(“Untitled I”, mixed
media on paper by Sfiso Ka-Mkame))
The African Art Centre has mounted Sfiso Ka-Mkame’s solo exhibition titled Dialogue with myself, showcasing his new series of work executed in
mixed media on paper.
African Art Centre Director, Magdalene
Reddy talks about celebrating Sfiso Ka-Mkame in his birthday month:
“We have become familiar with Ka-Mkame’s unique visual language expressed in oil pastels on
paper, but for this current show, Ka-Mkame
has utilised mixed media on paper, creating brilliantly textured surfaces which
in turn bring out the rich oil pastel painterly marks and tones.
“As the bold oil pastel colours
intersect and blend with the tactile quality of the surface, the visual
interplay invites the viewer to delve for deeper meanings beyond the surface.
The exhibition title, Dialogue with
myself not only implies Ka-Mkame conversing with his work
as an artist, but is also directed at the viewer who is encouraged to engage in
personal dialogue with the work and to construct own personal meanings.”
Active since the 1980’s, Sfiso Ka-Mkame is no stranger to the local art scene. In his early childhood years he recalls
modelling cows in clay and drawing maps for his friends. Later he received
formal art tuition. In 1986, his mastery of art techniques was recognised when
he was employed as a student teacher in screen printing at the Community Arts
Workshop, located in the old station building in Durban. His art career was further heightened by his
participation in the Thupelo Workshops initiated by David Koloane and Bill
Ainslie in Johannesburg.
Over the years,
he continued to produce work in his favourite oil pastel medium where he played
around with texture and bold tones. Ka-Mkame’s artistic sensibility sharpened
during the Apartheid era in South Africa when his artworks engaged with a
number of social issues. His work is available in a number of prominent art
collections including Iziko South African National Gallery in Cape Town, Tatham
Art Gallery in Pietermaritzburg, Durban Art Gallery and University of
Witwatersrand Gallery Johannesburg and Johannesburg Gallery, to name a few.
The Dialogue
with myself exhibition is running at the
African Art Centre at 94 Florida Road, Morningside. For more details contact
the Director, Magdalene Reddy on 031 312 3804/5 or
email africanartcentre@afri-art.co.za or visit www.afriart.co.za
Posts
