Six exhibitions by various artists in six days. And − to top it all − the exhibitions will be open for viewing from as early as six o'clock in the morning!
"I'm probably the only curator in the country who'd be mad enough to take on something like this," confesses Alex Hamilton, the man behind the exhibition Opskiete – popups − that will be on show at the University's art gallery (the SU Museum) during the Stellenbosch University (SU) Woordfees, which will run from 9 March to 14 March.
"At that time of the morning there are already people who come and listen to the live broadcasts of the radio station RSG at the Plataan café under those huge old plane trees behind the Museum," Hamilton explains, who also runs a gallery from his studio in Woodstock, Cape Town. "I thought it might be a good idea to give them something extra to do so early in the morning."
The works that will be exhibited and for sale at Opskiete will be diverse: they will range from pencil sketches to ceramic works. And the artists − who will take part in the three group and three solo exhibitions over the course of the six days − will be equally diverse.
The themes will be 'O . . . FAK!' ('FAK' usually stands for Federasie van Afrikaanse Kultuurvereniginge, a federation of Afrikaans cultural associations), 'Op-Sessie' (a play on the word 'obsession'), 'Opgradeer' (Upgrade), 'Oop boek (Open book) – Frida Kahlo', 'Op dees aarde' (literally 'On this earth') and 'Die sondes van ons vaders' (The sins of our fathers). But who the artists will be remains secret!
This kind of experiment is, of course, risky − you cannot judge its success before the time. But it is also this uncertainty and playfulness that is alluring.
"Even though it might be risky, it's so much fun working on these exhibitions – and each one will be interesting," Hamilton assures us. "The artists live all over the country; some are already established while others are at the start of their careers."
There will be something for every pocket, with prices starting at about R200. And if your pockets are deep – prices go up to several thousands of rand as well.
"I don't believe in elitism. Art should be accessible to everyone and people should actually want to come to galleries," says Hamilton.
Festival-goers will have exactly 12 hours to visit each daily popup; the art works of that specific popup will then be taken down at 18:00 on that day, to be replaced by the next popup on the following day.
Hamilton will also be curating Die alfabeter − The alphabeter − a play on words. For this exhibition, the artists each get one of the 26 letters of the alphabet and, with these as point of departure, use popular, historic and nostalgic words and sayings to create their artwork.
In contrast with Opskiet, the names of the artists taking part in this exhibition at the PJ Olivier Art Centre are not secret. Two of these artists are Hannelie Tante, who uses the letter 'R' to create a work around rugby and rubber, while Stephen Rosin uses 'S' to cast light – or is it darkness? − on the concept of 'state'. But be warned: these words and works cannot be used to teach school learners the alphabet!
Hamilton, who is an industrious user of social media, explains that those who cannot attend the exhibitions − they may live in another part of the country or even in another country altogether − will still be able to be part of the fun.
"I'll be sending out messages on social media very regularly and, in so doing, will be able to involve people who may be far away."
Yet another exciting Woordfees happening is the auctioning of the benches dotted around Stellenbosch over the past year. The benches, all works for the public art project Kom sit/Come sit/ Hlala phantsi Stellenbosch created by artists and members of community projects, will be up for auction at the Lang Tafel (Long Table) on 6 March. The auctioneer? Actress, writer and director Lizz Meiring.
On the occasion of this same happening, the next public art project – Reflections – will be introduced. Artists taking part in this project include Jaco Sieberhagen, Strydom van der Merwe and Roelien Smit. These public art projects are run by the Stellenbosch Outdoor Sculpture Trust (SOST for short).
"Visual art at a festival is a necessity," says Dirkie Offringa of SOST. "Art isn't just Afrikaans. It crosses all kinds of boundaries, and people from different communities and language groups can therefore practice and appreciate it."
Public art is important, she believes, because people can touch it and feel it and children can climb all over it. It is this interaction between a work of art and the community that is so special.
"Public art goes a long way to undermining the perception of the inaccessibility of art. It also makes people more aware of their built environment," says Offringa.
Offringa is also curator of Woordfees artist Herman van Nazareth's exhibition at the SU Museum.
- Photo: Blinkvosperd by artist Juanette Smuts. It will be part of the Opskiet art exhibition at die Woordfees.
Here is a list of some of the other art exhibitions:
- 16 X 16: Ons (Us) is a photo exhibition of portraits by Erhardt Thiel (SU Museum).
- Ligvangers (Light catchers) is a conceptual photo exhibition and light presentation in which Chris van Niekerk investigates the evocative and emotional effect of light; this exhibition comprises 20 digital photos and a light projection (Drostdy Theatre).
- Cobus van Bosch's The trouble with money looks at how South African society has changed over the course of 100 years (PJ Olivier Art Centre).
- Filmverse (Film verses) is a series of short animation films based on 12 classic and contemporary Afrikaans poems (SU Museum).
- With Wanvoorstelling (Misrepresentation), Olaf Bisschoff delves into the relationship between the name and the portrayal of Afrikaans and South African place names (PJ Olivier Art Centre).
- Museum: Van been en as (Museum: Of bone and ash), Sandra Hanekom's first solo exhibition after three years as curator of the ABSA Klein Karoo National Arts Festival, interrogates the relationship between beauty and transience (PJ Olivier Art Centre).
- Untold Stories is a photographic exhibition by Tony Mac (Maake) (PJ Olivier Art Centre).
- The artist Colbert Mashile's work is hosted by SMAC Gallery.
- Towerwoorde roep my (Magic words call me) exhibits works by Clare Menck, Shany van den Bergh, Strijdom van der Merwe, Peter van Straten and Anton Smit in D-Street Gallery.
- Jewellery by Lilly Friedlaender, Juria le Roux, Carine Terblanche, Angela Tolken and Erica du Plessis can be seen in the Lilly Friedlaender Gallery.
