AFRIKABURN 2011



The most beautiful "burners" in the Karoo- Mbe and Tania

 I know how much time has passed since AfrikaBurn was held but now I have the time to write something much more substantial on it. My housemate and former housemate went traipsing off to the Karoo over Easter while I was stuck in steamy Durban going through a horrid breakup. No Easter Vortex or AfrikaBurn for this person- felt very much like someone who missed out on a chocolate layer cake and only got green beans and broccoli (although do love my veg so...).

First, a little history. AfrikaBurn is a four-day festival combining art, music, dancing and communal living. The point is to bring whatever you need to survive in the desert and exist without cash.  There are no vendors or stalls but a ‘gift economy’ instead. As the manifesto says; ‘expect nothing in return.’ The festival is mainly about the constructing of art in a free space without commerciality and consumerism. How you participate is completely up to you- a theme camp, painting your body, creating your own art installation or volunteering to help out. What people create is truly the highlight of the festival. The theme this year was STOF, the Afrikaans word for dust. The theme is not policed so any "Burner" can interpret it as freely as they want. It’s merely a platform. From what i have gathered about this festival, it is not just about hedonistic exploration but the freedom to have a space where people can be as creative as they want without any outside influence or critic. All the art is then burnt in a cathartic manner to create something else- reflection. Many AfrikaBurn artists take months for the creation of their pieces and yet they burn them happily while reflecting on the journey and the people that have brought them to this place. It is all about engaging!

My friends decided to paint their bodies. Neo, whom we call Mbe, go into the vibe by painting eyes on her nipples and walking around topless. Her rationale was “if you are going to stare at my breasts, they are going to stare back at you.” A group of Americans and other foreigners who stayed at our house in Grahamstown afterward decorated their bus.  Mbe is a phenomenonal person and photographer. Here are her snaps from AfrikaBurn; they explain the wonderment much more succinctly than I can ever hope to. For more, click on Afrika- She Burns, Mbe's album.

RIP DJ Solarize; 4 June 1985- 5 June 2011

For all of you out there who haven't heard, South Africa lost an innovative and talented DJ and visual artist last weekend. Leon Botha/DJ Solarize was only twenty-six years old. Famed for his passionate love of hip-hop music and culture and art, Botha collaborated with galleries and recording artists to combine the two including Liquid Swords; I am HipHop and Who Am I? Transgressions. Many know him for his musical collaborations with Die Antwoord.

Botha suffered from a rare degenerative disease that causes premature aging called progeria. After suffering a heart attack in November last year, a weakened Botha died at his home in Cape Town one day after his twenty-sixth birthday. A philosopher, hiphop lover and accomplished artist and entertainer, he will be missed. Check out DJ Solarize’s art and interview with onesmallseed and a clip of his latest art exhibition, Transgressions.

More Talent

Here are the some more of the CIBA exhibit. Tamlyn Young's "Tree" series is just too amazing. Her website http://justam.withtank.com/ has more of her multimedia work and rationale.







"The Curiostree"



"The Possibilitree"

"Tea Tree"

"Observatree"

Homegrown Talent

While at the Franschhoek Literary Festival last weekend, the definite standout exhibit came from the illustrative side of the spectrum. The illustrations on display were the final pieces of book art done by the 2010 Honours class at CIBA- the Centre for Comic, Illustrative and Book Arts at Stellenbosch. CIBA is based in Stellenbosch’s Department of Visual Arts in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Its main aim is to promote and teach about these dimensions of art through being visible within the arts community.

Showcased at FLF were illustrated handmade books by Pienette Laubser, Carla Kreuser, Tamlyn Young, Carla Visser, Lucy Stuart-Clark, Janneke de Kock, Helene van Answegen and Kirsten Hartley. Pienette Laubser was at the exhibit. Her creation was Becky’s Room- a tale of a little girl’s messy room. Children’s whimsical tales accompanied beautifully creative and imaginative illustrations from Lucy Stuart- Clark. Conceptual illustration was seen in Carla Visser’s Utopia and Dystopia and Tamlyn Young’s edgy, blurred images in The Silence. Young also had illustrated mini-stories about the “Observatree,” “Possibilitree” and the “Tea Tree” all with their own history and accompanying character.

It was great to see how much talent there is within the arts community in such a lesser-known medium. The illustrations were phenomenal and sadly, definitely not for sale given the painstaking effort that has gone into them.

If you are interested in CIBA at all as something you might be into take a look at their Facebook page.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Centre-for-Comic-Illustrative-and-Book-Arts/73653742247



"The Silence"