Contested Terrains at Tate Modern

The exhibition Contested Terrains features four artists; Kader Attia,Sammy Baloji, Michael MacGarry and Adolphus Opara. Four artists all working in present day Africa.

Their work engages with ideas of history and identity, that in Africa,have long been shaped by the claims and disputes of conflicting ideological and economic interests.

Sammy Baloji uses photography to explore the histories, present day realities and contradictions inherent in the formation of his homeland, the Democratic Republic of Congo.In his photomontages , he superimposes archival images of European officials and Congolese labourers (who built the mine's once imposing industrial sites ) onto contemporary photographs that highlight their current state of decline and ruin The remnants and realities of industrialisation and global trade.

These artists reveal that history is more than a straightforward succession of events and that the present remains contested terrain.

Elise Godsell

Contested Terrains
Tate Modern
London.
Until 16 October 2011

Not to be missed.

Manifesto: a means of expression

Figures and Fictions, South African Photography

Figures & Fictions; Contemporary South African Photography is the first UK exhibition of South African photography undertaken during the last ten years.

Under National Party rule (1948-94) and the implementation of Apartheid, photography was used by the State to manage racial classification. But it also served to document resistance and record the lives of those subjected to racial laws and social segregation.

This vibrant work of 17 South African photographers address that history. Through their images they challenge the country's rethinking of issues of identity across race, gender, class and politics.

All the photographers question what it is to be human at this time in South Africa.

Go see !
Figures & Fictions; Contemporary South African Photography showing at the V & A London until 17 July.

Elise Godsell

Manifesto: a means of expression

Basketry; Making Human Nature

Basketry is something everybody understands; It is a marriage of practicality and beauty.

Basketry; Making Human Nature is a new stunning exhibition showcasing both anthropology and visual art. Its techniques and materials are vividly illustrated by both beautiful world objects and contemporary art.

In Central Africa close communication with the dead and beliefs in the effectiveness of their powers, are mediated by healers, diviners and banganga (ritual specialists ).Banganga use containers, including baskets, filled with spiritually charged materials for divination purposes.

These baskets become so potent that they are themselves often contained in places of secrecy.Basketry costumes appear in masquerades in which a masked figure impersonates a spirit, ancestor or some other ideal entity. Masks have a life of their own, acting as a second skin which subsumes the identity of the performer.

This mask is from Salampasu, Democratic Republic of Congo 1951.

The exhibition is at the Sainsbury Center for Visual Arts, University of East Anglia, Norwich until 22 May 2011.


Elise Godsell.

Not to be missed.

Manifesto: a means of expression

The Akan Drum

The British Museum currently have a unique display which centers around the Akan Drum.This drum is the oldest African-American object in the museum and was brought from West Africa to the colony of Virginia, as part of the slave trade around 1735. It was acquired by Sir Hans Sloane whose collection formed the basis of the British Museum, when it was established in 1753.

The first part of the display describes the journey of the drum from West Africa, to the colony of Virginia and in doing so relates to the suffering and displacement of people ,as a result of the transatlantic slave trade.

This journey would typically include the practice of'dancing' the slaves, which meant in effect, forcible exercise out on deck when the drum would be used.

The second part of the display shows the massive influence of African and African- American music, on most popular music from the 20th century.

Visitors who take smart phones to this exhibition will be able to download the soundtrack to the display.

Elise Godsell

Manifesto:a means of expression.

Kingdom of Ife; Sculptures from West Africa.

Kingdom of Ife; Sculptures from West Africa. Currently on show at the British Museum, London.

Ife (pronounced Ee-fah) is located in Southwest Nigeria and is regarded as the spiritual heartland of the local Yoruba speaking people. Yoruba are Nigeria's largest ethnic group and their myths celebrate Ife as the center of the creation of the world and all mankind.

These refined brass and copper sculptures, made using the lost wax process, were found adjacent to the Royal Place in 1938. They are now acknowledged, as some of the most refined and beautiful sculptures to be found in Africa.

A hundred or so pieces in this, not to be missed exhibition, shows that Africa civilization, was as sophisticated , as anything in the west during the 13/15th centuries.

This must see exhibition, will surely challenge people's assumption about the nature of Art coming from Africa. Enjoy !

Elise Godsell

Manifesto: a means of expression

Viviane Sassen, photographer

"I was really taken with Amsterdam-based photographer Viviane Saasen and i would like to share with you her work.

Her photographs, taken in Uganda, Zambia, Kenya and Tanzania, tease fashion conventions but with really witty and unexpected results, partly because her subjects are all young Africans who seem to have enjoyed collaborating with her.

She tends to treat the body as a sculptural element- a malleable shape that combines blocks of shadow and bright colours in arrangements that sometimes read like cut-paper collages, bold and abstract but full of vibrant life".

Manifesto: a means of expression

"Voodoo" - Big Idea in a Little Space

“Voodoo”- Big Idea in a Little Space Hidden behind an antique storefront, and easy to miss when walking down bustling Beak Street in Soho, the Riflemaker Gallery is currently housing an exhibition entitled “Voodoo: Hoochie Coochie and the Creative Spirit.”

Made up of a collection of paintings, sculptures, photographs, literature, and more from both the past and present, “Voodoo” tries to further explain and interpret the religion of Voodoo as well as, according to the catalogue, “look at the mystery of the creative act.” The combination of art tries to express the feeling and vibe of voodoo through one’s experience, rather than spelling it out word for word (although there is a fair amount of information scattered on placards throughout the exhibition).

Upon entering the small gallery, one must be wary of possible traffic jams; the small room has artwork beginning right past the doorway, as well as in the middle of the floor, so making your way around the room can be a bit of an obstacle course. The room’s creaky, worn wood floors add to the ‘attic full of treasures’ feel of the exhibition, and the pieces in the room range from the Wishing Machine, a replica of the original William Burroughs piece, where one can make a deposit and send voodoo to someone (one pound for good voodoo, two pounds for bad), as well as various sculptures and paintings that adorn the walls. The most striking piece in this room though, is Mati Klarwein’s 1963-65 Crucifixion, a triptych that seems to blend a tree of life with the Kama-sutra and Bosch’s Garden of Earthly Delights.The downstairs (the exhibition covers the first three floors of the small gallery) has some fantastic old photography that include images of Voodoo rituals, although one must be warned of the stench coming from Marina Warner’s Bed of Time, an installation of melting, burning wax.

The top floor was by far my favourite, an eerie, childlike room filled with objects and sculptures most would find in a nightmare. A grim-reaper looking figure walks a puppet in the corner as a massive sculpture made entirely of hair greets you as you enter. Two faceless child mannequins that stare out the old paned windows are among the other items that haunt the dimly lit room. Music creaks through the air, adding to the scary feeling that one of the sculptures may just jump out at you if you don’t watch your back. The Riflemaker Gallery is quite a small space to attempt to explain the art of Voodoo and the creative drive in one go, however they do a fairly good job at giving people a taste of the spirit of both.

Rachel Karasik