On the 31st of October and the 1st of November Nadine Hutton's Mass Media Freak Show, Funhouse. Took place at the Bag Factory. The per formative event attracted attention from various press including The Star, Mail and Guardian, JHBLive and the Sunday Independent.

Here are some images from the show:

Mail&Guardian Article
Star Tonight Article
Brian Webber is Britney Spears
Rat Western has added u as a friend on Freak Book, Do u CONFIRM or IGNORE.'
Matthew Krause chained to the press desk
Fred Koenig with Anthea Moys and Toni Morkel the two headed ring-master
Outcast Clown: Johannes
Outcast Clown: Joseph
Anthea Moys, Nadine Hutton and Toni Morkel sing Ken-Lee
The Ring Master: Anthea Moys and Toni Morkel
Outcast Clowns and Francois Venter
Chaos Theory: Bronwyn Lace, Stompi Selebi, Fanito Maseke
Chaos Theory: Bronwyn Lace
Fred Koenig
The Ring Master and Fred Koenig
Robert Colman as Tina Turnaround
Princess Interrupted Tipsy Tart
Fred Koenig as Lady Di
Mongi Mthombeni and Fred Koenig
Freak Show Cast Sing Ken-Lee
Nadine Hutton: Freak

Residencey Artists' Exhibition

Graffiti by Rat Western

THE BAG FACTORY
Invites you to an exhibition by artists in residence

Fragments

Katharina Rohde (Berlin)
Barbara Walker (U.K.)

Opening Wednesday 3 December 2008
Exhibiting from 4 to 9 December 2008

The Bag Factory Artists’ Studios
10 Mahlatini Street,
Fordsburg,
Johannesburg

Tel: (011) 834 9181
Fax: (011) 838-6791
Email: info@bagfactoryart.org.za
Website: www.bagfactoryart.org.za

With thanks to:
The Ford Foundation
The National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund
Arts Council England

NADINE HUTTON’S FUNHOUSE

NADINE HUTTON’S
FUNHOUSE
A MASS MEDIA FREAK SHOW

In a world obsessed with the cult of the celebrity, where entertainment is news, the constant eye of the paparazzi feed an insatiable public a diet of celebrity freaks. Nadine Hutton brings together a collaborative event which takes a satirical look at the mass media freak show.

DATES :
FRIDAY 31ST OCTOBER, 7.30PM TIL LATE
SATURDAY 1 NOVEMBER 7.30PM TIL LATE
SUNDAY 2 NOVEMBER 11AM-2PM installations

LOCATION:
BAG FACTORY
10 Mahlatini str
Fordsburg

Entrance: R30

Face your fears in the Paparazzi House of Horrors

Be Astounded, Shocked, Revolted & Aroused by a Pandora’s Box of celebrity freaks:

International Curiosity Fred Koenig resurrects Lady Di,
Toni Morkel & Anthea Moys are the Twin-Headed Ringmaster

Acts by
Robert Coleman
Outcast Clowns
Francois Venter
Rat Western
Stanimir Stoykov
And so so many more guest appearances

A sound & word performance installation by Bronwyn Lace, Stompie Selebi & Fanito

Sound by Boris Vukasovic & Andrew Whispa

We accept no responsibility if the Media Watchdog humps your leg

Enquiries: (011 834 9181), info@bagfactoryart.org.za

Greatmore Studios: TENTH YEAR ANNIVERSARY RAFFLE

In its tenth birthday, Greatmore Studios is proud to extend an invitation to share in a time of reflection over the achievements of the past decade. This is an opportunity to celebrate our history and the new possibilities that local and international artists bring to the space every year.

To mark this event the committee at Greatmore Studios has selected work on paper from the collection of images donated by local and international artists which will serve as prizes in our raffle draw. The draw will take place at the Greatmore Studios in Woodstock during an evening of celebration on the 14th of November. All the studios will be open and the selected work will be on exhibition. 179 artworks have been generously donated to the Greatmore Studios collection; 112 works have been selected for inclusion in this exclusive raffle collection. We anticipate selling 224 tickets that will afford ticket holders a 50% chance of winning an original artwork. To view the art work please see the link on our website. Raffle tickets are for sale at ZAR 1 600 each. For more information about ticket sales please email André Barnard at artmore@mweb.co.za ,or phone 021 4479699.

How to buy a Raffle ticket
Deposit your money into:
Account Name: Greatmore Studios
Bank: Standard Bank
Branch: Mowbray
Branch code: 020909
Swift Address: SBZA ZA JJ
Account Number: 071151397
Account Type: Cheque
Account Reference: YOUR NAME

Please confirm your payment via email to:
accounts@greatmoreart.org.za . Include in the email: FULL NAME, PHONE NUMBER, POSTAL ADDRESS.

The Board of Greatmore Studios would like to extend its sincerest gratitude to all the artists who have generously donated one or mutilple artworks. This is a significant contribution and a true vote of confidence in our programs and projects. Thank you for your continual commitment to artmaking and for encouraging intercultural exchange at the studios and beyond. Our combined efforts will ensure the success of developing greater appreciation of the visual arts through interaction and exchange between artists and their communities. We look forward to hosting you all at our special raffle draw scheduled for 14 November 2008 at Greatmore Studios.

Images of work can be viewed here: http://www.greatmoreart.org/catalogue_01.htm

Sasol Wax Art Awards

The Sasol Wax Art Award exhibition opens in October at the University of Johannesburg Art Centre.

The Sasol Wax Art Award is South Africa’s most prestigious accolade for established artists. It is the only industry benchmark that recognises artists who have achieved professional maturity and are on a par with the best internationally.

Five of South Africa’s most dynamic contemporary artists, Avhashone Mainganye, Tracey Rose, Stephen Hobbs, Hentie van der Merwe and Brett Murray were selected from over 120 nominations to participate in the third Sasol Wax Art Award exhibition, open to the public from the 14th October – 7 November 2008.

In its third year, the Award is targeted at mid-career and professionally mature artists with substantial exhibition profiles. This category is not represented by most South African art opportunities, which focus on younger emerging artists. While mid-career artists have proven their excellence in their fields, there are few opportunities to recognise this.

Wax must be featured in either the process, the concept or as a medium in the finalists’ artworks.

“ It was amazing to see how the different bodies of work come together”, says Curator and Artistic Director Les Cohn. “Working independently of each other, there is still a common theme running through the works which represents the Zeigtgeist of the country at the moment- challenges, questions and ironies about power in it many forms.”

The works on exhibition will include video installations that challenge the notions of corporate power and sponsorship, explorations of the changing landscape of a city, as well as tributes to the significant history of the Venda region, and the power of the spiritual ties that bind people. The artists have made full use of the exhibition venue, with finalist Brett Murray using the outside walls of the gallery as his canvas in a powerful installation message.

Says Carola Ross, Executive Director of the Award, “ The Award, now in its third year, has reached a level of maturity of its own. The industry has been wonderfully supportive of the project, and has in turn benefited from the Award. We feel that the Award has raised the bar for South African artists and created awareness that there is in fact segmentation in the industry, where artists can now be considered established at a certain level.”

Also on exhibition will be the work from the Sasol wax art award Jewellery Outreach Initiative, SWAA JOI, a programme affiliated to the Award in partnership with the Department of Arts and Culture, under the endorsement of the Deputy Minister Ntombazana Botha”

The programme has seen Durban University of Technology partner with community group, Velobala, and the University of the Johannesburg partnering with Imfundiso Skill Development Project.

Opportunities have thus been developed to act as catalysts for aspirant jewellery designers to explore creative concepts, and develop technical proficiency. Bringing together students the various institutions, programme provides skills training, and encourages creative exchange between the two parties.

The finalists work will be on exhibition to the public at the University of Johannesburg Opportunities have thus been developed to act as catalysts for aspirant jewellery designers to explore creative concepts, and develop technical excellence. Bringing together students from the University of Johannesburg Jewellery Department and Imfundiso Skills Development project this programme provides skills training, and encourages creative exchange between the two parties

The Sasol wax art award Finalists Exhibition will be open to the public at the University of Johannesburg Art Gallery, Kingsway Campus, Auckland Park from the 14 October – 5 November 2008.

Walkabouts and are on offer for the public.

The Sasol Wax Art Award 2008 Walkabout schedule is:

Avhashoni Mainganye artist Tues 14 10 2008 11 00

Brett Murray artist Wed 15 10 2008 11 00

Rika La Grange ass curator Fri 17 10 2008 12 30

Stephen Hobbs artist Tues 21 10 2008 16 00

Less Cohn curator Wed 22 10 2008 12 30

Tracey Rose artist Fri 24 10 2008 12 30

Les Cohn curator Tues 28 10 2008 16 00

Carola Ross Exec dir SWAA Wed 29 10 2008 12 30

Rika la Grange ass curator Fri 31 10 2008 12 30

Hentie van der Merwe artist Sat 01 11 2008 11 00

Rika La Grange ass curator Tues 04 11 2008 16 00

For more information, or to book a walkabout, please phone Rika La Grange on 011 726 2502 or e-mail wax@mweb.co.za

Further information is available from the Award organizers, Carola Ross and Associates at 011 726 2502 or on email to hotmango@mweb.co.za or visit www.sasol.com

For media queries:

Taryn Cohn
taryncohn@acenet.co.za
0836715139

David and Goliath Auction

You are hereby invited to attend the david&GOLIATH auction to be held at The Bag Factory in Fordsburg, Johannesburg onThursday, 25 September 2008 at 19h00. Preview and auction registration will be possible from 17h00.

Some information related to the auction:-

The relationship between the arts and commercial industry is one in which issues of creative ownership and copyright infringement is frequently contested. It is generally financially impossible for the individual artist to address these issues legally when faced with a corporate giant.

The david&GOLIATH initiative is aimed at creating a platform through which
the arts can support the arts in protecting creative ownership.

Prominent South African artists have generously sponsored artworks to be auctioned off at this fundraising event, which is proudly hosted by The Bag Factory.

Funds raised at this event will be used to support the case of:

Gerhard Marx vs. Ireland Davenport and BMW
due to occur in the High Court on the 9th of October 2008

Any further profits from this auction will enable the establishment of the david&GOLIATH trust, which will aim to financially support artists against copyright infringement and commercial exploitation.

Supporting Artists:

Wim Botha Jo Ractliffe Penny Siopis

Aiden Dom Bronwyn Lace Clive van den Berg Conrad Kemp David Andrew Diane Victor Dorothy Kreutzfeldt Ellen Rose Gerhard Marx Jeremy Wafer Jo Ractliffe
Jonah Sack Joni Brenner Kim Lieberman Lehlogonolo Mashaba Liam Lynch Maja Marx Marco Cianfanelli Marcus Neustetter Minette Vari Mmakgabo Helen Sebidi
Nhlapo Senzo Nirupa Sing Olaf Bisschoff Penny Siopis Philip Miller Richard Forbes Richard Penn Robyn Penn Sabelo Mlangeni Santu Mofokeng Stefanus Rademeyer Stephan Erasmus Suzanne du Preez Usha Seejarim Walter Oltmann William Kentridge Wim Botha Yvonne Harvey Zander Blom and more.

Date:
25 September 2008 from 17h00 onwards. Auction commences at 19h00

Venue:
The Bag Factory
10 Mahlatini Street
Fordsburg
011 834 9181
See attached map

Auctioneer:
Bernardi Auctioneers

Supported by:
Art Extra / The Artist Proof Studio / Art on Paper / Art South Africa / The Bag Factory /
Bernardi Auctioneers / Brendan Copestake and Jillian Ross / Godart / Goodman Gallery /
John Hodgkiss / Rooke Gallery / Templar Wales / Tonic / The Trinity Sessions / Warren Siebrits

Modern Fabrics

modern fabrics
>urban culture and artists connected to the city landscape<
Curated by Nontobeko Ntombela

Exploring notions of identity, aesthetics, human and geographic relationships; ‘modern fabrics’ interrogates the relationship between 'high' and 'low' culture in the cosmopolitan urban landscape of South Africa.

The exhibition is arranged in a symmetrical construction probing dialogues between works of different artists as a way of finding synergies, commonality and contradictions. This construction is set to demonstrate the diverse and hybrid nature of the city. Whilst the word ‘fabrics’ creates an impression of a show of artists' only working with a didactic inclusion of fabrics, the title of the show is a metaphor for ‘young artists’ on the exhibition. ‘Modern fabrics’ also refers to the constructed weave of the modern urban environment.

Coincidentally, selected artists in the show have works that use fabric, their works have been included because of their conceptual comment relating to the city. Similar to the inclusion of other types of found objects, these low cultured commodities in artists' work, purposefully transform the 'found object' function into new readings. Mkhize, Bengu, Xaba, and Sitas explore this dimension in their work.

Dunywa, Mama, Bopape, Dunn & Zondi interrogate the contemporary language of high tech through the use of new media whilst exploring different and separate concepts in their works. Traditional mediums are also included, particularly the work of Vaughan-Evans and Sibande, who use painting to excavate notions of both human and geographic relationships.

Curated by Nontobeko (Nonto) Ntombela. She is currently employed as the Gallery Curator of the Art Gallery, Durban University of Technology. Trained as an artist in recent years she has worked mainly as a curator and art project manager in Durban.

For More information contact Nonto Ntombela or Bronwyn Lace
nontobekon@gmail.com or Bronwyn.lace@gmail.com
0781901221 (Nonto) or 0716820756 (Bronwyn)

Residency Artists Exhibition 10 September

THE BAG FACTORY

Invites you to an exhibition by artists in residence

SITA MOYO (Pietermaritzburg)

NDIKHUMBULE NGQINAMBI (Cape Town)

HANS WILSCHUT (Netherlands)

Opening: Wednesday 10 September 2008 from 5:30pm

Exhibiting:
11, 12, 15, 16, 17 September 2008 from 9am to 4:30pm

The Bag Factory Artists’ Studios
10 Mahlatini Street, Fordsburg, Johannesburg
Tel: (011) 834 9181
Fax: (011) 838-6791

Email: info@bagfactoryart.org.za

With thanks to:

The Ford Foundation The National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund
The Netherlands Foundation for Visual Arts, Design and Architecture
Rent a Wreck
Photograph - Dinkies Sithole

“A living legacy”, curated by Bongi Bengu and Nathi Gumede

Exhibition title: “a living legacy”
Exhibition venue: Kizo Art Gallery (Upstairs Gallery)
Exhibition launch date: 1 September 2008 at 6:30P.M.
Exhibition closes: 30 September 2008
Artist names: Sam Nhlengethwa, David Koloane, Pat Mautloa, Helen Sebidi, Dinkies Sithole, Nontobeko Ntombela, Johan Thom, Colbert Mashile, Themba Shibase, Sharlene Khan, Sifiso KaMkame, Gabi Nkosi, Esther Mahlangu and others

A living legacy is the biggest and significant curated heritage exhibition in KZN. The exhibition is part of a larger heritage festival under the hospices of Kizo Art Gallery with a title “Umgido, KZN Heritage festival”.

The exhibition intends to investigate the legacy and the contribution of experienced artists (deceased or alive) as to how this legacy moulds the practice today. Art as in many other industries here in South Africa is not immune to the history of this country and the project will look at the link between the practices then and how it influences the industry today.

Are artist today able to create art without the need to reference history of South Africa, i.e. apartheid and its legacy?

KZN as a province has contributed greatly to the creative industry of South Africa and an exhibition like this is appropriate for Durban as it will also investigate how many of the more established artists are still practicing in Durban and what legacy they are leaving behind.

For more information contact:
Bongi Bengu
Tel: 0826770634
Fax: (011) 8386791
Email: bongibengu@gmail.com

Residency Artists Presentation on Wednesday at 4:30pm

The Bag Factory invites you to an informal presentation by the current artists in residence at the Bag Factory.

Hans Wilschut (Netherlands), Ndikhumbule Ngquinambi (Cape Town) and Sita Moyo (Durban) will be offering brief presentations of their careers as artists and their current projects, after which they will be free to answer your questions in an informal session with coffee and muffins.

The presentations will commence at 4:30pm on Wednesday 20 August (tomorrow afternoon).

The Bag Factory Artists’ Studios
10 Mahlatini Street, Fordsburg, Johannesburg
Tel: (011) 834 9181
Fax: (011) 838-6791

Email: info@bagfactoryart.org.za

ITCH Online Magazine Calls for submissions

ITCH Online Magazine invites Visual and Text responses for their second issue. The theme for this issue is *
Requirements for submissions are:
Text submissions:
• No longer than 2500 words. (We know the web is unlimited, but most web-readers attention spans are not!)
• Please submit in an unformatted Word document.
• Any form of poetry, prose, fiction or non-fictional, creative or journalistic, public or private writing is welcome.
• An accompanying illustration may be submitted. Must be in JPG format, and no larger than 1MB.
• Audio files are welcome (recordings of your poetry, prose, song lyrics or opinions).
• Book reviews welcome. Please keep them to about 500 words and include full details of the book you are reviewing (author, publication date, publisher, etc.)
Visual submissions:
• Anything from 1 – 8 images. If you are submitting more than one image, please ensure that they are part of some kind of series (i.e. no arbitrary collection of portfolio shots).
• Must be in JPG format, and no larger than 1MB per image.
• Must be accompanied by a title (even if untitled), year of production, and a very short abstract/explanation.
• Multimedia files welcome (animations, short films, etc)
• Submissions for the cover image are welcome. Please follow the format that you see on the home page. If you don't make it on to the cover the work will still be considered for a feature.
All submissions:
• Must include name, e-mail and telephone number of contributor, and a short biography.
• Feel free to include a link to your webpage.
Submit all work via e-mail to the ITCH editor.

Deadline: September 7, 2008. E-mail submissions to the ITCH editor.
Please note that submissions for the next print issue are NOT currently open. To subscribe to our mailing list in order to be informed of when the next print call for submissions will be open, click here.

ART NOW 3


GLOBAL ART ANNUAL 2008
CONTEMPORARY ART COMPETITION
12 months on display
Value of the awards 9,290 Euro

Submit Now! - www.artoteque.com

Guidelines
All entries go through a two-step selection process. The competition is judged solely by visuals submitted inline or attachment send to: submit@artoteque.com. Numbers of entries: 6 -12 works /image files submitted on-line. We can review your site for this purpose.

1st step selection
The first screening is free and is conducted by review of website for this purpose or on Jpeg [.JPG] versions of the submitted works inline or attachment (send to: submit@artoteque.com ).

2nd step selection
Submitters whose entries pass the first screening are requested to submit inline or attachment the works (JPGs image files 72 dpi up to 600 pix. along the works details -title, year, medium, size, price and the fee payment.

Application fee
There is a US$ 80 / EUR 50 entry fee for 6 works. and US$ 15 / EUR 10 for each additional work.
(NOTE: submitters whose entries pass the first screening only will be requested the competition fee).

Jury
The competition will be conducted in two rounds: preliminary and final assessment. Only works that pass the preliminary judging will advance to the final round. Judging Panel: Andrea Pagnez, art critic, fine artist, editor, curator (Venice Biennial), Florence; Christopher Chamber, art critic, fine artist, editor, New York; Marta Dimitrescu, fine artist, Artoteque.com director, editor, London; Åke Wallén, Director BGAB, art collector, Stockholm.

Awards
70 prizewinners will be awarded.
Grand Prize: One Artists will be awarded two-pages in FINE ART artoteque harcover art book, value $4,490.00.
Award of Distinction: Two Artists will be awarded one-page in FINE ART harcover art book, value $2,250.00.
Honorable Mention: 65 Artists will be selected for Diploma of Excellence (Honorable Award)

Materials to be received
Submit on-line 6 ~12 works /JPG s image files 72 dpi up to 600 pix. All submissions must be mailed to submit@artoteque.com

Exhibition Period
2008
Deadlines : the earlier the better

E-mail Address to Submit
submit@artoteque.com
Artoteque.com

VANSA: Call for Submission of Comment and Artwork

The Visual Arts Network of South Africa (VANSA) invites you to comment or submit artwork on the Theme Wealth in relation to the contemporary visual art beyond but not excluding finance. Selected comments and artwork will be published in the September edition of the National Newsletter.

Please note the following:
Comment
The comment should address the theme.
The comment should be between 250 and 500 words.
The use of clear and accessible language is encouraged.
The comment will be edited taking into consideration that meaning is not changed.
Printing of the comment is subject to VANSA discretion.

Artwork
A4 Double page spread (DPS) format.
Reproduced in Black and White.
Must make some reference to the overall theme of the newsletter.

Submission deadline 25 August to:
info@vansa.co.za

More Info:
Bandile Gumbi
VANSA National Co-ordinator
Tel: +27 (0)11 833 7908
Fax: +27 (0)86 662 2074
Cell: +27 (0)73 080 9610
info@vansa.co.za
www.vansa.co.za

Happy Dhlame: VIOLENTLY HAPPY

Happy Dhlame invites you and your friends for the opening at Maps (Harrie's Pancake) the 23rd August at 3pm.

Map-South Africa-Pretoria Happy Dhlame VIOLENTLY HAPPY

Opening Reception:15h00 Saturday 23 August 2008

Destination: Harrie's Pancakes, Eastwood Village, Corner Eastwood & Pretorius Street, Arcadia, Pretoria

T: +27 12 342 3613

Hours: Mon-Sun 9am­9pm

Thupelo Cape Town – FOUND OBJECT WORKSHOP

Workshop Dates: 26 September to 11 October 2008

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS: Monday, 25 August 2008

THUPELO INVITES YOU TO APPLY FOR A FOUND OBJECT WORKSHOP WHICH WILL BE HELD in Cape Town

from Friday the 26 of September with an open day exhibition of work in progress on Saturday the 11th of October. Thupelo workshops are artists led and are initiated in response to a need for interaction between artists. This workshop will include 20 artists; all with experience in their various practices and able to experiment, exchange ideas and skills and expand their practices.

"The concentration of so much energy and commitment into a short period of time encourages risk taking and experimentation that might not happen in the artist's own studio. At the same time the process of exchange that lies at the heart of the [Thupelo] Workshops based on the Triangle model often has a long-term influence on the practice and sometimes the lives of the participants. The strong emphasis on process rather than product engendered by the workshops means that the work made and exhibited at the workshop open days is often not finished work"

Robert Loder

Thupelo invites established visual artists to apply to work in this dynamic, stimulating two week workshop at Greatmore Studios. Applications in all medium will be accepted. Artists should bring to the workshop their own found objects, tools, paints, scrap paper, cameras etc. Applicants need to commit to working all day, everyday. There is no budget for accommodation or transport. The two week workshop will close with an open day exhibition on Saturday 11th October.

Please see our website to view previous workshops. www.greatmoreart.org

To apply send your application to:

E-mail: artmore@mweb.co.za

or

The Thupelo Cape Town Selection Committee

PO Box 250

Woodstock

Cape Town

7915

For further information contact the office:

Tel: (027) 021 447 9699 Fax: (027) 088 021 447 9699

E-mail: thupelo@greatmoreart.org.za Website: www.greatmoreart.org

Dinkies Sithole: Shrine Rituals

Bag Factory Artist at the Nando's Project Room # 2

Opens: Tuesday 5 August 2008 at 6:30 pm
Closes: Sunday 13 October 2008

Dinkies Sithole is the second artist in he current incarnation of the project room now appropriately called the Nando's Project Room. Sithole is a Soweto-born artist whose work traverses painting, sculpture, performance, video and other media.

The current installation is called Shrine Rituals and comprises a series of shrines made out of discarded materials. The objects in these shrines are re-invested with energy and potency. Here the scientific conception of energy meets the more universal idea of energy as something more metaphysical. For instance, many people in South Africa don't discarding their personal affects for fear that these objects might be used to bewitch the owner. Similarly different belief systems such as Yoruba cosmology where every object has a 'life force' or "ase".

In these shrines the batteries, which are products of science, are not out of place with the miniature Buddha's, rosaries, bottles of 'umuthi' and the coloured string, often used by ZCC adherents for protection.

Sithole works bring together different beliefs both old and new, belief in science and in spirits, religion and animism. But is that not the beauty of art: that it allows for the reconciliation of these seemingly antagonistic beliefs?

Rites of Fealty/ Rites of Passage

The Bag Factory presents:

Rites of Fealty/ Rites of Passage

A one-night exhibition of performance art

Date: 18h00, Tuesday, 29 July 2008

Venue: Bag Factory Gallery, 10 Mahlatini Street, Fordsburg, Johannesburg

The Bag Factory’s About Art program presents ‘Rites of Fealty/ Rites of Passage’, a one-night exhibition of new performance artworks by a group of emerging South African artists. The exhibition follows an intensive 10-day workshop in performance art presented by Johan Thom. The workshop was structured as a non-hierarchal laboratory, with each of the artists selected for participation already having established a visible presence in the South African cultural sphere. Artists like Ismail Farouk, Anthea Moys, Kemang wa Luhere and Murray Turpin all share in a multi-disciplinary approach to artistic expression, freely mixing elements of fields as far as urban geography, digital sound sampling, video, public performance, dance and theatre into their oeuvres.

New works have been commissioned by each of the participating artists.

Artists include:

Bronwyn Lace, Nadine Hutton, Anthea Moys, Mlu Zondi, Ntando Cele, Rat Western, Ismail Farouk, Murray Turpin, Kemang wa Luhere, Dinkies, Sithole, Johan Thom

The theme ‘Rites of fealty/ Rites of passage’ stresses the transformative capacity of art where the artwork is envisioned as a rite of passage through which both artist and viewer may plot alternatives to existing modes of relating to our familiar surroundings, ordinary social interactions, physical gestures and use of language. In this way art may act as a gateway that embodies the possibility for personal and societal change through direct action and physical participation.

The workshop and exhibition is made possible by:

The Ford Foundation

The Bag Factory

Special thanks to the Nirox Foundation

The exhibition is curated by:

Johan Thom

Bronwyn Lace

Contact details:

info@bagfactoryart.org.za (email)

+27 (0)11 834 9181 (tel)

Invitation to Deposit Work at Joburg Art Bin

Empty Office invites collectors of local art to deposit pieces from their private collections into the Joburg Art Bin at the Bag Factory for “creative recycling” between the 18^th of July and the 1^st of August 2008.

A team of artists, in consultation with the collector depositing the work, will dismantle the work and use the physical detritus to develop proposals for public artworks to be installed in Johannesburg. The collector who deposits work will play a critical role in deciding what site the art work will be reconfigured for.

The central idea behind the project is to invite collectors to democratize their art collections by donating pieces of it to the public realm. Empty Office argues that because of the increasing commercialization of the visual arts, cultural production is essentially becoming privatized and controlled by capital. The project is radical in the sense that it asks collectors to depart with work they may treasure in order to invest in the idea of art rather than material instances of it. There are many reasons why an art collector may feel motivated to donate work to the Joburg Art Bin: they may feel that a piece is obsolescent, reached its sell-by date, that it is ideologically problematic, that it has potential to be shared with a broader community, or a collector may just be curious about what happens to piece of art that they own is dismantled by another visual artist.

We are interested in how art objects are remotivated in new contexts, specifically in how the lives of objects change as they move from the private into the public domain. In this sense, the project is neither nihilistic nor anti-aesthetic but rather celebrates the contribution that artists make to culture, by asking artists to materially intervene directly on the artworks that collectors have donated to the Joburg Art Bin.

Participate in maintaining the dynamism of contemporary culture by depositing a piece from your private collection at the Bag Factory at our opening event at 17h30, Friday the 18^th of July 2008.

Call for applications: Sylt Quelle Cultural Award for Southern Africa

How do Southern African writers, artists, choreographers, musicians and theatre-makers see their art in the context of the society they live in? What are the fundamental issues of their countries, and what ideas do they have for solving them?

In 2008, the foundation kunst:raum sylt quelle, in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut Johannesburg is launching the “sylt quelle cultural award for Southern Africa”. This competition is open to artists of all disciplines from Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Swaziland.

Artists may apply with a project that will link culture and society, creating a context in which culture will have an impact on social structures and attitudes. The winner/winners will receive an award of 10,000 Euros, which must be used to finance the proposed project.

Selections will be made by an independent jury in a two-stage process.

The realized project/projects will be presented at the Goethe-Institut Johannesburg , the kunst:raum sylt quelle in Germany and other venues. The authors rights of the selected projects are not touched through this call of proposals.

Applications may be sent to the Goethe-Institut in Johannesburg and must include the following:
- a Curriculum Vitae and description of your career as an artist
- a detailed description of your project and a binding budget plan
- samples of your work

To simplify the selection process, we ask that all applications be by email or CD. Other forms of documentation will not be considered. Application material will not be returned. All decisions of the jury are final, reasons for rejections will not be disclosed.

Applications should be sent to:

Goethe-Institut Johannesburg
kunstpreis@johannesburg.goethe.org

Further information:
www.goethe.de/Johannesburg
www.kunstraum-syltquelle.de

Deadline: 15th September 2008

Call for Papers: ULI: Journal of Visual Arts and Culture Nigeria

ULI: Journal of Visual Arts and Culture is a referred academic bi-annual publication of the Department of Fine and Applied Arts, University of Nigeria, Nsukka (visit nsukkaartschool.info). It is to be published in June and December each year electronically and, occasionally, in hard copies.

The publication aims to critique and document contemporary developments in the visual arts and culture of Nigeria, Africa and the world. It shall open up and sustain debate on issues in Nigerian and international art as a way of contributing to art scholarship and professionalism in the so-called Third World.

Well-researched papers are invited for the first issue to be published in December 2008.

Historical, critical, art educational, and other scholarly articles on modern and postmodern tendencies in the art and visual culture of Africa are welcome, as well as reviews, interviews and portfolios.

Articles should be typed and double-spaced on A4 paper and should not exceed 20 pages. Reference should conform to the Harvard style. Photographs and illustrations should be clear enough for print reproduction; poor quality photographs will not be accepted.

Submissions can be sent in hard copy by post or in soft copy via e-mail. Although materials are accepted all year round, the deadline for submission for the maiden issue is 31st November, 2008.

All correspondences to:
Dr. Ozioma Onuzulike
Department of Fine and Applied Arts,
University of Nigeria,
Nsukka.
E-mail: oozioma@nsukkaartschool.info
Uli-journal@nsukkaartschool.info