Curated by Jo Rogge and featuring the work of 18 artists, 'Unmourned Bodies' coincides with the month of Namibia's independence as it aims to remedy colonial representation of the country and underscore the present day blurring of art and crafts.
From Stephané Edith Conradie's mixed media response to the idealisation of African life in paintings by Andrew van Wyk to Maria Caley's investigation into objects created by unknown artists, specifically the nkata (base for a traditional pot), 'Unmourned Bodies' sees artists reimagine and create multifaceted decolonial readings of art by Judith Mason Attwood, Adolph Jentsch, Moffat Masule and other historical and contemporary Namibian artists whose work is held in the Namibian Arts Association's archive.
The exhibition which was developed in response to a call for proposals from the AVA under its 'Conscious Curating' initiative will be on display in Cape Town until 20 April.
"The historical links between the Namibian Arts Association (NAA) and the AVA were an obvious focus, in particular the 1948 South West African Arts Association (SWAAA) exhibition of Namibian art and artefacts in Cape Town, with many of these artworks and objects currently retained in the archive collection of the NAA/Namibian Arts Heritage Trust," says Rogge.
"This historic exhibition included 61 paintings and 500 objects from Namibia, divided into what was called the 'White' section, including painters Axel Eriksson, Adolph Jentsch, Otto Schröder, Joachim Voigts, among others, and the 'Native' section, described as being mostly 'handcrafts'," Rogge says.
"Artists were invited to visit the archive of the NAA, to select a work from the collection that personally resonated with them, and to recreate a unique artwork of their own in response, with some interesting and surprising results."
These artistic replies include in-depth examination of ownership, accessibility, identity and belonging. They also consider the repatriation of cultural objects and reflect on the importance of the archive, the possibilities of research and on Namibia's ongoing land issue.
"The exhibition includes exceptional and unusual works created by the Ju/'hoansi San women artists working with the Omba Arts Trust, which are an interpretation of the San rock engravings found in the south of Namibia," says Rogge.
'Unmourned Bodies' takes its name and a line of inquiry from Zimbabwean writer Tsitsi Dangarembga's novel 'This Mournable Body' in which a young black woman attempts to navigate the social and economic challenges of modern day Zimbabwe.
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"The exhibition coincides with the 33rd year of Namibia's independence and posits the questions: "Are there 'unmourned bodies' in Namibia" and "To what extent are these represented in the Heritage Trust collection?," says Rogge.
"References include the Herero and Nama genocide, the Swapo dungeons/war graves at Lubango, Angola, the collections of Namibian human remains and artefacts in foreign museums, the continued violence against women and girls, and other untold stories."
'Unmourned Bodies' is presented in partnership with The Project Room and features the work of Caley, Conradie, Rogge, Actofel Ilovu, Tangeni Kambudu, Tangeni Kauzuu, Maria Mbereshu, Tuli Mekondjo, Lynette Musukubili, Ndako Nghipandulwa, Rudolf Seibeb and Ju/'hoansi artists Josephine Stuurman, Anna Doëses, Katrina Kous, Lena Tsueb, Mara Britz, Magdalena Stuurman and Maria Thasi. A fishbowl discussion led by Patricia Hayes (University of the Western Cape) and featuring Rogge will take place at the AVA Gallery on 25 March at 11h00.
- [email protected] ; Martha Mukaiwa on Twitter and Instagram; marthamukaiwa.com
