 Santiago Parra Untitled, 2020 Acrylic on Canvas 155 x 155cm JD Malat Gallery - Online Exhibition Abstraction and The Natural World 1 April – 8 May 2020 JD Malat Gallery is proud to present the best of its abstract painters in Abstraction and The Natural World. This online exhibition aims to demonstrate the multifaceted nature of painterly abstraction that the gallery programme has to offer. From the ethereal mountainous landscapes by Swiss artist Conrad Jon Godly, to the mesmeric swirling paintings by Californian artist Andy Moses, this online exhibition embraces many dialogues within the history of painting, from nature, landscape and science to abstraction. As such, this online exhibition engages with the theme of the natural world and its influence over abstract painters. In an attempt to underline the wide-ranging influence of nature over abstraction, this exhibition juxtaposes such representational paintings by Conrad Jon Godly with the fluid and expressive paintings by Icelandic artist Katrin Fridriks. Working from memory and using impasto brushwork, Godly explores how his painterly medium evokes the tangibility of rocky Swiss mountains with dynamic gestural brushwork; by comparison, the work of Katrin Fridriks - so profoundly impacted by the landscapes of her native Iceland - reveals how the fluidity of nature’s elements are emulated through splashes of paint. Through this series of contrasting works, Abstraction and The Natural World also highlights the range of responses from artists dealing with the interrelationship between their technical process and the natural world. JD Malat Gallery also hopes to demonstrate the breadth of our artistic programme by presenting brand new works by Colombian artist, Santiago Parra and Japanese artist, Masayoshi Nojo, as well as newly acquired works by Victor Vasarely, Yayoi Kusama and Marlene Dumas. By combining each artist’s unique perspective on their natural surroundings, this online exhibition aims to unveil how artists utilise the infinite variety of natural elements and forms as a wellspring of creative abstraction. JD Malat Gallery specialises in contemporary art and champions a broad spectrum of emerging and international contemporary artists. The programme consists of an array of exciting artists supported by year-round exhibitions and contemporary art fairs. Discover More www.jdmalat.com
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Vilen Künnapu is an architect and an artist, born in Tallinn in 1948. He graduated from the Estonian Academy of Arts in 1971.  Morning in Atlantis, Acrylic on canvas, 120 x 150 cm, 2019  Memories about shaman trip, Acrylic on canvas, 30 x 40cm , 2020  Shaman trip, Acrylic on canvas, 30 x 40 cm, 2020 "I am spending more and more time in the territory of dream. When l am flying with the birds l feel that l am one with everything - trees and bushes, see and islands, birds and animals, stars and sky. Sometime l feel that dream is more real than so called reality. When l am one with the sun everything is absolutely perfect.
I am developing a new style in painting. Experience of Modern art is mixed with the magic." Discover More http://vilenkunnapu.pri.ee/ Carole’s life has been one of interest and curiosity for landscapes, cultures and their different colours and shades around the world. Born in Amman, Jordan in 1965 she has initially been a fond and proud observer of her native Middle Eastern landscapes and architecture, a seemingly immovable still life of mostly natural stone formations and sand colours. The sun, however, provides these colours with a wealth of different tones during daytime, and at night, the moon and stars over the desert offer a sheer endless range of blues and greys. The Jordanian Wadis of Rum or Mujib remain her definition for the beauty of Earth and inspiration for her creativity.  Waves This piece is called Waves and is made of acrylic paint with sand. The size dimensions for this piece is 140cm X 75cm  Sand This piece is called Sand and is made with all different types of materials and acrylic paint
Discover More Instagram - @caroleschilbach_art  "2020, nº7" , mixed media on wood, 100 x 100 cm This new series (collection) of works by the plastic artist Né Barros transports us to his imaginary world of the small, works on mixed media where acrylic, plaster, glue, resin and other materials come together and interconnect like a true alchemy. The artist becomes a chemist. The world of the cell, of the atom, has always fascinated the artist Né Barros, the small cellular world and the great beauty of the images obtained through the microscope led the artist to create his new series of abstract works. His work are in Large format on wooden board.
Layer by Layer Né Barros takes us to worlds of fantasy and imagination, creating a complexity of textures and transparencies. the artist's said “I’m abstract artist looking for new forms, new concepts and aesthetics in the approach of the canvas” . Né Barros chooses 2020,nº7 – mixed media on wood, 100 x 100 cm because it is the culmination of his search for the "little" of what is not seen with the naked eye. Né Barros is an award-winning, born in Almada/Portugal /1964 Discover More www.nebarros.net Viewpoints Gallery Maui is proud to present “Hawai’i Contemporary 2020,” an exhibition by Danielle Nelisse, on display from 27 February 2020 to 16 April 2020 in Makawao, Maui, Hawaii.  Danielle Nelisse, Bamboo Passage, 2020, Oil on canvas, 92cm x 92cm “Bamboo Passage” presents a new series of work inspired by Hawaiian landscapes. In the past, Nelisse's abstractions drew inspiration from the colorful streets of Havana, Italian graffiti of Rome, and holiday escapes to tropical Puerto Vallarta. But now the vibrant colors, graphic lines, and texture displayed in her artwork are in sync with the Hawaiian islands in the Pacific Ocean.
Danielle Nelisse was born in Michigan, USA and graduated with a Bachelor’s of Arts and a Juris Doctorate in law. As a law student Nelisse studied abroad in Europe. Even though one of her law professors was US Supreme Court Justice Scalia, every moment she could, she spent in a European art museum studying art masterpieces. In addition to exhibiting internationally, Nelisse's artwork has been exhibited by Fortune 500 companies and is sold as wallpaper and murals by two companies in the United Kingdom. The University of Melbourne and University of Western Australia also obtained three of Nelisse's artworks for their permanent collection and to promote academic research. Most recently, her artwork is exhibited by the US Embassy in Bahrain and at the Schaefer International Gallery in Maui, Hawaii. Discover More www.daniellenelisse.com  JD Malat Gallery is proud to announce our group show of 2020, The Contemporary Human Condition. Wednesday, 19 February 2020 to Saturday, 28 March 2020 The title of the group show, The Contemporary Human Condition, presents the best of JD Malat Gallery’s international artists who engage with the theme of contemporary life. This exhibition attempts to underline the importance of international dialogue focussing in particular on the artistic response to changing global conditions, political events and the impact of contemporary life on the individual. In an attempt to tackle this series of complex connections, the exhibition is framed by the question; how does this selection of artists explore and express the many facets of the contemporary human condition? To answer this question, this exhibition responds to themes of conflict and escapism by juxtaposing such politically charged portraits of world leaders by Chinese artist Li Tianbing with the atmospheric and ethereal landscapes of Swiss artist Conrad Jon Godly. The Contemporary Human Condition highlights the range of responses from artists dealing with the complexities of contemporary life. Li Tianbing and Zümrütoğlu draw upon their personal experiences to reveal the profound impact of global political issues and conflict. Li Tianbing’s work is framed by post- socialist issues in China which have led to a number of protests and ideological confrontations by attempting to capture the transient nature of conflict between contrasting groups in society. Moreover, Turkish artist Zümrütoğlu alerts us to the baseness of the human condition through a powerful and highly expressive display of work. Similarly, the effects of the relationship between the individual and the urban environment are explored through the work of British realist painter Darren Reid as well as Irish figurative artist Ian Cumberland. Their focus on isolation brings forth an assessment of the psychological state of loneliness; a condition touched upon in the dreamlike paintings of Henrik Uldalen. Together, these artists reveal how this series of figurative work can present a more contemplative look at one’s surroundings.  Ian Cumberland - This place we call home, 2019, oil on linen, 110 x 140cm Colombian artist Santiago Parra, Icelandic artist Katrin Fridriks and American artist Andy Moses bring explosive and colourful works to the space. Collectively, they provide the viewer with natural and expressive forms, illustrating how art can alleviate the afflictions of contemporary society. As artists who undertake meditative approaches to their medium and subjects, Parra, Fridriks and Moses reveal how art can be a creative and meditative force, both for the viewer and the artist.
By combining each artist’s unique perspective on the contemporary human condition, this exhibition aims to unveil the artists’ mutual ambition to engage with the pressures of contemporary life through the creative process. In so doing, this exhibition hopes to strengthen the dialogue between international artists and make evident the connective and encompassing force of art. JD Malat Gallery specialises in contemporary art and champions a broad spectrum of emerging and international contemporary artists. The programme consists of an array of exciting artists supported by year-round exhibitions and contemporary art fairs. Discover More www.jdmalat.com JD Malat Gallery is proud to present ‘Under the Moonlight’, the first solo exhibition by Japanese artist Masayoshi Nojo, on display from 16 January 2020 until 15 February 2020.  Masayoshi Nojo, Mirage#48, 2019, Cotton on panel, acrylic, silver foil, aluminium foil, 250cm x 600cm ‘Under the Moonlight’ presents a new series of work entitled “Mirage”. Inspired by natural phenomena and Japanese landscapes, Nojo fuses contemporary visual languages with Japanese aesthetics to explore the themes of memory and the passage of time. His use of silver foils on top of a marbled acrylic base creates an array of dark and reflective passages, deeply resonating with the atmospheric mirage one may feel when under moonlight.
Nojo’s new series is highly motivated by the relationship between light and dark in natural scenery. The multi-layered images with both dark and light shimmering passages present an array of grayscale tones in constant flux, allowing the viewer to traverse the complexity of the surfaces and be transported to a landscape in the distant memory of the viewer. Born in 1989 in Kanagawa, Japan, Masayoshi Nojo completed his MA in Japanese Paintings in 2015 from the Kyoto University of Art and Design. Rooted in Japanese art history, Nojo’s use of silver is reminiscent of Ogata Kōrin’s celebrated work during the Edo Period in seventeenth-century Japan. Drawing upon contemporary methods of creation and traditions in Japanese art and culture, ‘Under the Moonlight’ explores themes of memory and time. ‘Under the Moonlight’ is Nojo’s first solo show outside of Japan. Nojo has shown in many galleries in Japan, such as Tokyo Arts Gallery, Tokyo and the Gallery Art Composition, Tokyo. The widespread acknowledgement and admiration of his work has been marked by his awards, most notably the Grand Prize, Tadasu no Mori Dessin Contest (2009) and the Grand Prize Turner Award (2013). JD Malat Gallery in conversation with Masayoshi Nojo JD Malat Gallery: What is this exhibition about? Masayoshi Nojo: This exhibition shows, “Mirage”, a unique series of works inspired by natural phenomena and Japanese art. In this series I explore the relationship between the perception of time and memory and visualise such themes through disassembling and reconstructing my photographs with metal foils on panels. This way, the photographs, affected by both light and space transform into forms of faint existence, abstracting the factuality of photography. The viewer can feel immersed in this scenery in the grand-scale works, most notably in Mirage#48, my main piece which measures 250cm by 600cm. The stillness and silence evoked in each work may generate an eerie feeling of loneliness. Like the relationship between light and shadow, I hope viewers find beauty in such feelings, beauty found under the moonlight. JD: How is this different from what you have done in the past? MN: I majored in Japanese painting at Kyoto University of Art and Design. It was a very meaningful period of my study as I became familiar with Japanese culture and its tradition in Kyoto. However, I began to feel that what I wanted to express was a little different from what I had learned there. During my studies, I started to become interested in contemporary art, which was completely different from the art world I knew. I visited galleries, museums and art fairs in London and Hong Kong as a student. It was an exciting and unforgettable experience which contributed to the current style of my work which fuses contemporary Western artistic techniques and Japanese cultural references. JD: Can you go through your technique in detail? MN: The method I use is unique, informed by academic methods and a combination of contemporary visual languages with Japanese aesthetics. When I create new works, I start by imagining the complete vision of the work. I then work towards this vision through thinking about the materials and methods that are required for the work. The artworks in “Mirage” are predominantly made of silver and aluminium foils. First, I create a layer of marbled acrylic paint on the panel. Secondly, I reconstruct my photographs and imprint them onto the base layer through silk-screen printing. The overall effect creates multi-layered depth on the screen. I came up with this process following my interest in traditional techniques used for creating patterns and design on kimono. Through my process, a range of grayscale and multiple forms expand across the screen, resulting in “mirage”, a phenomenon in which areas of photographic realism and flat reflective surfaces coexist. JD: How would you situate your work in the history of art? Both Asian art and Contemporary art in general. MN: This is a challenging question as it would take a long time to situate my works in the history of art. I believe my work presents a connection between the Japanese and Asian context of art and its trend, with a wider contemporary scene. JD: What and who are your main influences? Artistic or otherwise? MN: The Japanese environment and its culture resonate deeply with my current works and is often the starting point of my creation. I incorporate elements influenced by the environment to some extent. I have been influenced by many artists. For example, Olafur Eliasson, Rudolf Stingel, Anselm Kiefer, Michael Borremans, Hiroshi Sugimoto, and On Kawara. JD: How do you feel about exhibiting here in London at JD Malat Gallery? MN: I feel very honoured to have a solo exhibition. This is my second time visiting London. I first came here as an art student six years ago. But this time, I am happy to come back to London as an artist. This exhibition is the biggest one I’ve ever had and will be an important milestone in my career. JD: Your work is very focused on time and memory. Can you elaborate more on this? MN: As a series influenced by natural phenomena, the images can change depending on the environment, lighting and weather. For instance, the images on the screen can vary from morning to night and rainy to sunny days. It means that the artwork is under the influence of time passage as we all are, making the time specificity of each image blurred. Viewers can project their memory of nature unconsciously onto the image as their eyes wander across the screen. JD: Does silver hold a particular significance as a colour for you? It is by far the most predominant colour in your work. MN: The images on the screen are all made of foils. For me, these are not “colours” but “shadows”. Light and shadow are like two sides of a coin, their relationship is inseparable. Sometimes that “shadow” accentuates the presence of the work, but other times its presence can be more ghostly. JD: Can you discuss the absence of colour in your works? MN: As the marbling of acrylic and creation of grayscale imagery is inspired by sceneries only I’ve ever seen, the marbling on the panel represents the ambiguity of memories and our unsettling mind. Grayscale and absence of colour serves a complimentary role for the viewer’s immersive experience. The absence of colour and varying tones of the grayscale emphasise the relationship between light and dark as well as the ambiguity of time in each piece, allowing the viewer to contemplate the passage of time and reflect on their memories of different landscapes. JD: Do your landscapes reflect anything about Japanese culture? MN: The atmosphere emulated by my works evoke the idea of “wabi-sabi”, a view in Japanese aesthetics centred on the acceptance and beauty of transience and imperfection of form. Nothing in this world is permanent. Therefore, the appreciation of impermanence and change is reflected in my materials and process. JD: Your landscapes appear idyllic. Is this your desired interpretation? MN: Many people find beauty in my artwork, but some people may feel scared of the silence evoked by the absence of people, flowers and other living creatures in my pieces. I would be delighted if viewers discover this duality in my artwork. JD: What can we learn from this exhibition? MN: I hope that my series “Mirage” embodies and evokes the shifting moods one may feel when under the moonlight. By immersing oneself in the shifting tones of my grayscale and shimmering pieces, I hope that one can also explore the ambiguity of time and memory while being simultaneously transported to these mysterious landscapes. Discover More www.jdmalat.com Acts at the Crossroads by internationally acclaimed, Nigerian-born artist, Otobong Nkanga11/29/2019 Video credit: Zeitz MOCAA ZEITZ MOCAA PRESENTS FIRST MUSEUM SOLO EXHIBITION IN AFRICA BY ACCLAIMED NIGERIAN-BORN ARTIST OTOBONG NKAANGA Thursday 21 November 2019, Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MOCAA) opens an exhibition titled Act at the Crossroads by internationally acclaimed, Nigerian-born artist, Otobong Nkanga. Nkanga has been the recipient of numerous awards, most recently the inaugural Lise Wilhelmsen Art Award (2019) from the Norwegian Henie Onstad Art Centre, and the Sharjah Art Foundation Prize (2019) in the United Arab Emirates. Acts at the Crossroads is a significant survey exhibition, and the first museum exhibition on the African continent of the artist’s work. It includes works from the last two decades - a multidisciplinary practice that considers humanity’s connection to the environment in complex ways. Rather than present us with an instructive method of documentation and observation, Nkanga grounds her work in a familiarity of encounter between viewer, artist, and object and asks us to consider the earth as an extension of the physical human body, to understand that it too is undeniably alive. “Exploring environmental damage and the politics of land, her practice becomes a conduit, a voice for these raw, organic materials. Acts of labour, mining, commodification and trade have an impact on the earth that is also mirrored in the ways we treat the body,” says Curatorial Assistant, Precious Mhone. Acts at the Crossroads explores a host of potential outcomes that present themselves at points of convergence. An agreement or understanding between two parties, a merger of ideas, thoughts, belief systems, cultures, histories and narratives. Connections become created, bonds are formed and solidified or broken. Differing ideologies are confronted, things are torn apart or brought together. The exhibition invites viewers to connect with themselves and each other at these points of awareness and reflexivity, through a range of media including drawing, painting, photography and video works, geological matter and decayed minerals. “I thought it was interesting to be able to think about these ideas, especially in South Africa, which for me has been a kind of crossroads. Or the acts or pacts that have been very much related to land and landscape,” explains Nkanga. “So, when I was really thinking about the title, I wanted to allude to entering into the realm of matter and material and its effect on different groups of people.” “I am thrilled – and honoured – to host Otobang at our museum. I have known and worked closely with her for many years and celebrated her success each step of the way, says Zeitz MOCAA Executive Director and Chief Curator Koyo Kouoh. “Her far-reaching practice echoes a globalisation that suggests we bear a true and honest connection with each other that transcends the notion of borders and emphasises the shared human condition. She gives voice to a need to reconnect and rethink our relationship to the earth, both personally and globally – a message that is never more pertinent than right now.” Nkanga’s most recent solo exhibitions include From Where I Stand at Tate St. Ives (2019), A Lapse, a Stain, a Fall at ar/ge kunst, Bolzano (2018), and To Dig a Hole that Collapses Again at MCA Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (2018). Exhibition name: Acts at the Crossroads Exhibiting artist: Otobong Nkanga Venue: Level 2, Zeitz MOCAA, Silo District, V&A Waterfront Run dates: 21 November 2019 – 23 February 2020 Exhibition curator: Koyo Kouoh, Precious Mhone  Image credit: Anel Wessels A conversation betwwen Otobong Nkanga and Precious Mhone Precious Mhone – Curatorial Assistant, Zeitz MOCAA (PM): I’d like to start by talking about the title of the exhibition, Acts at a Crossroads. A crossroads, an intersection of two or more roads. A lot of connotations come to mind as well when thinking of crossroads. I think of gestures of action, being active physically, mentally or verbally. Otobong Nkanga – Artist (ON): I thought it was interesting to be able to think about these ideas, especially in South Africa, which for me has been a kind of crossroads. Thinking of the pacts and acts that have happened here, with or without a certain group of people. Or the acts or pacts that have been very much related to land and landscape. So, when I was really thinking about the title, I wanted to allude to entering into the realm of matter and material and its effect on different groups of people. PM: Then you also think of the mythology of crossroads and this idea of meeting a spirit, a figure, something or someone ancestral. Being part of something other than yourself and giving yourself over to that. ON: [Laughter] Yeah, like making a pact. Sometimes, or most times, those acts that happen at the crossroads are intimate experiences that don’t involve other people, they involve you and the other entity. So, I was thinking it could be interesting to think about a space where many things meet, but it’s not a fusion yet, it’s just a place where... PM: ... they can come together but not necessarily be symbiotic... ON: Not necessarily. It’s almost like you are entering into a realm of the spiritual world and of giving your soul, but you know that certain parties have given something away and something which belongs to them has been taken away from them and they are not part of the pact, they are just around it. They’re almost like the landscape, which is dug out, which is used, which is extracted in many ways. So, I think it was a title that could have very subtle ways of being read, but has a very strong relationship to acts that have happened within a certain space. But, I mean, you can go in many directions. And that’s why I didn’t chose pacts, cause when we talk about pacts... PM: ... it seems so finite and mutually agreeable... ON: Yes, and acts enter into the kind of gestures of the performative... act one, act two. There’s a kind of systematic structure which leads you into the next space or way of thinking. That’s why I thought it could be interesting to use acts instead of pacts. It still works to bring you to places, take you on a journey. I remember when I was discussing it with Koyo [Kouoh, Zeitz MOCAA Chief Curator and Executive Director], she preferred pacts, but I decided on acts instead and it’s because it brings you to think of pacts without me explicitly having to say it. PM: I think it’s natural that when one thinks of a crossroad, you think you have to make a decision, to go left or right, this idea of opposites in a sense or this tension between... ON: ... right, wrong, forward, back... PM: Exactly. This idea of being conscious or present, you can’t just observe, you have to participate, even if it is involuntarily. ON: You’re still participating even though you don’t have a say, but you’re participating because in a way you’re involved, the consequences of those acts touch you. So that’s the idea around the title and it has a great way of being about to touch on different works in the exhibition. PM: I was thinking about that today, after we went over the exhibition floor plan and the narrative it creates. This idea of stitching things together or destroying things to make something new. This violent act that takes place in order to create a union. It’s beautiful, but its violent, certain things shouldn’t be together but you force them to be. ON: You can look at various works from Double Plot (2018) or you can look at Taste of a Stone (2010). PM: Yes, you bind them. I was thinking about that earlier and how bodies, people in the same way are bound by histories. ON: Landscapes, borders, different groups of people are forced together within one boundary. So, the earlier works that I did were really looking at that. We can also see it in the video Surgical Hits – The Needle (2003), where the needle is trying to puncture the body. And that’s why we have this very complex grappling with the ways in which perceptions are understood. Depending on perspective, one group of people can believe that their intention is to create something with another group of people. Seeing it as though they are putting things together and making something good, meanwhile the other group feels as though it is being punctured. And yet you don’t realise that that needle - that bond - is also the thing that is destroying everything, and you don’t necessarily want to have it on your body but it’s going through you. It’s cutting you, it’s making you bleed and it’s forcing you to enter into a kind of coalition with another, which you didn’t ask for. But now your paths and your histories are interwoven. So, it was interesting really thinking about the work in that way. PM: Do you feel as though you are speaking to yourself? To your audience? Reflecting maybe on how the world moves through you or how you move through the world? ON: I feel that it’s more or less a reflection, let’s say a vision, sometimes of something that becomes discernable within the exhibition space and then it’s translated into a work. Maybe to render that a bit more obvious through a visual material, through sounds, through performances and things like that. Because I feel like within an African context, there are all kinds of partial fragmented histories, many things we are not aware of. I find that interesting in the context of food, for example. If you consider many places and its people, Nigeria as an example, there’s always been a direct relationship to the plants, to the material that’s there and the food that they eat. But over time, you start seeing national dishes that are not endemic to that place. So, what happened to the plants and materials that you could eat that are endemic to it? Then you realise that those stories are forgotten and lost somewhere along the line. So, for me, it’s always interesting to try and understand and excavate different histories. It’s not only that but to find ways that one can work with it in the present and think through it for the future. PM: Speaking about the textile work Kolanut Tales – Dismembered (2010) and specifically about the performance Contained Measures of a Kolanut (2012), can you elaborate on how you use food as a way of investigating fragmented history? ON: Maybe it’s good to have the picture in front of me. The work Contained Measures of a Kolanut was first conceived in 2012. A lot of my research investigated tropical plants, what they symbolise, their economical values and how certain plants become so banalised or so normal, entering into the stock market, while some resist. So, kola nut was one of those that had for me a very strange way of resisting and not resisting. In Nigeria we use it a lot in different ways, from the spiritual, to ceremonies and connecting with people, the spirits and different ancestors. I also discovered when doing the research that a lot of the people that were taken out of West Africa would take the kola nut with them, carrying it in their hair, and that is how it arrived in Southern America and also the United States. When eaten, kola nut gives you energy, but at the same time also cuts your appetite and cuts your thirst. So, for me it was interesting to understand the notion of energy and what it meant in times of industrialisation and in times of slavery. Coca from South America and kola nut from Africa became ingredients in early Coca-Cola. The combination between these two energy giving plants enters back into our palate, into our memories. So, we drink Coca-Cola and it’s already engraved somewhere in our DNA and we’re connected to those plants, which connects us to our ancestries and all that. PM: One thing I feel about your work is this idea of taking something as an object but imbuing it with a human quality or a physical, bodily quality and this idea of seeing something and having a personal relationship to it, but also understanding the larger, global context. OM: I think it’s really interesting to work with local materials as with this installation of Taste of a Stone. Materials that people are familiar with, but don’t see in a certain kind of constellation together. So even during this Cape Town visit, going to the botanical gardens, having a sense of the atmosphere – the air, the fog, the wind, the trees, the colours, the tones – these are things that should resonate in the installation’s aesthetic. In its form but also in relation to its history, to local people, to people that have come in here and also out of the space because it’s important that it doesn’t stay claustrophobic or incestuous, let’s say, and to have a resonance to other parts of the world. But most times, a Taste of a Stone is seen as a place of contemplation, where different worlds meet and where it calms you down and it allows you to think, if you give it that space and that time. PM: I think what makes your work so interesting for the space is the way you’re aware of all these different elements that come together. Even the way we’re moving through the exhibition space, we have a starting point and an ending point, there is a connectedness. What is the importance of creating connection in your work? ON: They have to weave together, one way or the other. They have to find a way of resonating. So even the way I’m thinking of the wall drawing for the exhibition has to connect the space before and the space after. So, it’s almost like the tunnel or the area in which your brain is being recalibrated. So, I had to think of recalibration in certain spaces and other spaces that will be bodily immersive and other spaces that will make the brain work. I have to think of the whole exhibition as different parts of the body, that are being subtly and sometimes maybe more aggressively brought in to the space. A lot of times we make separations, we’ve learned to enter into a place of thinking of things in a separate way. Say nature or culture and we’re so distant from it. But if we look at it where exactly or close to all the components that we find in our surroundings and so how do we separate that? Even our bones are made of calcium, you see, we have iron, we have water. We’re all of that. And then we completely separate from the landscape that we’re working in and I think that’s one of the most dangerous points of how we treat the landscape. Because if we have a child we try to protect them, if we have a family we try to protect them. We’re born to protect those that we give birth to. But we seem to have distanced ourselves [from the land] because we have science and this and that...which takes you away from an intuitive way of feeling and doing. So, I think that is the core to be able to change and to be able to think of climate disasters, a fundamental shift in a way of thinking. So even if we say let’s stop doing this or stop doing that, it’s not that. It’s more about understanding that we should be in sync with the earth, so that if you do something you have to appease it, not just destroy it. PM: When you’re thirsty you have to drink water. When you’ve injured yourself you must rest. Being an extension of the very space that we embody or occupy and knowing that you’re connected to it. ON: I hope that the work is able to open up these kinds of spaces of thinking or understanding or at least trigger a part of that in a way. I hope. Discover More https://zeitzmocaa.museum/  THE GAME
13 November — 12 December Personal exhibition of Anna Miheeva Truth is a process, not a one-time act of comprehending an object immediately in its entirety. Truth is one, but it distinguishes the objective, absolute and relative aspects that can be considered as relatively independent truths. Objective truth is a content of knowledge that does not depend on a person or on humanity. Absolute truth is an exhaustive reliable knowledge of nature, man and society; knowledge that can never be refuted. Relative truth is incomplete, inaccurate knowledge, corresponding to a certain level of development of society, which determines the ways of obtaining this knowledge; this knowledge, depending on certain conditions, place and time of its receipt. The difference between absolute and relative truths (or absolute and relative in objective truth) in the degree of accuracy and completeness of reflection of reality. Truth is always concrete, it is always associated with a particular place, time and circumstances. Not everything in our life can be assessed in terms of truth or error (lies). Sometimes this is a game … What is your step? And for what? Location: 3, Tverskaya street, Moscow, Russia, 125 009 The building of The Ritz-Carlton, Moscow hotel, -2 level Cube is located on the -2nd level of the building of The Ritz-Carlton, Moscow hotel, you could get to us: through the hotel’s parking and take the elevators up, or through the hotel’s lobby and take the parking elevators down, as well as through the street entrance from the Ermolova Theater side and take the elevator to the -2 floor from there.  Isaac Julien_Papillon, No 2, Fontome Creloe Series B Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MOCAA) has revealed the details of an exciting new exhibition, presenting works from its collection in a new and reimagined format.
The Zeitz MOCAA Collection houses a unique and extensive body of works by some of the continent and its diaspora’s most exciting established and emerging artists. The exhibition, which includes a selection of these works, will open on 7 November 2019, taking up all gallery spaces on Level 4. This forms part of a recent reimagining of the museum’s galleries and spatial organisation, with exhibitions in this space changing annually. Titled Two Together, the show is built around major themes explored by artists from Africa and its diaspora represented in the collection, and each gallery contains a pair: either two objects, or multiple works by two artists, or two major themes – either in dialogue, as counterpoints or in complementary ways. As couples do, in comedic duos or in romance, the exhibition embrace a rigorous engagement between objects and ideas. “We wanted to explore what happens when two things come together,” explained Senior Curator, Storm Janse van Rensburg. “Two photographers can subvert a gaze, while probing issues around representation, presence, omission, authorship and voyeurism. Speaking from contrasting geopolitical vantage points, two can highlight the perpetual and impeding undertone of violence still manifesting in present-day psyche. The numerous lines between collective memory, imagination and folklore are blurred when two artists use material to make visible intangible heritage.” The exhibition includes a diptych by Isaac Julien, as well as pairings of and conversations between works by Zanele Muholi and Mouna Karray; Njideka Akunyili Crosby and Joël Andrianomearisoa; Nicholas Hlobo and Taiye Idahor; Sethembile Msezane and Glenn Ligon; Leonce Raphael Agbodjélou and Athi-Patra Ruga, as well as Mishack Masamvu and Lungiswa Gqunta. “This exhibition presents works from the Zeitz MOCAA Collection in a new way. Whilst some works will be familiar to regular visitors to the museum, the curation of the exhibition allows them all to be experienced anew,” explains Koyo Kouoh, Executive Director and Chief Curator at Zeitz MOCAA. “It feels like a fresh and exciting way to relook at our permanent collection. The goal of the museum has always been to build a cohesive collection that is as representative as possible of Africa and the diaspora, with strong political, social, environmental and personal messaging. This is demonstrated in this exhibition,” she adds. Exhibition title: Two Together On view: 7 November 2019 – 25 October 2020 Venue: Level 4, Collections Galleries Curators: Storm Janse Van Resnburg, Tandazani Dhlakama, Sakhi Gcina, Tammy Langtry, Precious Mhone Discover More www.zeitzmocaa.museum |
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