The RMB Latitudes Art Fair in Mountain View is presenting three special projects exploring co-emergence, the intersection of cultural and aesthetic influences on the creation and interpretation of art from across Africa. These projects include INDEX, an exhibition that brings together an array of independent artistic practises from South Africa, the African region, and the diaspora; ESSAY, an exhibition that showcases a cross-generational dialogue through the works of three artists (Sam Nhlengethwa, Katlego Tlabela, and Cinthia Mulanga); and the International Galleries Platform, a sustainable means for galleries and artists on the continent and in the diaspora to showcase in South Africa.
Pencilled to run from Friday, 26 until Sunday, 28 May 2023, at Shepstone Gardens near Houghton, the RMB Latitudes Art Fair features about 40 galleries and 250 artists, who have all brought their art to Johannesburg from across the seas.
Latitudes Curator, Nkhensani Mkhari says this year’s exhibition is divided into three themes: Reflections, Rest, and Dream.
Reflections explores figuration and portraiture, while unpacking the strange landscape of the human body.
Rest explores the dialectic between space and rest. Dream is devoted to contemporary painting ranging from abstract expressionism to landscape, neo-expressionist, and various other styles.
Mkhari says co-emergence refers to the blending of traditional and contemporary art forms, the incorporation of elements from different ethnic and regional cultures within Africa, and the impact of global perspectives and influences on African art.
“On a retinal level, some of these works depicting interior settings may seem aspirational, on another level, each painting, collage, and drawing can be seen as an investigation of the inefficiencies in our existing constructed and natural settings, as well as the relationships that people of colour have with them,” he explains.
Mkhari says each artist’s work can be seen as a journalistic expression of their own becoming, their personal histories, dreams, and nightmares projected onto paper and canvas.
“These works pivot into a critical multivalent dialogue on representation while simultaneously institutionalising black portraiture, which has been making waves over the past couple of years.”
Access to the exhibition allows visitors to explore the fair unaided while exploring all three acres of Shepstone Gardens, a majestic venue patched atop the hill behind Houghton, and to treat themselves to an incredible food and wine experience.
Organisers say the RMB Latitudes Art Fair is for the whole family, as children under 12 will be afforded a platform to unleash their creativity with the many activities planned in the RMB Young Artists’ Playground.
There is no parking at Shepstone Gardens. Visitors are urged to use the fair’s park and ride system at the Old Edwardian Society in Houghton, from where transport will ferry participants to and from the event.
Written by Lesego Montso
26/05/2023