South Africa 2019

Title: “The stronger we become”
Commissioner: Titi Nxumalo, Console Generale
Curators: Nkule Mabaso, Nomusa Makhubu
Artists: Dineo Seshee Bopape, Tracey Rose, Mawande Ka Zenzile

The three artists that have been selected to represent South Africa explore the themes of social, political and economic resilience under the title “The Stronger We Become”, the aim of which is capturing the collective fortitude of South Africans.
The exhibition opens up debates about the narratives of social resilience that are reflected in the creative practice of the three artists. The exhibition brings together artists and artworks that probe and approach the theme differently in order to explore the ability of South Africans to endure historical traumas while not losing their ability to laugh, learn and continue with their daily lives.
Dineo Seshee Bopape offers intuitive installations that transform spaces into meditative arenas where historical narratives, fiction and personal narratives are wittingly interwoven, while Mawande KaZenzile’s work draws from African epistemology and the foundations laid by the father of Black Consciousness Movement, Steve Bantu Biko (1977) as well as African postcolonial thought leader and Kenyan writer Ngugi Wa Thiong’o. Tracey Rose’s work reflects the cultural, economic and political differences that mark the contemporary world and in particular post-apartheid South Africa, along with identity-related issues. She investigates questions of gender and colour through the visual motifs of her own body. Her unapologetic and resolute work takes on socio-political issues through idiosyncrasies presented by the post-apartheid South African way of life.