Showcasing the power of community is a new exhibition that was created by artists across South Africa who teamed up with local bead workers, embroiders, and mosaic magicians!
Cape Town, South Africa (03 October 2024) — A local collaborative collection dubbed ‘Alchemy’ is showcasing the power of community!
With artists, bead-workers, embroiders, and mosaic masters joining hands, the South African creative scene has produced a unique collection in ‘Alchemy’—one that speaks to opportunity, storytelling and, of course, Ubuntu in the form of being inspired by each other.
Curated by non-profit the Spier Arts Trust (SAT), Alchemy will be showcasing at Cape Town’s HUB Gallery, serving as a precursor to a huge opportunity for the local artists—the opportunity to inspire London and all those venturing across the pond for the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair!
The 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair is taking centre stage in London from 10 to 13 October. Here, works that were specifically produced in a collaborative way from South Africa will be showcased; offering up local perspectives in unity to a global gathering celebrating culture from our continent.
Alchemy echoes this energy; showcasing over 20 artists and their collaborations with artisans including those from the Keiskamma Art Project (a Project that works with textile artworks that aid in archiving the rural Eastern Cape’s collective memory) the HUB Mosaic Studio (an educational platform that equips apprentices with skills) and fine beaders from Qaqambile Bead Studio that are known for translating brushstrokes into thousands of beautiful beads.
The collaborative works exhibited on Alchemy have been made with hand-cut glass and stone, glass seed beads and wool embroidery. These pieces are three-dimensional and tactile—representing the artisanal finesse of those who worked behind the scenes.
Many of the pieces that form part of the collection are infused with socio-political and personal contexts—an example of how sometimes, it takes a village to capture the full essence of a story.
For instance, Nkosinathi Quwe’s piece tells the story of his isiXhosa heritage, while Meshack Tembani’s artwork honours the strong presence of female leaders from his Crossroads upbringing.
You can catch Alchemy until 25 October.
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