An Introduction to Township Art

Image source: http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/pennsylvania.gif

One of the lynchpins of the apartheid regime was separate development for the different racial groups. Non-whites were forced to live in townships which had few, if any, amenities. In a measured reaction to European influences, black artists chose to illustrate their own realities in bold and colourful brush strokes.

Poverty led to exploration and expression with new media

The Rainbow Nation' in full blush

South Africa's unprecedented cultural diversity ensures a rich and ever changing tapestry of arts and crafts. Fine Art Portfolio presents a sample of their township art for sale on their online art gallery.

Foreign diplomats and other international visitors took it upon themselves to salvage as much of the Struggle Art as possible by buying up pieces in the townships and smuggling them in a foreign country. In the decade post-apartheid, a concerted effort was made to repatriate these national treasures.

Dumile Feni, the Goya of the Townships' will long be remembered for his outstanding contributions to African art, all tooled with the sole assistance of a ballpoint pen!

Two emerging black artists, who effectively alerted the world to the wonder of Township Art, were Gerard Sekoto and George Pemba.

A nation's loss

The founding fathers of Township Art

Since freedom, Township Art, together with the rest of South African society, has developed. Instead of the desperation and hopelessness of the past, black artists are now creating art synonymous with the new South Africa - bright, colourful and diverse.

In its original and purest form, dating back to the 1920's, South African Township Art was effectively art of defiance. Formerly is named Struggle or Resistance Art', Township Art was a vivid depiction of the terrible transgressions of colonialism and apartheid.

An Introduction to Township Art

Sadly, many original artworks were intentionally destroyed by the fascist South African security forces, denying future generations a unique glimpse into the past.

Recycled plastic bags, vintage bicycle spokes and even discarded soft drink cans are modelled to create unique works of art which admirably depict the rainbow nation in full blush.

George Pemba's naive expressionism, born in the Motherwell Township with regards to Port Elizabeth, continues to delight art connoisseurs. His work commands prices ranging from R200 000 to almost R1 million.

Today, Township Art is now not the exclusive domain of black township dwellers. Its distinctive style has been embraced by the likes of Frank Ross, Benjamin Mitchley, Katherine Ambrose and Mauro Chiarla, to name but a few.

Prolific in the 1930's, Sekoto created a colourful history of urban African life in Sophiatown and District Six. Today, Sekoto is one of the most sought-after South African artists, with his work commonly fetching hundreds of thousands of dollars!

John Muafangejo and Azaria Mbatha will go down in the annals of South African art history as the innovators of the linocut whereas Ephraim Ngatane & Durant Sihlali sign in the ranks of outstanding watercolourists.

Extreme poverty was a big catalyst for the emergence of a bunch of new, flamboyant Township Art genres. Oil paints were just now not affordable to most township inhabitants and as an alternative they had to innovate with new media.