Richard Smith
dal 12/9/2005 al 2/10/2005
Segnalato da
12/9/2005
Richard Smith
Temporary Exhibition Space - Constitution Hill, Johannesburg
'Dialogues' is a body of work produced by the artist during a period of near reclusion in his home near Cape Town. The exhibition is made up mainly of large portraits of people real and smaller ones of others imagined, in mixed media on paper. The main component of the images is charcoal with the introduction of colour through use of oils, soft pastels acrylic.
Dialogues
On the 13 September 2005 an exhibition of recent works by artist Richard
Smith will open at Constitution Hill as part of its public programmes.
“Dialogues†is a body of work produced by the artist during a period of near
seclusion in his home near Cape Town. “The only people to have seen these
works are those that have visited my studio over the past year. This is a
completely fresh collection of work.†says Smith.
The exhibition is made up mainly of large portraits of people real and
smaller ones of others imagined, in mixed media on paper. The main component
of the images is charcoal with the introduction of colour through use of
oils, soft pastels acrylic.
Best known for his political satire, Smith began his career as a cartoonist
for the Sunday Times in 1968 and served as curator for the inaugural Brett
Kebble Art Awards, the country’s largest visual art award. His CV includes a
host of solo and group shows both locally and internationally.
Central to the exhibition is the theme of dialogue and communication, both
as a means of hope and as source of tension. Using mainly portraiture as a
means of expression, the show explores conflict, communication and exchange
between the past and present, between the people depicted and between the
visual elements within the works.
The Inmate Series consists of portraits of “people who are not freeâ€.
Inhabitants of institutions or asylums, their faces tell of harsh
experiences and lives lived outside the normal pattern of everyday
existence.
Also part of the show is a series of depictions of friends of the artist.
Each face is rendered deadpan, and in stark contrast to a selection of
inanimate objects placed in front of the sitters.
Owned by Teresa Lizamore, curator of the Sasol Art Collection and the Rand
Merchant Bank Art Collection, Artspace mounts and manages exhibitions that
strive to promote local artists, both at their premises and other suitable
locations. Says Lizamore, “I aim to continually attract new audiences to the
works of emerging and established artists. This means that in addition to
mounting shows at Artspace gallery, we need to also take the work to new
audiences by showing at various other locations.â€
“We approached Constitution Hill with this exhibition for the significance
that the space lends to the work. At the core of the site is the issue of
dialogue between a painful past and hopeful present. The nature of the
programmes run by Constitution Hill also means that the work will be engaged
with by scholars, students and tourists who would otherwise have the
opportunity to visit an exhibition.â€
The exhibition forms part of Constitution Hill’s public programmes and will
be both open to the public, and used to facilitate workshops with learners
about pertinent issues it addresses.
The exhibition will be opened by Gauteng Editor for Artthrob, Robyn Sassen,
at 18h00 on 13th September 2005. Interested parties are invited to preview
the work from 16h00 prior to the opening.
The artist will conduct walkabouts on Saturday 17th September.
Catalogues of the show will be available.
Issued By: CONSTITUTION HILL and ARTSPACE FINE ART GALLERY . JOHANNESBURG
For further information or interviews please contact:
Teresa Lizamore
Artspace
082 651 4701
artspace@wol.co.za
Trevor Chueu
Constitution Hill
082 446 1831
Constitution Hill is a unique mixed-use development in the Inner City of
Johannesburg and the new home of the Constitutional Court, the protector of
our basic rights and freedoms. Constitution Hill is also the site of
Johannesburg’s notorious Old Fort Prison Complex, commonly known as Number
Four, where thousands of ordinary people were brutally punished before the
dawn of democracy in 1994. Many of South Africa’s leading political
activists, including Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela, were detained here.
In addition to the permanent exhibitions, interactive experiences and
educational programmes, Constitution Hill offers a full calendar of public
programmes and exhibitions that bring the site to life and enable the public
to connect with the activities of the Constitutional Court.
Artspace Fine Art Gallery has been operating for the past five years.
Located in the serene suburb of Fairland, Johannesburg, the gallery has
become renowned for its strive to promote and recognize local art of the
highest aesthetic standards, integrity and diversity.
Temporary Exhibition Space, The Old Fort, Constitution Hill, 1 Kotze Street, Johannesburg
09h00-17h00