Recoding the canon: Towards greater representivity in South African art galleries

Creating/Curating Cultural Capital: Monuments and Museums for Post-Apartheid South Africa

“…Perhaps stimulated by the work of artists who critiqued apartheid oppression, art galleries led the way in revising museum culture, as some enlightened curators started shifting the focus of collections, and mounted exhibitions that began to redress the omissions of South African art history from the 1980s. 3 A notable example was The Neglected Tradition at the Johannesburg Art Gallery in 1988, when Director Christopher Till sought the services of an independent curator Steven Sack, whose experience in non-government initiatives, particularly the African Institute of Art at Funda in Soweto, gave him the knowledge and insight to undertake a large survey exhibition of the work of black artists who had received little attention in the past [2]. Acquisition policies also changed direction to embrace works by these artists for collections, gradually forging a new canon of South African art [3].…”

“…3 A notable example was The Neglected Tradition at the Johannesburg Art Gallery in 1988, when Director Christopher Till sought the services of an independent curator Steven Sack, whose experience in non-government initiatives, particularly the African Institute of Art at Funda in Soweto, gave him the knowledge and insight to undertake a large survey exhibition of the work of black artists who had received little attention in the past [2]. Acquisition policies also changed direction to embrace works by these artists for collections, gradually forging a new canon of South African art [3]. At the same time, galleries began to reconsider the range of works they were acquiring, expanding the parameters of their collections to include historical ethnographic African objects that challenged Western definitions of art, which focused on easel paintings and sculptures in marble and bronze, and introducing artifacts such as beadwork and carved headrests that unite design skill and symbolism with functionality ( Figure 3).…”

“…At the same time, galleries began to reconsider the range of works they were acquiring, expanding the parameters of their collections to include historical ethnographic African objects that challenged Western definitions of art, which focused on easel paintings and sculptures in marble and bronze, and introducing artifacts such as beadwork and carved headrests that unite design skill and symbolism with functionality ( Figure 3). A major early case was Christopher Till's negotiation of the permanent loan of the Brenthurst collection of African art, examples of which were included on Images of Wood at the Johannesburg Art Gallery in 1989 [4], and which later formed the basis of innovative exhibitions focused on historical African art, such as 3 While the focus of this essay is on public museums, it should be noted that some university collections were more advanced in this regard. At the 'black' University of Fort Hare, for example, a fine collection of African artists was assembled by anthropologist Eddie de Jager, although it lacked dedicated exhibition premises until the De Beers Centenary gallery was built in 1989.…”

The ‘Great Walk and More’: Thupelo artists’ Workshop 2010

“…The art arena in Cape Town, South Africa in general, has historically been, and some would argue to still be, a place of controversy and contradiction. In the past, black artists were selectively limited in access to a tertiary fine art training, not seen as relevant under apartheid to a population deemed to be suitable for primarily menial and support labour (Pfeffer 2009;Koloane 1990;Rankin 1995;Gibson 2005Gibson , 2007Powell 1993Powell , 1997.…”

The art of nation-building: (re)presenting political transition at the South African National Gallery

“…However, definitions of 'art' still emulated those in Europe, and South African art was still situated within the European tradition. 40 Writing on the SANG in 1969, Fransen explains:…”