Author: Trusha Naidoo

Date: 28th February 2017

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We enter the British Museum to find Esther Mahlangu’s Ndebele patterned BMW parked at the foot of the stairs, priming us for the creative chaos that is South African art. For me, it’s a trip back to my motherland. The place that has formed me. The colours that still excite me. The energy and beauty that shape my aesthetic.

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Stretching from the dawn of mankind to life after apartheid, the exhibition takes us from San cave art dating back to 100 000 years ago to present day soap operas.

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Striking images of Zulu women in red and white ochre draw the eye. You just want to reach out and get the colours on your hands.

 

TAUNG 1985 is a powerful vision of a 2.5 million year old child’s skull from Karel Nel. Science meets state of the art right here.

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The Lydenburg Head from AD 500-900 takes pride of place in the collection.  Also on display are the first sculptures by the Bantu tribes dating back to around 1500 years ago.

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A striking depiction of slavery from Penny Siopis stops me in my tracks. You have to take a closer look to see the tiny images depicted within the woman’s body.

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Willem Boshoff’s Bad Faith Chronicles - 1997 brings to life his realisation that Christianity was used to justify apartheid. How can something be clever yet so horrifying at the same time?

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A pair of leather sandals is a surprising sight. Gandhi gave them to Jan Smuts as a gift. Smuts later said of the sandals, “I have worn these sandals every summer, even though I may feel that I am not worthy to stand in the shoes of so great a man.”

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Also on show are maps of how the Boers made inroads into the vast South African expanse. A collection of tribal weapons is a fierce reminder of the brutality of the Angle-Boer War.

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It is refreshing to see a young Nelson Mandela wearing the traditional Ingqosha. Known for his vivid African shirts, seeing him as a young man in tribal dress is just as authentic.

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The Black Photo Album, a slideshow by Santu Mofokeng, portrays a black middle class that history would have us believe never existed during the time of apartheid. For me, it is a reminder of the separate lives we lived under the Group Areas Act.

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The Segregation and Apartheid era slots into the exhibition like a lightning bolt. The pieces on display are a poignant reminder that art was often used to confront apartheid on every level. The resistance art of Gavin Jantjes takes pride of place on the walls here. Some of the titles of his work tell it like it was, for example; “Colour this white only”, “Classify this coloured”, and “Colour these people dead”.

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No collection of South African art would be complete without the inimitable William Kentridge. There’s no doubt that his evocative drawings and films are spawned by the damaged society apartheid left behind.

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I can’t help but smile in recognition when I spot a familiar UDF cartoon from the one and only Zapiro. I must have every book he’s brought out.

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Gerard Sekoto’s “Song of the Pick” tells a sombre story of the repetitive work labourers had to do and still do in some parts of the country. You can almost hear the songs they would sing while working under the blazing sun.

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Sam Nhlengethwa’s depiction of the death of Steve Biko sends a chill down my spine. It documents the brutality of the struggle in unflinching detail.

Willie Bester’s “Transition” created in 1994, tells the story of transformation with a plethora of real world objects. It takes me back to the day Mandela was freed and came out to the address the people in Cape Town. I was there and I’ll never forget it.

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Mary Sibande’s “The purple shall govern” takes me back to when protesters where water cannoned with purple dye. She depicts herself as a purple octopus of black female empowerment. I was there and covered in purple. It took days to wash off and years to forget.

 

The exhibition may not be completely coherent if you’re not South African but it will get you thinking about the relationship between art and history. How we see things isn’t always how they really are or were. The same goes for how art depicts life and strife.

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