A
Decade of Democracy: Witnessing South Africa
April
2, 2004 - November 14, 2004
A
Decade of Democracy: Witnessing South
Africa presents
some of the ways that artists in South
Africa are inventing new identities.
In
it, artists who are aware of how race and
geography have compartmentalized people interrogate
the apartheid legacy with the intention of
creating identities that are self-affirming.
Their
works in this exhibition address some of
the issues facing a South Africa in transition.
For
a decade, South Africa has been reconfiguring
its social, political, and cultural environments.
April
27, 2004 marks the country’s tenth
anniversary of democracy following the election
of President Nelson Mandela in April of 1994.
Since
then, the country has witnessed many changes,
some of which were obscured by the over-simplified
discourse of rainbow nationalism.
A
Decade of Democracy: Witnessing South Africa
brings together emerging and established
artists who are responding to post- Apartheid
South Africa.
Some
of these artists explore new modes of representation
while drawing upon existing traditions. They
are inspired by a strong vision of the “self” as
a major factor in reconstituting their own
subjectivities.
Other
artists use idioms of social commentary idiom
to challenge existing prejudices. These approaches
to art-making bear witness to present realities,
as well as to the shared experiences of injustice
under apartheid.
Certain
themes emerged from the works in this exhibition.
For example, the body—physically and
metaphorically- remains the focus for identification
and discrimination in the post-apartheid
era.
Clearly,
issues concerning race and identity have
not vanished, but instead are reinterpreted.
Other defining themes present in the social
landscape include Ceremony, Spirituality,
Gender, Sexuality, and Urban Realities.
These
themes, expressed symbolically, celebrate
and acknowledge the influence of African
and foreign cultures in contemporary South
Africa.
A
Decade of Democracy: Witnessing South Africa
testifies to the changes and acknowledges
the divergent viewpoints in South Africa
today.
It
does not claim to represent the country in
its entirety. Instead, it looks at the challenges
and contradictions facing artists as they
negotiate the tensions between what was,
what is, and what is to come through the
medium of their art.
RACE
AND IDENTITY
“The
concept of race as generally referenced,
is not biologically based, but rather a set
of socio-political categories created to
differentiate one group from another.” (Jemadari
Kamara, 2004)
Under
apartheid, the black majority of South Africans
experienced repression, racism, and social
inequality in accordance with the rule of
laws based on racial differences.
Philosophically,
these injustices were justified by the principles
of apartheid that espoused the notion of
separate development. However, apartheid
laws of racial difference affected both black
and white South Africans.
With
the transformation of the political landscape
in 1994 and the subsequent birth of democracy,
South Africans were forced to change how
they viewed themselves.
Black
South Africans were no longer official victims
and white South Africans had to reckon with
relinquishing power and privileges.
This
remains a contested territory where negotiations
to reconcile racial disparities persevere.
In
works probing race and identity, the body
remains an icon referring to the complex
racial classifications that linger in the
legacy of apartheid.
Many
artists are visualizing through their work
new identities that redefine the current
environment and eliminate apartheid era separation
and discrimination.
GENDER
AND SEXUALITY
The
struggle for gender equality and sexual freedom
in South Africa continues in the post-apartheid
South Africa.
Individual
freedoms constantly clash with cultural and
religious traditions that continue to uphold
conventions that infringe upon the democratic
rights of individuals as enshrined in our
constitution.
The
idea of same sex relationships challenges
and contradicts cultural norms and values
cherished by many.
Artists
exploring these issues attempt to examine
ways in which society has tried to insulate
itself from existing social realities such
as homosexuality.
They
interrogate relationships between same-sex
partners while confronting sexual taboos
within their communities.
These
artists probe existing social and cultural
differences, challenge the process of societal
transformation, and advocate for individual
freedoms to extend beyond the political arena
and into everyday life.
CEREMONY
AND SPIRITUALITY
Apartheid
practices in South Africa affected people
physically, mentally, and especially spiritually.
As
social activities brought competing claims
for political and cultural rights into focus,
the need for reflection and refuge grew more
acute.
This
need was met through religion, which nurtured
a collective identity based on faith and
performed in private and public domains such
as household dwellings, parks, stadiums,
churches, mosques, and synagogues.
Rituals
and ceremonies became catalysts for many
artists exploring their cultural heritage.
Their investigations traversed boundaries
between rural and urban.
Local
and foreign sensibilities were brought to
the examination rituals such as initiations,
sacrifices, libations, and prayer all of
which tended to foster positive associations
between individuals and groups.
Their
use of natural materials suggested the presence
of the spiritual in all things surrounding
them. In part, their art drew its inspiration
from the African philosophy known as “Ubuntu”,
which demonstrated compassion for others
beyond the self.
The
approach recalled President Thabo Mbeki’s
concept of African Renaissance in which the
collective experience is called upon to envision
a new reality for Africa.
Art
works rooted in such thought became tremendously
important in examining the role of cultural
traditions within modern societies, because
they illustrate—figuratively and conceptually—the
integration of traditional culture and daily
life.
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