we have travelled as a country, and most importantly how talented artists in this country contributed immensely in capturing poignant moments in the country’s evolution.