STAFF REPORTER
AN art exhibition featuring a display of varied work that has united a broad diversity of contemporary craft producers in KwaZulu-Natal is to be seen until September 18 at Pietermaritzburg’s Tatham Art Gallery.
Featuring beautifully rendered work by crafters such as Bonginkosi Tshabalala and Humphrey Modibedi, and fine, commercially produced products from internationally acclaimed talents Egg Design and Richard Stretton, the exhibition features a good cross-section of high-quality, sustainable objects that bridge the divide between traditional craft and so-called “high art”.
Titled Meeting the Makers, the exhibition has been made possible by funding from the National Arts Council, and gallery staff have spent the past few months scouting around the province in search of crafters with a unique contemporary vision.
All staff who went on field trips were required to keep diaries, the stories from which are to be included in a book being published by the gallery. There were eight major field trips and plenty of day trips to the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, as well as visits in and around the Durban Metro area.
A book which accompanies the exhibition offers some insights into the issues which concern crafters and craft making. In rural areas this often involves problems of accessing materials and markets.
Photographs in the book illustrate the environments and conditions under which craft is produced.
“The exhibition is about objects, yes, but it is more about the people who make those objects,” says Brendan Bell, director of the Tatham Art Gallery.
The collection ranges from traditional Zulu ceramics and contemporary lighting designs to a collection of basketry, embroidery, wood-turning, jewellery and wire work.
There is an impressive mix of traditional craft-making and cutting-edge design, with more than 150 pieces produced by nearly 100 crafters.
Embroidery produced by local crafters from the Ingwavuma region sits alongside a hi-tech lamp by urban product designers Egg Designs.
Other work on display includes turned bowls byAndrew Early, furniture from Koop Design, paper flowers from the award-winning Shaw Sisters and excellent, original beadwork from members of the Hillcrest Aids Centre.
For any further information about the exhibition contact the Tatham Art Gallery at 033 392 2801 or visit its website at www.tatham.org.za