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A work by Goodness Nhlengethwa
Another by Pat Sithole
The organisers (main culprit is Ross Douglas) of the Joburg Art Fair have kept us hanging this year. They delayed their fabulous fair by 6 months, and we’ve had to wait not so patiently. But it’s almost September, and it’s almost time to be treated to a wonderful collection of art, and galleries in one single space – the Sandton Convention Centre. This year the fair has been rebranded the FNB Joburg Art Fair to acknowledge its main sponsor.
FNB will launch its art prize this year, the FNB Art Prize. The finalists have already been selected. They are Athi-Patri Ruga, Cedric Nunn and Nirveda Alleck. And the winner will be announced at the opening night of the fair on the 22 September, and will win the nice little prize of R100 000 in cash.
Over the weekend 23 – 25 September, there will be talks, special projects and lots of fun.
The 23 galleries which will be showcasing work by their artists were selected to “present contemporary African art as it exists locally, on the continent and in the rest of the world”, the fair’s press release states. Besides what will be a carefully curated and selected representation of the best of our art world, another highlight for me will be the special guest speaker from London. The director of the Tate Modern will be delivering the key note address, “Audiences: How much do we really care.”
There is much much more on the programme. Check out www.fnbjoburgartfair.co.za
I am gushing, I know, but it’s truly an event not to be missed.
Yesterday my 8-year-old moaned how she has got so fat. Really I said. That’s nonsense.
She’s grown – her school uniform is getting a bit small. But she’s not fat. And anyway what is fat? I asked her. Being small, bigger or biggest is relative and the only time to worry about being big is if you’re unhealthily large, when it affects your health, when you’re eating very badly and watching TV all day long. There’s a difference to being big and to being unhealthy. There is also one’s natural body size to consider. Some of us are heavier than others.
What upset me is where and she gets these ideas. Not difficult really. Everywhere. It’s blatantly forced upon young girls. Take, for instance, a new book soon to be released in the US.
“Maggie Goes on a Diet” is aimed at ages 6 and up. On the cover is an image of a plus size 14-year-old girl looking at an image of a slimmer version of herself in a mirror.
The book tells the story of how she is teased for her size, goes on a diet and is transformed into a popular soccer star.
The book, yet to be published, has caused an outrage. Critics say that it will “trigger eating disorders in young readers.” Self-published by Paul M. Kramer, he explained in his defense that Maggie just wants to look better. He says, as quoted on Salon.com, that Maggie “does want to feel better and she does not want to be teased.”
His intention seems honorable. He wants to promote healthy eating habits. But the problem seems to be with its packaging, with its storyline, actually with everything. The cover uses the loaded word “diet” in its headline. The picture of Maggie is pitiful. She’s holding up a tiny dress wanting to be smaller. She’s teased at school for being “fat” – fat-shaming is a horrid thing.
I hope my child doesn’t come across this book. Healthy habits can be taught in a far less-loaded way. No need to baggage children with more reasons to feel insecure.
* Is Maggie just an innocent version of Kung Fu Panda? What do you think?
The world’s favourite top model is a married woman. Her stylish celebrity wedding got drowned out by that other large affair in Monaco. Here is a photo of Kate with her man, Jamie Hince on one of their big days this weekend. She’s wearing a Galliano dress. Apparently the wedding was a three-day bash, in true Kate style.
Jim Morrison has been dead 40 years today. In his short life he made an impression on so many…And my young rebellious self.
In 1967 he told Time magazine, “I’m interested in anything about revolt, disorder, chaos, especially activity that has no meaning. It seems to me to be the road to freedom.”
Here’s a sweet reminder of the man:
credit: Alon Skuy
Here’s the full transcript of Michelle’s Obama’s speech which she delivered this morning at the Regina Mundi Church in Soweto. It was moving, inspiring and perfectly delivered:
MRS. OBAMA: Thank you. Thank you so much. It is such a pleasure and an honor to be here with all of you today.
I want to start by thanking Graca Machel for that just gracious, kind introduction. It is overwhelming. And I want to thank her for her lifetime of service as a champion for women and children. And from the bottom of my heart, I want to thank you for all of the kindness and generosity that you have shown my family for our visit here. Thank you so much. (Applause.)
I am also honored to share the stage with another remarkable leader, Baleka Mbete. (Applause.) She has played a vital role in advancing equality and promoting development here in South Africa. Thank you to the both of you for joining us here for sharing this moment with all of us.
I also want to thank the Archbishop of Johannesburg for honoring us today with his presence.
And of course, I want to recognize our guests of honor –- these 76 extraordinary young women leaders from here in South Africa and across the continent. (Applause.)
These are young women transforming their communities and their countries, and let me tell you I am so impressed by all of them. I am so proud of everything they have achieved. Read More…
I watched, last week, Sara Blecher’s documentary Surfing Soweto, a story of three young men who surf trains. This is a dangerous, but thrilling pastime for these men who’ve got no work, no prospects and little to do. Blecher offers various reasons why these men surf trains, and risk their lives. One important reason is that they are fatherless, they don’t have role models. This and other social and economic circumstances, have left the men disrespectuful of life. For this reason, the film suggests, they have turned to drink, drugs, and dangerous activities.
They are good at train surfing, the footage of their surfing is exciting, and earns them not a small degree of respect and sex appeal. But, too often young men senselessly die under a high voltage cable. And Blecher shows us a family, a devasted mother, in mourning, while at the funerals we see youths dance and celebrate their fallen heroes.
In contrast to this film about these fatherless men and their dangerous lives, Karin Slater’s beautiful and gentle film, An Intersection, is a tribute to a man, and his wife (both HIV positive), who wants to have a baby despite the circumstances and the prejudices they face. In an interview with the father, he opens the film with, “There are a lot of fathers out there, but few daddies.” Slater tells the story with gentleness and apparently little intervention of a family and especially of a father.
We meet the couple just before the birth of the baby, follow them to hospital and back all the while we’re drawn into their intimate world, and into the father’s desire to be a parent again after the tragic loss of his first wife and a young child.
Watch the films. The next screening of An Intersecton is at the Encounters Documentary Festival in Johannesburg on Tuesday 21 June. I am not sure when Surfing Soweto will be screened next in South Africa. But tonight it is showing in Tarifa, Spain.
Recently I read Michael Lind’s piece, Everything You’ve Heard About Fossil Fuels May Be Wrong, on Salon.com and felt soothed and reassured that my children’s futures will be secure, warm and hopeful. He writes about fracking and issues around solar and wind power. Ultimately he says there is enough natural gas and hydrate gas to last for a thousand years to come. And that we should go ahead and frack because it’s no less dirty than solar and wind power is. But I was sceptical about his optimism, and asked environmental consultant, Crispian Olver, to read and comment on the piece. Here is his response:
(Michael Lind’s) views are highly one sided, and his statements about climate change put him in the denialist camp. The estimates he gives about fracking and methane hydrates are highly speculative, since no one is tapping these resources in any real quantities, and they are fraught with their own environmental problems. Most importantly, methane is one of the most potent green house gases that we know of, and the impact of continued fossil fuel use on climate change will be massive. Lastly his comments about renewables quote selective facts to build an anti-renewables case. I would be interested to know who is funding this guy.
Artist Francois Cadiere has designed these wonderful interpretations for fashion house Louis Vuitton for new textile accessories. The photographer and master of handmade collages made these beautiful, quirky images to suggest ways of wearing the designs. Nevermind the clothes, accessories… aren’t these gorgeous images?
PS: Louis Vuitton today launched a website to inspire young people to get involved with contemporary art.
On that grubby, noisy Jan Smuts Avenue hang some of the most beautiful, ephemeral works I’ve seen in a long while. Ross’ most recent works are currently displayed at David Krut Projects. I popped in very briefly on Thursday evening for the opening, before the crowds arrived. But I was there for long enough to be impressed by the artist’s new body of abstract works. The works are presented as an installation with works mirroring each other along two walls of the gallery. Each work is beautiful in itself, but is best understood when seen as a mirror of the work on the opposite wall. The works illustrate Ross’ interest, in her own words, “in the momentary and the transient, impermanence and ambiguity… the experience of life itself.”
Speaking about the title of the show Ross says that “1:1 is an intimate conversation that originated from me confronting myself and the themes of intimacy and privacy. The entire exhibition is like a giant Rorschach test which is a mirror to the unconscious to the self.”
See David Krut Projects for more about Ross and her work. Below is one of the works Blue Madonna.
The exhibition runs until 2 July 2011.
I’ve just read some drivel with pictures to illustrate how,horror of horrors, drinking and smoking have spoilt and lined Kate Moss’ beautiful face. Tracking her ageing from when she was first spotted at Heathrow airport and from the time of this shoot for a bridal magazine (pic below) to now when the writer says she looks like a 47-year old woman, her hard partying is blamed. When in fact now she looks like a stylish woman, twenty years later, who has had a busy life including a few parties. Nothing wrong with that.
PS: If you missed the news, Kate will be marrying her long-term boyfriend, Jamie Hince on July 2. Mario Testino who knows how to capture a woman to perfection will be photographing the day. This after his recent assignment to photograph the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s wedding. According to the Telegraph he told the iPad newspaper The Daily, how he hopes to: “capture the happiness that Kate is going through at the moment.” This picture below is from the bridal shoot she did when she was 17. We know that she won’t be looking quite as smooth-skinned and ethereal as she did then. But whatever she chooses to wear, she’ll look her stylish, elegant, and funky self.
