FNB JoburgArtFair has announced that Malawian-born Joburg-based artist Billie Zangewa, known for her intricate hand-stitched collages, is the featured artist for the fair’s 2018 installment.

The Fair Director, Mandla Sibeko, shared how the team felt it was time to focus on an artist who lives and works in Joburg and whose work expresses the lives lived there. Billie primarily uses raw silk offcuts to create her flat, colourful, figurative collages that explore gender-, race-, and class-based oppression through scenes of apparent mundane domesticity.

Billie’s work is represented in several notable private and public collections, including the Tate Modern, Stedelijk Museum and the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art collections. She has exhibited extensively, both locally and internationally, including at the MASS MoCA (2017), Stedelijk Museum (2017), Studio Museum Harlem (2016), Iziko South African National Gallery (2016), and the Johannesburg Art Gallery (2016), amongst others.

View Billie’s work at the FNB JoburgArtFair, from 7 to 9 September 2018, and stay up to date with her projects through her gallery blank projects. 

The post FNB JoburgArtFair Featured Artist 2018: Billie Zangewa appeared first on Visi.

The FNB JoburgArtFair, the oldest art fair in South Africa where leading artists, galleries, collectors, writers, thinkers and art lovers congregate, enters its 10^th edition this year. Here are seven highlights to look forward to at the 2017 event, running from 8 – 10 September. 

1. FNB Art Prize Winner Peju Alatise

One of the judges of the coveted FNB Art Prize, Pulane Kingston, said of this year’s winner: “The quality of each of the shortlisted candidates’ proposals this year was high, but we were ultimately unanimous in our decision around Alatise’s proposal – it stood out. The innovative, universal social relevance and poignancy in the themes underpinning her work were some of the deciding factors in tipping the scales in her favour. The overall body of her work over the years is varied and compositionally strong, palpably reflecting the intense vibrancy of the African continent. We have no doubt that the integrity of the overall body of her work will propel her career meaningfully.”

2. Truth, or some other abstraction Curated By Dr. Zoe Whitley

As this is the 10^th edition, and in the spirit of looking back, Dr. Zoe Whitley of London’s Tate Modern, will curate an exhibition within the fair, which will look at how South African modern artists voiced their stories and how those stories shaped our contemporary understanding of history. Borrowing works not often on public display from Gauteng’s collections, the respected guest curator’s investigation of the modern South African narrative is said to demonstrate the importance that our past plays on present realities.

3. The Featured Artist: Robin Rhode

Robin Rhode – the featured artist at the very first fair in 2008 – is welcomed back to reclaim the position. Robin’s most recent body of work resonates with the concept of looking forward. He obscures obvious age, race or even gender from his imagery, favouring instead the constants of geometry, balance and colour theory. According to fair organisers, the results are eerily comforting avatars in the age of globalisation – iconography with which anyone may identify.

4. The Talks Programme

The free Talks Programme takes place at the Theatre on Nelson Mandela Square and highlights the exciting content at this year’s fair. Notably, the programme includes featured artist Robin and The Armory Show (New York) Director Benjamin Genocchio – each delivering a keynote – as well as a conversation that looks at The School of Anxiety, a project by Moses Serubiri, showcased at the 10^th Berlin Biennale.

5. The Contemporary Section

The Contemporary Section welcomes MOV’ART (Luanda), exhibiting for the first time at the fair, while Addis Fine Art (Addis Ababa) and Circle Art Agency (Nairobi) join the main contemporary section after their debut last year as part of the fair’s 2016 East Africa Focus. Other new exhibitors include 50ty/50ty (Joburg) in Limited Editions, NWU Gallery (Potchefstroom) and Under Ground Contemporary (Kampala) in Art Platforms.

6. The Solo Presentations

The solo presentations are dominated by women this year – six of the eight artists are female and four of them South African, namely Sethembile Msezane (represented by Gallery MOMO, Joburg and Cape Town), Lady Skollie (Tyburn Gallery, London), Thenjiwe Niki Nkosi (Mariane Ibrahim Gallery, Seattle) and Bronwyn Katz (blank projects, Cape Town).

7. The Film Programme

On Friday 8 September, audiences can enjoy a specially curated selection of video works from The Centre Of The Less Good Idea’s first season, the brainchild of acclaimed South African artist William Kentridge, which will be projected on a large outdoor screen in Nelson Mandela Square. It’s free and no booking is required.

The FNB JoburgArtFair takes place at the Sandton Convention Centre on Friday 8 September (11am – 8pm), Saturday 9 September (11am – 7pm) and Sunday 10 September (11am – 5pm). Buy your single pass (R150) or weekend pass (R250) tickets here, and following the FNB JoburgArtFair on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 

The post 7 Highlights at the 2017 FNB JoburgArtFair appeared first on Visi.

For a design-related highlight at the FNB JoburgArtFair this coming weekend (8 – 10 September 2017), go check out Peter Mabeo’s special editions at the Orange Babies stand.

At this year’s FNB JoburgArtFair, you’ll find special editions of two of Gaborone-based furniture designer and maker Peter Mabeo’s best-known designs at the stand for the NGO Orange Babies. Orange Babies is a local branch of the Dutch NGO that aims to achieve an HIV-free generation with a special focus on Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTC) initiatives. For last year’s fair, they created a limited-edition collectors’ dinner set with the help of the Goodman Gallery, with artworks by the likes of William Kentridge, David Goldblatt, Kendall Geers and Mikhael Subotzky, to name a few, reproduced on plates.

This year, through Gallery MOMO, they’ve worked with Peter, whose custom-made furniture designs strike an amazing balance between supporting local craft and maintaining his African design heritage, and international appreciation. He’s exhibited at fairs worldwide and has been involved in high-profile international collaborations with the likes of Patricia Urquiola.

Peter has made an edition of five 2,4-metre-long Embi sideboards, a beautiful design that features distinctively handcrafted drawer fronts made with a pattern of individually cut, shaped and sanded wood chips.

He’s also done a special edition of 10 Kika stools, one of his collaborations with Patricia Urquiola, with an orange detail especially for the charity, and three containers designed specifically for the fair.

The Orange Babies stand will also include works by Mary Sibande and Andrew Tshabangu, who are both represented by Gallery MOMO.

For more information about the fair, visit fnbjoburgartfair.co.za.

The post Peter Mabeo Design Collab at the FNB JoburgArtFair appeared first on Visi.

Nigerian artist, Peju Alatise, has been announced as the 2017 recipient of the prestigious FNB Art Prize.

She joins the ranks of previous winners, such as Nolan Oswald Dennis, Turiya Magadlela and Kudzanai Chiurai, and receives a cash prize as well as the opportunity to create a new project that will be showcased in a dedicated exhibition space at the FNB Joburg Art Fair from 8 to 10 September 2017.

Peju, who holds a degree in architecture, is a mixed-medium artist, poet and published writer and her interdisciplinary work has gained attention on the global art stage. Her career highlights to date include being selected as the 2016 fellow at the Smithsonian Institute of African Art, exhibiting at the Venice Biennale’s 57th edition, where she was visiting as an art teacher, and artist residencies in Morocco and Turkey.

Peju is passionate about addressing social, political and gender-related issues, and uses her incredibly broad spectrum of media to explore multiple layers of meaning as well as capturing the nuances of womanhood in modern-life-African traditions.

Don’t miss her exhibition. Save the date for the FNB Joburg Art Fair, taking place at the Sandton Convention Centre from 8 to 10 September 2017. Visit FNBjoburgartfair.co.za for more info.

The post FNB Art Prize 2017 Winner: Peju Alatise appeared first on Visi.

Nolan Oswald Dennis, who we recently featured as an Artist We Love, has won the prestigious FNB Art Prize for 2016, as part of the upcoming FNB JoburgArtFair.

The FNB Art Prize was established in 2011, with past winners including Turiya Magadlela, Portia Zvavahera and Kudzanai Chiurai.

Nolan Oswald Dennis, who is represented by Goodman Gallery, not only receives R100 000, but also gets to exhibit his work in a dedicated space at the FNB JoburgArtFair alongside 80 other exhibitions within six categories from 17 countries across the globe.

The FNBJoburgArtFair will take place from 9 – 11 September 2016 at the Sandton Convention Centre. For more information, visit fnbjoburgartfair.co.za.

The post FNB Art Prize 2016 Winner: Nolan Oswald Dennis appeared first on Visi.

Loyiso Mkize has been hard at work building a name for himself across various platforms.

He has two solo shows in the bag, his work was recently shown at the FNB Joburg Art Fair and he’s worked as an illustrator for the Supa Strikas comic book, which appears in various local newspapers and magazines. He also owns his own company, Loyiso Mkize Art, which publishes, amongst other things, the South African superhero comic book Kwezi. We caught up with this 28-year-old artist.

It can be difficult for people trained as graphic designers to break into the art world. Why do you think you’ve been able to do that successfully?

I suppose I see myself as having been a visual artist even before I studied graphic design. That is my true north, and when I finished studying I guess I defaulted to who I really am. I studied graphic design to broaden my palette, to learn something I didn’t know. It’s taught me a lot about how to package my artwork to the viewer. As a designer, one of the key concerns is aesthetic appeal, to be able to make things visually stimulating and arrest the viewer’s attention. That understanding and skill has done wonders for my art.

We’ve seen your work pop up regularly online and at the FNB Joburg Art Fair, and a quick read through your website reveals that you are a busy man. How do you maintain balance while keeping so busy?

The key is to maintain a stable home environment. At home I get to relax with my wife and my kid and enjoy the daily things in life, and that truly does ground you. If one is obsessed with being a persona in the art world it can end up distorting what one wants to do with one’s work. I think it is also crucial to establish solid time management systems. For me, that means waking up at 3am every morning and working. I find the morning is a golden time for creativity.

What kinds of projects does your visual arts and communication company Loyiso Mkize Art work on, and what are some recent highlights?

We specialise in comic book illustration, especially entertainment-based products. Basically, we provide a service or product for companies that need to communicate their message visually. We recently worked on a project with 702. We’ve also completed an anti-bullying comic book, commissioned by the CEO of Archie Comics in the States. I’ve also just finished a new comic strip, which will be in a newspaper soon. Next year we have a project that is going to see us branch out into animation. Then of course there’s the art I do personally, which also helps to build the profile of the company.

Any advice for other young artists hoping to get their name out there?

There are three things that I think are very important. Firstly, you must know what you’re good at, really think about it and be harsh with yourself, be your own worst critic. Once you are confident in what it is you’re good at, then you can do what’s necessary to build a career. And that involves lots of work, training, studying, and discipline to make sure you are consistently getting better.

Secondly, ask questions. Fortunately we have much more access these days. Thirdly, and most importantly, make work that truly matters, not just because it’s pretty. It’s crucial that artists don’t fall into that trap. People are consuming information daily, and in order for your work to be memorable, it has to speak to a longing.

Who are some of your favourite South African artists?

Khaya Witbooi, Sindiso Nyoni and Ruramai Musekiwa. I’m also inspired by a lot of people outside the visual arts environment, like Okmalumkoolkat.

When you are not creating work, what are some of the subjects that interest you?

It’s always got to do with the continent going forward, the future of the continent, which involves a lot of reading and researching stuff.

Lastly, and lightly, please tell us one thing people probably don’t know about you.

People probably don’t know that I have a twin.

For more information about Loyiso’s work, visit loyisomkize.carbonmade.com.

The post Artists We Love: Loyiso Mkize appeared first on Visi.

We were there, enjoying a variety of art from the up-and-coming through to seasoned artists. With over 50 exhibitors from seven different countries, there was a large volume of work on show.

Browse the gallery above to view 10 of our favourite FNB JoburgArtFar moments, in no particular order.

The post 10 VISI Favourites From FNB JoburgArtFair appeared first on Visi.

The 11^th of September marks the opening of the eighth annual FNB JoburgArtFair, where local, transcontinental and international galleries and artists will be showing the best and the newest they have to offer. Here, in no particular order, are five things to look forward to this year.

1. Turiya Magadlela

Turiya is this year’s recipient of the FNB Art Prize, which guarantees her an exhibition at the art fair, along with a cash prize of R100 000. Magadlela will present a series of pieces she began working on in 2013. The work is an ongoing contemplation of the history of imprisoned black South African leaders. Her work utilises a variety of familiar fabrics such as nylon, pantyhose, correctional services sheeting and uniforms. She plays on the associations that are intrinsic to these fabrics. In so doing, she infuses them with meaning, while creating abstract compositions, by stitching, folding and stretching them across wooden frames.

2. The Johannesburg Pavilion

Earlier this year, amidst concerns and uncertainty about the official South African representation at the Venice Biennale, FNB JoburgArtFair, in partnership with the 133 Arts Foundation organised the Johannesburg Pavilion, a group that went on to show at the Biennale. While we didn’t make it to see their work in Venice, we’re super excited that the artists also created work in-situ, and the resulting documentation will be shown at the fair.

3. Candice Breitz

Berlin-based South African artist Candice Breitz will be this year’s featured artist, as part of the art fair’s Special Projects programme. She will be presenting Him+Her, a work made up two video installations. For ‘Her,’ she has extracted clips out of different films made by Meryl Streep over 30 years. In the artwork, the characters played by Streep meet to discuss their needs, fears and desires. ‘Him’ also sees characters engaging in dialogue, however the work is derived from over four decades of Jack Nicholson films.

4. International Short Film Festival Oberhausen

As part of the fair’s focus on experimental film and live performance, there will be a central theatre space that will host a programme of screenings, performance and talks. The Goethe-Institut, a German cultural organisation that has been involved with the fair since its inception, has invited the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen to present a selection of international art films.

5. The Arts & Crafts – Baboink Art Bar

ABSOLUT Vodka has commissioned artist Cameron Platter to create its very first Art Bar installation in South Africa. The bar will investigate “consumption, excess, detritus within a fragmented South African identity and fill the ordinary and marginal with incendiary new meaning.”

The FNB JoburgArtFair runs from 11 to 13 September 2015 at the Sandton Convention Centre. For more information, visit fnbjoburgartfair.co.za. Tickets are available online at Webtickets.

The post FNB JoburgArtFair 2015: 5 Things To Look Forward To appeared first on Visi.

Since 2011, prior to the FNB JoburgArtFair, the participating galleries are invited to nominate one of their artists for the FNB Art Prize. The winning artists get a cash prize of R100 000 and a dedicated space at the art fair to show their work.

This year’s highly respected judges were Senegalese curator Koyo Kouoh and Nigerian curator Bisi Silva – and it was Joburg-based artist Turiya Magadlela’s work that caught their attention.

For the prize, Magadlela presented a series of pieces she began working on in 2013. The work is an ongoing contemplation of the history of imprisoned black South African leaders. Her work utilises a variety of familiar fabrics such as nylon, pantyhose, correctional services sheeting and uniforms. She plays on the associations that are intrinsic to these fabrics. In so doing, she infuses them with meaning, while creating abstract compositions, by stitching, folding and stretching them across wooden frames.

Magadlela matriculated from the National School of Arts before going on to study at the Funda Community College, the University of Johannesburg and the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam.

To see her work, visit the FNB JoburgArtFair from 11 to 13 September 2015 at the Sandton Convention Centre in Joburg. For more information, visit fnbjoburgartfair.co.za.

The post FNB Art Prize 2015 Winner: Turiya Magadlela appeared first on Visi.

Last month saw Joburg’s Sandton Convention Centre filled with art lovers and collectors alike, attending the annual FNB Joburg Art Fair, (read more) which formed part of Art Week Joburg. However, that is not all Joburg has to offer.

During heritage month, from the 24^th to the 28^th of September 2014, the city will see its next art fair taking place in Soweto, the famous historical township, which is home to more than 1.3 million of Johannesburg’s residents.

Organised by Legacy Art Project, this will be the first edition of Soweto Art Week and it promises to feature over 200 art works from emerging and established artists, including well-known names like Zanele Muholi, Alex Flett and Nontsikelelo Veleko. Works will be displayed across five of the most visited venues in Soweto: the Soweto Theatre, Maponya Mall, Mofolo Art Centre, Protea Glen Mall and Funda Art Centre.

For more information, visit sowetoartweek.tumblr.com.

The post Soweto Art Week appeared first on Visi.