Soccer fever!

ART EVENTS

A range of soccer themed exhibitions are on show. These include:

Footsak, no time for extra time and The Art of the Ball at the Durban Art Gallery
Offside and The Fields of Play at the District Six Museum
HALAKASHA! at Standard Bank Gallery
FIFA 2010 World Cup at the Southend Museum, Port Elizabeth
The History of Soccer in South Africa at the Cape Town campus of the National Library of South Africa

Other exhibitions showcase the best of South African Art or African Art.

In context, at various venues in Johannesburg
1910-2010: from Pierneef to Gugulethu at Iziko South African National Gallery, Cape Town

South African History online is hosting the Bonani Africa 2010 Photographic Festival which showcases ways in which photographers see Africa

The 2010 FIFA Official Art Poster Edition, is a limited portfolio of seventeen posters designed from South Africa and abroad.

FOCUS ON HOST CITIES

South African History Online is focusing on the social and political histories of the nine host cities in their project One City/Many Histories

PUBLICATIONS

In Sport versus Art editor Chris Thurman notes that art and sport compete for sponsors and ublic interest and asks whether they necessarily stand in opposition. The book includes contributions from various authors grappling with this question.

In African Soccerscapes — 2010: How a Continent Changed the World’s Game, Peter Alegi explores how Africans adopted soccer for their own reasons and on their own terms.

OTHER ISSUES

Vuvuzelas have definitely grabbed the attention of the world and are set to become a national icon, though opinion on their use is divided.

The Department of Arts and Culture has been heavily criticised for their lack of support of the art events linked to the World Cup. A presentation outlining their contribution was made to the Portfolio Committee in May.

The Creative Workers Union on South Africa (CWUSA) have slammed comments made by Minster Xingwana’s diatribe as deplorable.

The elders, a group of eminent global leaders have expressed their concern about the potential for an upsurge in xenophobia following the World Cup

The efforts of host cities to ‘clean up’ the streets by relocating homeless people to other areas has raised the ire of many.

The alleged ‘ban’ on protest action - which has subsequently been ignored - raised a concern about state repression of civil liberties.

The Mail & Guardian application to the courts for access to the Local Organising Commitee tender documents was successful

The 2010 World Cup and the National Question

World Cup Watch, Centre for Civil Society, University of KwaZulu Natal includes a collection of material, including AV’s relating the issues of concern noted by the Centre.

Reuters: FIFA and copyright. FIFA owns all rights to the 2010 FIFA World Cup, including all media, marketing, licensing and ticketing rights. It then grants licences and broadcast rights to its main sponsors.

Player and Referee: Conflicting interests and the 2010 FIFA World Cup addresses the challenge of the conflict between private and public interests, particularly in respect of the location and construction of stadiums. (See PDF, below)

 

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