Dive into the archives.
Laurence Bonvin will showcase two series of photographic works focused on peripheral urban spaces, which she produced whilst in residency in Johannesburg and Cape Town in 2009. The travelling exhibition, supported by Pro Helvetia, the Swiss Arts Council and FMAC, the City of Geneva, will open at blank projects in Cape Town, from 4 to 25 November, before moving to other centres in 2011.
Bonvin, who is based in Geneva and Berlin, studied photography at École Nationale de la Photographie in Arles, France. She is the author of four publications, and her work has been exhibited in London, Paris and Zurich among other European cities since 1993. Her work is concerned with urban landscapes, and asks questions about the functionalist architecture of our cities and how it affects the perceptions of those who live there.
“Blikkiesdorp” (2009) is the title of the first series, named for the newly built township close to Delft South on the edges of Cape Town International Airport. There Bonvin captured in striking detail through architecture, everyday life scenes and a few portraits, the living environments in these “transit homes”. The result is a portrait of brutal social reality.
With “In & Out” (2009), Bonvin explored the margins of Johannesburg and produced a series of landscapes that reveal the fragmentation and complexity of a multi-faceted peri-urban fabric. It finds on the margins of the city different spaces that are at the same time undergoing deep transformations yet also still marked by the strict divisions imposed by Apartheid.
Jonathan Garnham, the director of blank projects, is excited about the fresh perspective this series brings to the subject of marginal urban spaces: “Bonvin’s work poses questions around the urban fabric of South Africa, specifically the peripheral areas of our cities, which we usually only experience by passing through and never engage with on any significant level. She engaged with these areas intensely, taking photographs with the eye of an outsider, and this exhibition aims to show the South African public how she saw and what she captured.”
Accompanying the exhibition of photographic works, two young local artists/curators, Lerato Bereng and Mohau Modisakeng, will use the adjoining project space at blank to host a discussion that will take the form of an installation dealing with the idea of marginalisation, which, in content, touches on Bonvin’s work. This performative installation will function independently to the show of photographic works but at the same time will deepen the connections between the two series and the local contexts in which they were produced.
After its run at blank projects in Cape Town, In Transit will be exhibited in Johannesburg at a time and venue to be confirmed.
Image: The legendary Manager of Wolverhampton Wanderers FC, Stan Cullis, working out tactics on a miniature football pitch in his office, 1949.
(Wilson, J. 2009. Inverting the pyramid – the history of football tactics. London: Orion).
Blank Projects in partnership with the Goethe-Institut Südafrika & Pro Helvetia invites the public to: Inverting the Pyramid, curated by Jonathan Garnham.
Opening: Thursday 10 June 2010 at 18:00.
Exhibition closes 10 July 2010.
Artists and aficionado’s comment on the beautiful game.
From the 10th of June to the 10th of July, blank will function as a focal point for critical response and inane comments around football. Ongoing research and production will inform the exhibition and extend it out of the gallery.
A screening programme, curated by Emile Kelly (London), showing films about football, will run over the 5 weeks.
Contributors: Sanell Aggenbach, Matthew Blackman, Chimurenga magazine, Anja de Klerk, Pierre Fouché, Corlia Harmsen, Trasi Henen, Emile Kelly, Moshekwa Langa, Bettina Malcomess, Catherine Ocholla, Sean O’Toole, David Sazo, Blett Sapper, Robert Sloon, Linda Stupart, Adriaan de Villiers, Jasper Walgrave, Ed Young.
113-115 Sir Lowry road, Woodstock, Cape Town
www.blankprojects.com
Gallery opening hours: Tue-Fri: 10:00-15:00, Sat: 10:00-13:00.
Closed on Mondays & public holidays.
