implicit art

We had two openings in the Joburg area yesterday. First was Moshekwa Langa’s new show over at the Goodman Gallery. It was an interesting survey of a great South African artist. I hear it’s a step up from his last show, which was seen by some as a minor disappointment, tho I have to admit I was expecting him to try to make the space a little less sterile for the kinds of things he likes to explore. Always clever, it’s still hard for a world-renowned artist to keep up with themselves sometimes, and make everyone happy. I say the show is worth checking out. He revisits some of his mapping projects, does some interesting experimental work with photography, and even explores some mixed media “stuff” that I didn’t thrill over, but the esthete in me knew had value.

Here’s a pic of Zen Marie’s Royal Flush installation, part of a place called home, an international show curated by Zayd Minty, which just opened at the Johannesburg Art Gallery. I mentioned this show when I saw it in Cape Town, but didn’t say much about it, cuz of such little time to blog! I remembered this work vividly as my favorite, and then also because Marie went on to win a merit prize for another work in the Kebbles. This particular exhibit brought some new works to the table, that I had not seen in CT, including the extremely clever Bindigirl, by Prema Murthy.

And, just after that, I joined some friends for drinks at their downtown apartment, only to be confronted with a beautiful double rainbow over the city, too big for my camera to take in. I can almost here the orchestra playing, “someone to watch, over me…” (with maniacal laughter fading in, from off in the distance).