1910-2010: From Pierneef to Gugulective

In March Iziko South African National Gallery closed its doors for 6 weeks to enable staff to install a major exhibition “1910-2010: From Pierneef to Gugulective”

This large exhibition, which runs until September 2010, occupies the entire Gallery, showcases the history and diversity of modern and contemporary South African art from the time of the formation of the Union of South Africa a century ago to the present.The exhibition covers the period when modern South African art started to articulate itself in relation to the rest of the world. The selection, primarily from the Iziko South African National Gallery permanent collection is supplemented by works on loan from other public and corporate collections around the country. Audiences can look forward to modern gems and rare treasures by Gerard Sekoto, Irma Stern, George Pemba, Maggie Laubser, Gerard Bhengu, JH Pierneef, Durant Sihlali and Dumile Feni. The exhibition acknowledges important developments in local art history such as Polly Street, Rorke’s Drift, DRUM magazine, Resistance Art, and the rise of South Africa’s energetic contemporary art scene.

The exhibition has evoked mixed reviews.

In a review published, by the SA Art Times Melvyn Minnar comments:

“By turning the SANG upside down in a manner of speaking (and perhaps upsetting some) for this sweeping expo, the gallery indicates that things can be done in a different way. The past few years the museum has too often had to act like a contemporary art gallery (because Cape Town has no such space). Housing fleeting visiting exhibitions, some hastily curated themed shows, all the while holding up one or two of the ancient paintings as well, it sometimes felt unfocussed and wobbly. And a trifle confusing to the foreign visitor. (Communication with the wider public, including local Capetonians, has been an on-going deficiency.)

The show may be a bit unwieldy and has its odd choices. (The Tretchikoff is not really needed, but then the ‘Black Christ’ too is not the world’s greatest art work. The placing of the show-within-a-show Us in the first room is questionable.) But it works for what it sets out to be, not more, not less. Those used to heavy curatorial schemes and themes (often oh so pretentious) may feel the need for guidance. Don’t. Simply start from the right and work your way around. Small themes prop up all over the place. Lovely dialogues take place between unusual wall mates. There are colours and forms that connect or reflect. There is a range of media, but none claim an overbearing presence. And, of course, one can simple trod around, find your favourite picture, love it, and walk out. The feeling of freshness - of old stuff dusted-off and put up in the light - of the ‘re-hang’ makes it all worthwhile. It looks good and it has an air of vitality. Take up your art accoutrements and have a look.”

While a second review, this time by by Lloyd Pollack, but also published in the SA Art Times by is headlined “SANG’s reputation slashed for 2010 show” and argues that “no expository thread pulls the show together. Riason Naidoo, the curator of the show, and director of the institution, has no thesis to propound, no argument to advance and no interpretation to propose”.

This review elicited a rather cutting response from a reader who noted that the curator could , “either have chosen an evolutionary approach making small incremental changes and fighting obstacles with every step or a revolutionary approach sweeping out the old in one bold move. He fortunately chose to be a revolutionary and to revamp the Gallery in one giant leap. “

Riason Naidoo, the head of ISANG and curator of this exhibition explains his curatorial vision

“I do not want my house to be walled in on all sides and my windows to be stuffed.
I want the cultures of all the lands to be blown about my house as freely as possible.
But I refuse to be blown off my feet by any.

Mahatma Gandhi

“This extensive exhibition, occupying the whole gallery, has been produced to showcase the history and diversity of South African art. It is intended to provide insight into the soul of our complex nation, from the hilltops of the Union Buildings a hundred years ago to the townships of Cape Town today.

The exhibition has two primary aims: one to show works from the permanent collection and secondly to give a survey of the diversity of art production from around the country. It acknowledges important developments in local art history such as the articulation of a modern art movement, Polly Street, Rorkes Drift, Resistance Art, and the rise of South Africa’s energetic contemporary art scene, the subject of much recent attention abroad.

Art does not exist in isolation and with this in mind the exhibition endeavours to simultaneously reflect on important moments over this period. Tretchikoff’s Herb Seller (1948) − the first time a Tretchikoff has been shown at the National Gallery − is set against the backdrop of United Party and National Party election posters. Willie Bester’s conviction to make art “as a nasty tasting medicine for awakening consciences” hints at the scars of the past that continue to impact on our conditions in the present. At the same time the present has its own challenges, as reflected tongue-in-cheek in Stuart Bird’s Zuma Biscuits (2007).

While the exhibition aims to showcase prominent artists and some iconic works of art in the permanent collection such as Jane Alexander’s Butcher Boys (1985/86) and Andries Botha’s Alleenspraak in Paradys (1991), many of the loans open a window on some less known artists and pieces such as Jabulani Ntuli’s detailed pencil drawings from the 1940s.

It is a fact that colonialism and apartheid have robbed generations of black people in this country of their dignity. But it is not all doom and gloom. The emergence of black photographers responding to black conditions in DRUM magazine show a deeper insight and range of emotions in the representation of black people. This is reflected in the humiliation of imprisonment for trivial offences under apartheid at the Old Fort prison in Johannesburg seen in Bob Gosani’s 1954 photo to Ranjith Kally’s depiction of acclaimed visiting musician Tony Scott at Pumpy Naidoo’s Goodwill Lounge jazz club in Durban in 1960.

Deborah Bell’s Lover’s in the Cinema (1985) speaks on the universal theme of love, something that we can all identify with. Both Brett Murray (Xhosa, 2002) and Sthembiso Sibisi (Going Home, 2005) use humour to comment on the local condition. For locals Ed Young’s Bruce Gordon [Torino] (2005) may have special significance recalling the conceptual piece from 2003, where a bar owner (a found object) was purchased by the National Gallery and the acquisition number tattooed on the artwork (or bar owner’s arm).

While reflecting on art from around the country during this period it is also important to take cognisance of the perils of nationalism. I am reminded of the graffiti painted on a wall on the corner of Hunter and Cavendish streets in Yeoville, Johannesburg, near where I used to live. It quotes from Nelson Mandela’s 1994 inauguration speech, “Never, never and never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another.” Only fourteen years later in 2008, one of the most traumatic events in the democracy has been the xenophobic attacks, which left many bodies in its wake and thousands mentally scarred. With this in mind we have also included a selection from the exhibition US − curated by Bettina Malcomess and Simon Njami − featuring a handful of young artists commenting on the issue and bringing the making of art in this country full circle.

This exhibition also coincides with a new vision for the National Gallery, one that aims to be more inclusive in the audiences we appeal to, more critical in the selection of our exhibitions and in the work that we acquire, more diverse in the composition and views of the people that make up our committees, and more representative of the diversity of cultures that make up this multifaceted country. And all of this on a national level.”

1910-2010: From Pierneef to Gugulective runs at Iziko South African National Gallery from 14 April - 3 October. Enquiries: Shameem Adams, Tel. 021 467 4663 or email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

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