Deadline: 12 noon
on February 15, 2016
Entries are open for the second SA Taxi Foundation Art Award
as South Africa’s only mobile visual art and design cross over award takes art
to the public once again
The award is unique in the South African visual arts
community in that it requires artists to create a piece of visual art and then
interpret it for use as a decal on minibus taxis.
Artists therefore need to go beyond their normal focus on
expressing their particular vision in an original artwork. They must also work
to a commercial design brief. In the process, the broader public is exposed to
art via minibus taxis that carry the decal design on a range of routes across
the country.
“We’ve had an extremely good response to the six works by
the winners of the 2014 competition that have been travelling on taxis since
June this year,” says Kalnisha Singh, director of the SA Taxi Foundation. “Some
of the operators whose taxis carried the art wanted us to extend the six month
period for the decals because passengers would actually wait for an art taxi
rather than get on a taxi that happened to be available.
“Also, after some initial skepticism, executives of various
taxi associations and operations have commented that the award is elevating the
public’s perception of the industry, “Singh adds. “These reactions and those
from the general public indicate that the art award is achieving the primary
goal we set for it, which is to bridge the cultural and social gaps among all
sectors of South African society. We believe the social relevance and impact of
the awards will be deepened with each passing year.”
In the first year of the competition, only artists who had
had no solo exhibitions qualified to enter. This year, artists who have had no
more than two solo exhibitions may enter.
In addition to innovating at the level of the visual arts,
the SA Taxi Foundation Art Award has called for a new approach to the
production of decals for minibus taxis. Normally, as advertising, decals cover
a single panel or the back door of the vehicle. The award artworks, however,
cover much larger areas of the vehicle and artists are involved in
brainstorming sessions with the SA Taxi media division to help them redesign
their original decal concepts so as to optimise the way the decal wraps around
a vehicle.
Each year’s winner of the competition receives a cash prize
of R50,000. Each of the five finalists receives a cash prize of R10,000.
Finalists’ artwork is displayed at the Lizamore & Associates Gallery in
Rosebank, Johannesburg, during the month of April, 2016. The six winning decal
designs are then displayed on 10 minibus taxis in different areas of the
country for a period of six months.
Entrants for the competition must be South African citizens
or legally resident in the country and older than 21. Entry forms for and
information about the competition are available from www.sataxiartaward.co.za, or email artaward@sataxi.co.za, or contact
Lizamore & Associates on 011 880 8802.
Entries must be submitted digitally for the first round of selection.
The deadline is 12 noon on February 15, 2016.
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