-
Spring Floor
WORDS Palesa Kgasane IMAGES courtesy of Stevenson Gallery
In her first solo exhibition with the Stevenson Gallery in Johannesburg, South African-American artist Thenjiwe Niki Nkosi explores the similar, unseen socio-political realities between gymnasts and artists.
As she discussed on Instagram, where the exhibition launched on 26 March 2020, in both worlds, success and failure rest on the public’s perception of the individual.
Audience
The exhibition visualises this collective similarity by focusing on the gymnasium as a space that holds physical, political and emotional aspects, much like an art exhibition, with an artist and the viewers. The crucial moments before and after a show are often unseen, and it is these moments that are perhaps more important than what the public sees: the preparation, the anxiety, and of course, the mental and physical ways in which the gymnast has to deal with the result. “I’m mostly interested in moments we overlook, the most painful moments in our lives… the fact that failure is about perception and perspective,” said Thenjiwe, while broadcasting on Instagram Live.
Team
A compilation of video footage serves as a digital extension of her oil paintings: close-ups of gymnasts in preparation, the tension and relatable emotions that are invisible when contrasted by the bold outfits and larger-than-life performances. This footage shrinks the gaze that places the gymnast as a superhuman spectacle – we’re reminded that gymnasts are people too, women of colour in this case, where the scrutiny is often heightened. Gymnasium invites us to shift our focus away from the isolated star, rather looking at the performer as an individual that is part of a network, a community.
Champion
You can view the exhibition online on Stevenson Gallery’s website and on the gallery’s Instagram from 26 March until 30 April 2020.
