Artist Proof Studio proudly presents Reflection, an annual Third Year Graduate Exhibition showcasing artworks by the class of 2022.
www.artistproofstudio.co.za
An exhibition that immerses itself through the process of internal and external reflection.
The title Reflection in this context refers to the personal internal processes of the nine featured students, each contemplating and mirroring their identities in relation to what is deemed socially acceptable.
The collective, explores themes around spirituality, sexuality, assigned gender roles, social expectations and norms within the Pan African context.
Informed by their various backgrounds, they delve deeper into their individuality through various printmaking techniques including linocut, reduction, etching, monotype and screen-print to name a few.
As young South Africans living in a post COVID world, they question their place in society, in pursuit of a sense of meaning and certainty in an uncertain world.
Artist Proof Studio is a multi-faceted community-centred organisation, established in 1991. We train talented individual not only from South Africa but across the African continent. The organisation specialises in arts training, print collaborations, partnerships, sales and distribution of prints.
APS graduates are better positioned to become leading art practitioners in the market and are proudly represented art fairs, and reputable art galleries throughout the country and internationally. Over the years we have seen innovation and an evolving printmaking culture that pushes the printmaking boundaries. The class of 2022, who began their journey in 2020, are the next generation of printmakers to embark on this creative journey.
Amid COVID, the students faced unique challenges like no other generation before them, with new laws introduced such as social distancing, wearing of masks and encouraged stay indoors. This meant our studio was not the known vibrant space where students share creativity but was now forging into a hybrid learning. The spirit of the organisation did not be wither, instead innovative methods to learn printmaking were introduced, through online learning, and as circumstances developed so did the curriculum, teaching methodology and innovating techniques. The willingness and courage of the students propelled them to seize the opportunities and adapt.
The unique journey experienced by this group has played a role in moulding who they are today.
The collective invites the audience to engage in the subjects dealt with in the art and be part of their journey through the printmaking medium, each selecting a technique to convey this.
The exhibition is a concentration of these experiences through the nine artists’ individual introspection.
Boitumelo Lethoko (b. 2000, Johannesburg)
“Since the passing of my grandmother in May, I have been forced to find a way forward. The physical creation of my body of work is an action of cathartic release.”
Dhelmon Lante Elie (b.2000, Johannesburg)
“My body of work is informed by what I believe in and commit my life to. I believe that creating images is a gift that I need to use to share the messages that I believe are important to live a better life.”
Jason Langa (b. 1997, Johannesburg)
“…In my artworks I am exploring concepts of misplacement, solitude, migration, and freedom as well as the sense of Journey…”
Lesego Tatiana Ditshego (b.1994, Johannesburg)
“…My body of work is an exploration of aspects of my identity. My work expresses the more intangible parts, such as the sensitivity and depth of my emotions linked to history and the society that I live in…”
Lesego Ditshego | Within & Without – Linocut ,2022
Phillipah Rumano (b.1988, Harare)
“…My work is a personal and intimate exploration of my life experiences. In human fragility, I am intrigued by how I manage to survive amidst the chaotic toughness and roughness of the world…”
Phillipah Rumano printing progress
Phillipah Rumano, Moral Fortitude, Linocut, 83.4 x 54.5cm, 2022
Samkelo Matomela (b.1996, Kwa-Zulu Natal)
“…The butterfly motif in my work, is as a symbol which recognises, changes and conquers circumstance – morphing into the better self, as I wish for the people and communities around me…”
Samukelo Matomela, uGugulethu, Linocut (Color Reduction), 35cm x 53cm, 2022
Thembisile Masemula (b.1999, Daveyton)
‘”Being beautiful doesn’t imply having a ‘perfect’ body, it is much more than that. I am focusing more on inner beauty. I see beauty as embracing every inch of your body exactly as it is. No one is perfect…”’
Thembisile Masemula | Playful – Watercolour mono
Tshegofatso Phore (b. 1993, Johannesburg)
“In my work I explore the vulnerabilities that I feel I am denied having as a black South African man. Society does not enable men to be powerless, helpless or ‘at the mercy of’ without being belted with shame or failure.”
Vusumuzi Nkosi (b.1996, Mpumalanga)
“I must believe in my future and never let the past hold my future, through that process of never forgetting where I come from.”
Vusumuzi Nkosi printing progress
Vusimuzi Nkosi | Formation – Linocut ,2022