5 Things To Look Forward To at Turbine Art Fair

WORDS Malibongwe Tyilo IMAGES Turbine Art Fair VIDEO via Our Slice Of Happiness on YouTube

The third annual Turbine Art Fair (TAF), hosted at the Turbine Hall in Newtown, Johannesburg is running from 16 – 19 July 2015. Why should you go? Well, for one, South Africa, and Africa in general, are experiencing an unprecedented boom when it comes to the contemporary arts. Just take a look at the new galleries that have opened recently, the numerous international exhibitions focused on contemporary African art and the upcoming opening of the Zeitz Museum Of Contemporary Art Africa in Cape Town, the first of its kind on the continent.

While some of the art shown at large galleries and mainstream art fairs may seem just a tad out of reach, the Turbine Art Fair prides itself on exhibiting a combination of work from emerging and established artists at affordable prices. In fact, as a rule, none of the artworks on show cost more than R40 000, with many emerging artists priced way below that. Whether you’re already attending or are still undecided, check below our list of five things to look forward to at this year’s event.

1. Fresh Produce: This part of the fair is supported by Rand Merchant Bank and curated by Zanele Mashumi of Mashumi Art Projects. She has selected work by nine young artists at the beginning of their careers, from all over South Africa. If you want to get your hands on work by artists who are likely to be future ‘big names,’ this is your chance to get them while they are affordable.

2. Setlamorago Mashilo: This young artist was the winner of the annual TAF & Sylt Emerging Artist Award in 2014. The award gives artists the opportunity to spend one full year in residency on the Northern German island of Sylt, during which they have time to contemplate, research and experiment with their creativity. Make sure to check what work came out Setlamorago’s experimentation.

3. Anthea Moys: The 2013 Standard Bank Young Artist of the Year Performance Art award winner, Anthea Moys will be performing The Portrait Exchange, a work inspired by ideas of exchange, structures, interactions and games. The performance is a portrait exchange between the artist and any willing participant who will sit across from her for a period of time. After the interaction, each will leave with a portrait of the other.

4. Talks: There will be a talks programme throughout the fair, but we especially recommend that you check out The Art of Collecting, a talk between Warren Siebrits and Dr Fred Scott, both of whom are highly regarded collectors. If you’re looking to start or grow your collection, you’ll want to hear what they have to say.

5. Kiddies area and walkabouts: Not only is there a safe, secure and creative play area for kids hosted by Staedtler, but on both Sunday and Saturday at 11am, artist Robyn Penn, assisted by art students, will take kids between the ages of 5 and 11 on a walkabout of the art fair, to help them understand what the fair is all about. Gotta start ’em young.

Tickets for Turbine Art Fair are available via webtickets.co.za. For more information, visit turbineartfair.co.za.