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kyndaris · 6 years

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How Long is Eighty Days - Part One

I first met her just as first semester began. Palms sweating, I glanced around the lecture hall. We had just been instructed to introduce ourselves to the people next to us. From what I could see, most had classmates they knew from high school. I, on the other hand, had been the only person in my grade to throw my lot into this particular course. No familiar faces loomed out at me. And all the others were already deep in conversation.

That was when she turned towards me with a beatific smile on her face. Her hazel eyes were filled with a mix of kindness and warmth as she took me in. Had it not been the very first day and the very first subject for the under, with the weight of scrutiny heavy on my shoulders, I might have offered an articulate response. Instead, a strange gurgling had my cheeks aflame when I realised that it had come from my throat. There went my first impression. I waited for her to turn away and condemn me as the ‘strange one’ with a look of bemusement, but she surprised me by offering a sympathetic ear.

“I’ve often been told that I take the words right out of someone’s mouth,” she whispered conspiratorially. “The first day is always the worst, isn’t it? Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone if you don’t.”

A nervous smile touched my lips. “You don’t seem all that intimidated.”

She grinned. “I’ll have you know that I’ve always been good at power. But the truth of the matter is that I’d much rather be back home instead of facing this gauntlet of lectures and tutorials. Meeting new people is always a frightening experience.”

“Jamie,” I said, sticking out my hand.

She eyed it for a good half second before giving it a proper shake. “My parents have always been old fashioned. It’s a little embarrassing, come to think of it, but you can call me Cassie. Although my full name is Cassandra.”

“Glad to make your acquaintance. Cassandra.”

“Now you’re just making fun of me,” she accused, though humour laced the words.

Before we could delve further into conversation, the lecturer was quick to catch our attention and the lesson resumed. I don’t quite remember much of that first hour for Sociology and Anthropology. Although I was quick to take notes, my mind remained focused on the feel of Cassie’s hand in mine and the sweet citrusy perfume she wore.

The next time I saw her, I had just taken shelter underneath the glass overhang of the beloved central business school as the autumnal rains pelted down. Like the intelligent creature I was, I had decided to wait until the middle of the week to purchase all the necessary textbooks – believing the lines would be shorter.

Cassie was with a group of what I assumed were her old classmates. The way they exchanged banter reminded me of all those movies where the popular girl was surrounded by simpering sycophants. And yet, I envied each and every one of them as they laughed at one of Cassie’s jokes or gossiped about the things they had gleaned from the first week. It was irrational. But by the time she and her posse had disappeared from view, I was on the verge of turning green. Books in hand, I stepped out from my hiding spot with nary an umbrella and allowed myself to be drenched as I trudged towards the bus stop.

Needless to say, several days later I was sick in bed and trying to make sense of the words printed on the water damaged page. It was a miracle that it had not already turned into pulp during the deluge.

That would be the last time I ever forgot to bring something to stave off the inclement weather.

How long is eighty days? Break it down into hours and you get one thousand nine hundred and twenty. Minutes-wise, there’s a whopping total of one hundred nineteen thousand two hundred. In those burgeoning and fleeting moments of romance, each and every single of those precious minutes felt like a millennium that passed in the blink of an eye. At least, that’s how I saw the following twelve weeks as Cassie and I slowly became more comfortable in each other’s company.

Often, I found myself counting down the seconds until I would see her in the lecture we shared. Afterwards, we would head out to the library lawn, going over the readings for class. When the fancy struck her, she would convince me into skipping my next class and we would head to the nearby beach. Despite the fact that winter was fast encroaching, we would still see tourists flocking to the golden sands.

“Did you see that?” I would ask, pointing to one of the hapless families trying to take a selfie as they were battered by high winds. “You can tell which ones are from the mainland. They’re not typically dressed for a day out in the sun. Umbrellas, long sleeves – those are your hints that they’ve not been here long.”

In those too-brief moments, we flirted and teased. For me, they were the highlights of each week and I savoured the time I could spend with Cassie. And when she slowly but surely introduced me to her circle of friends, I learned quickly to adapt. Some were friendly, eager to see a new face. Others could have done well with a lesson in manners.

And as exams loomed ever closer, we would occasionally go out to the Roundhouse or the heart of the city, drinking and clubbing into the early hours. It was a different experience. The idea of grinding away and hoping to catch the eye of someone who might be interested left a bad taste in my mouth, but by the time the deadlines were knocking on the door, I took to them like a fish to water.

Of course, my grades slid a bit but I was quick study when it came to revising. It isn’t a simple brag to say that I aced most of my classes. That is, everything except for Sociology and Anthropology. Suffice it to say, I managed to scrape by with a passing mark but my overall standing took a significant hit. Cassie, on the other hand, fared much better. But she had a talent for constructing essays with surprising depth that seemed to elude me. When the marks came in, she was in the top ten percent of the class.

Thus, semester break began. And with it, the school holidays.

It was the perfect time to learn about each other’s habit beyond the confines of university. We would organise dates to the local cinema and perhaps follow it up with a karaoke session. Sometimes we would go as a group with a mixture of her friends and mine. Other times, it would just be the two of us. Those were the moments I cherished. Being alone with Cassie and talking about anything that came to mind.

I swiftly learned that though she had enrolled into a humanities degree, her heart longed for the sciences. Cassie was someone that was not afraid of getting her hands dirty. Coding and circuits and trying to figure out how the world worked. Those were the topics that interested her. But when she had expressed her desire to pursue a degree in engineering, her parents had been adamant. They had quashed any and all dreams before they even had the opportunity to take flight. Cassie bristled as she recounted how her father had sat her down in the living room and told her explicitly that her career path was set in stone. It was expected that she take over the accounting for their family-run business. And with her older sister absconding overseas, it was she that was expected to carry on the legacy.

Yet despite her frustrations, Cassie was quick to shut down any encouragement from me. She would offer me a rueful grin and shake her head. “Thanks Jamie but it really doesn’t matter what I do at uni. There’re always online courses and I’ve found that it’s actually quite fun trying to figure out all these things by myself. I mean, it can be difficult to understand why something has gone wrong but that’s why we have Google, right?”

But all of our alone time quickly came to an end in July. I can’t rightly say that my mother was negligent but she often relied on me to take care of Derrick, particularly on the days when he did not have any actual tutoring. Younger than me by four years, he stood a good twenty centimetres taller. I hated that. Having seen him swaddled in diapers (and even helped change a few) it simply seemed unfair that Derrick was all but looming over me in Year 10. I tried, once, to see if I might be able to break his kneecaps when the first signs of a growth spurt were underway but dad put a stopper to those plans.

Actually, that was a lie. And it goes to show what a poor taste I have in jokes. Derrick, the loyal brother, would find the humour in it but often my sense of funny has a tendency to put off most upstanding citizens. But Cassie had one just as black as my own. Or, at the very least, she was appreciative of the sarcasm.

Derrick and I, though, we’re close. Perhaps the four year age gap worked in our favour. What fights we did have were short-lived. Mostly because he had a face that everyone could love. And we often bantered in the privacy of our shared study room. That, of course, didn’t mean I wanted him around when I was with Cassie.

After our first ‘date’ with him playing the third wheel, Derrick was quick to pounce upon me for more details. “She seems nice.”

“What?” I asked, looking up from my bowl of noodles.

“Cassandra. I like her. Not as much as that other girl who could draw those henna tattoos, of course. What happened to her by the way?”

“She moved interstate,” I said. “I suppose being up in the Sunshine State is better than settling for physiotherapy. Alice was always ambitious and well, I was never one to put myself out there. The distance didn’t help much either.”

“That’s a shame,” said Derrick as he worked on his maths problems. Finally he set aside pencil and scientific calculator and stretched. Pushing aside his workbook, he finally asked the one question I had been dreading for days on end. “But come on Jamie, when are you going to make it Facebook official? I’ve seen the way you look at Cassandra and she seems interested as well.”

Despite the fact that he had lost most of his baby fat and there was an inkling of facial hair, Derrick still managed to look like a lost puppy. His pleading brown eyes begged for an answer and though my heart could be as cold as ice, it could not resist the pull.

A resigned sigh escaped my lips. I had wrangled with the question for so long that I had pushed it to the back of my mind. Did it really matter whether or not we took the next step? But what if she only saw our relationship as merely platonic? For several weeks I had been caught in a pit of paralysis and unable to climb my way out of it. The idea of placing my heart on the line and waiting for it to be crushed was not something I could idly do. And yet, what if Cassie felt the same?

“This is Houston and we have a problem. Contact with Jamie has been lost. I repeat: contact with Jamie Zhang has been lost. Hello? Is there anyone still there?” Derrick always knew the best way to break my train of thought. I tossed a mean glare his way as he merely shrugged. “If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine.”

“I do. It’s just…I’m scared. What if Cassie sees me as just a friend?”

Derrick slung an arm around my shoulder. “Chin up, Jamie. There’s plenty of other fish in the sea if the worst happens. But you know what mum keeps saying about opportunities. You’ll miss all the ones you don’t take. So go out there!”

It was cheesy and clichéd. But Derrick always knew what to say. For a fifteen year old going through puberty, he could be surprisingly worldly even if he was still a tad obsessed with shonen anime that included the likes of Attack on Titan and One-Punch Man, often playacting scenes in our backyard. I suppose it is true: no-one is perfect.

Heeding the advice from my brother, I asked Cassie out to talk on the day just before uni was to resume. She was eager to watch the latest winter blockbusters that had hit the silver screens. Once the movie was over, we strolled down through the bustling city streets, avoiding the main road. Years had gone by but the light rail was still under construction. Rumour had it that it would go on for ten or more years, diverting traffic from the centre of town. Finally, we found ourselves in the Botanic Gardens, overlooking the harbour.

It was not how I imagined where the confession would be, but surrounded by all the different species of flora that were still flourishing despite the chill helped push me over the edge.

Taking a deep breath, I turned towards Cassie. “I like you,” I said. Terror and a small spark of hope warred in my chest. This was now or never. Do or die. I had made myself vulnerable and now my nerves were all jumbled together as I waited patiently for her reply.

“I like you too,” she replied but it was clear that my words had her puzzled. “What brought this on, Jamie? Did you think I was going to leave after all the things we did last semester? Don’t forget, we actually have a lecture and a tutorial together.”

It was enough to confirm the feelings I had. Whether it was madness that gripped me or something else, I could not be quite sure. Yet, despite all the barriers I had put up to stop myself from giving into my base impulses, I leaned forward and captured her lips with mine.

#short story

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studio183-blog · 7 years

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MEET THE DESIGNER CORRINA GOUTOS

Corrina, please introduce yourself and your label.

I am a jewelry and object artist born and raised in Upstate New York, now based in Hamburg, Germany. Although a piece of my heart still resides in Berlin, where I first landed ship nearly 4 years ago. I graduated with a BA in Jewelry and Objects from the Savannah College of Art and Design and immediately moved to Berlin-where I founded my practice.

My work is heavily inspired by the fluctuation between things man-made and things natural - a boundary that proves evermore transient and hard to define. I am interested in the temporary and the long-term relationships we have with the objects around us; from the mundane plastic coffee cup to the most sacred family heirloom. I trill in reading the unfinished stories of these objects abandoned in urban environments or at flea markets.

As a creative what stood out for you in Berlin?

Berlin was a goldmine for me for this reason; a texture bomb of painted, bannered surfaces, colourful personalities, borderline hoarders and unapologetic black sheep. Going on a walk was the best way to get inspired. The ideas piled up but slowly the possibilities got narrower.

Living in middle Weserstraße Neukölln working out of my 11sq meter bedroom - unable to find a decent studio; great project ideas started getting ruled out real fast. Can’t wake the whole apartment building with my brutal dentistry noises anymore, don’t have a car to transport that, can I install ‘Stark Strom’ in the basement and run my machines there!?

I needed to grow and I had a very expansive offer standing idle from my lovely boyfriend. A 300 plus year old straw-roof farmhouse on the outskirts of Hamburg that he and his brother jumped on 10 years ago due to the rarity of these things coming on the market. Already equipped with a full wood and metal working workshop, it wasn’t long till my dream studio was unfolding before my eyes. One year later and I have 5 chickens, a garden, and a million new restoration skills.

You now live in the countryside, has the change of scenery influenced your work in any way?

There is no doubt my productivity has also improved from the increase in focus. The urban and consumerist themes remain strong in my work, but that has been a constant since the first art pieces I have made. What’s different now is my perspective - as an observer, no longer knee deep in the buy-o-sphere rather, as a person much closer to living a self-sufficient life.

Although I won’t claim to be free from temptation, I see that my art has taken on a more pure, refined style - ridded with the myriad of influences; stripped down to the essentials - like my life has. The freedom to make messes and noise at any hour has led me to do a lot more experimenting.

Do you have a favourite material for sculpting your pieces?

At the moment my favourite technique is still “lost wax casting” where pieces are sculpted in wax, set in ceramic, burned out and then metal is cast into the ceramic making a 1:1 cast of the wax model.

Wax is a remarkable material with many diverse properties that make it my favourite to work with. I experiment with just about every type of wax there is on the market. Silver is my second, a beautiful material no doubt - a soft, skin-friendly metal that once you get to know it - it starts working for you!

Do you have any specific inspirations/processes when you start a new collection?

I don’t use moodboards as I make or design because I feel they limit the wider pool from which I draw inspiration. Since I enjoy the end product to be a fusion of the aesthetic, I desire plus a good dose of the accidental; the spontaneity of the material often ends up being more interesting than anything I can sketch out or imagine.

Regardless I start every collection with a sequence that starts with word mapping: in which I translate usually psychological/social themes (my inspiration) into visually descriptive adjectives. This helps me think more abstract and see new associations and build metaphors into the collection’s aesthetic. From there I do many sketches and at the same time experimenting with materials and techniques that help me achieve the feeling of these adjectives.

From the strongest samples I create objects and sculptures, and finally I distill the objects into wearable work - taking the details I found most interesting and translating them into small pieces of adornment that travel the world with their wearers! I also take many photos around the urban environment, which are integral to my overall design thinking process.

I love the combinations of things that end up in the trash or on the streets.The collaboration of people and places and times that we see intercepting in the urban environment every day. It’s Ironic, beautiful and loaded with fun juxtapositions and interesting silhouettes.

Do you create for a certain persona? If so, please describe them.

I do not create for a certain person currently. I generally try to achieve the most unisex products possible. But as I stated, the concept and material play dictate most of the end product’s appearance. If I had a dream client though - it would definitely be Iris Apfel and all of her Advanced Style friends. She is fabulous and I would be honoured to adorn her with my work!

What’s the best compliment/description/comment someone has given your designs?

I definitely am still glowing from my best compliment and that was a month ago in Munich for Munich Jewelry Week, a.k.a. Mecca for Art Jewelers; a huge citywide exhibition with the best of the best from world-wide on display.

Somehow I found myself in a casual conversation one-on-one with a legend - one of the founders of Art Jewelry, Ruddt Peters - and of course an Idol of mine. His eyes went immediately to my brooch (the silver one listed in my favourites on top) and he told me he had never seen anything like it and I must continue with this.

One month later turns out he was the guest judge for an exhibition I entered and he saw that brooch in print and picked out my application first for the “definitely in” pile. The creator of the event wrote me asking if I knew him, because he couldn’t have believed I made such a strong impression on him in the 2 minutes we spoke in Munich!

Tell us about more about your current collection.

Corrina’s current collection - “Self-Made”is a series of remnants of Generation Z’s search for permanence in an attention-deficit-disorder society. Also known as the ‘Me’ Generation or ‘Selfie’ Generation-Z’s have mastered the catered image of self. They design the face they will present to the world; they build a platform on which to receive praise and filter criticism. They are beautiful but lacking in depth - a fragile façade.

The pieces reference cheap modern mass production, but are constructed with materials associated with luxury and employ high handcraft technique. Handled with neurotic, obsessive control of the material to fit our desires - yet they remain distinctly human. “Self-Made” is a souvenir to this era of indifferent indulgence; a contemporary artefact to commemorate the modern consumer and his/her many short lived personalities.

Your current collection is gorgeous. Is there anything you could tell us about the next one?

Another fun thing about being an artist and not a designer is only I decide when it is time for the next collection. There are no rules about trending or seasons that dictate my work - I move on when I feel the idea is exhausted or has met its fullest potential. Some concepts are really rich and I can develop them for years: allowing them to transform aesthetically far from the first few samples.

These are the ideas I hope for - they allow a degree of mastership in a technique and allow me to clarify my idea and visual signature. My current collection “Self-Made” continues to excite me, so you will all have to stay tuned to see what new faces it takes on. I can say that I am playing with many alternative materials at the moment which I hope to incorporate - such as papier-mâché and electroforming on clay.

Can you tell us about any exciting plans for the year ahead?

In the next year there is lots in the works! As I just mentioned I was accepted into an esteemed Art Jewelry Exhibition - that will take place next month - in May, in Bucharest, Romania. I am also working on collaboration with a very talented digital mapping and 3-D printing artist that I hope we will be seeing some pieces from in summer. As well as I am planning to open small group- bed and breakfast style weekend jewelry courses out of our country home! Partners could make an engagement ring for one another, or bring a friend learn some basics in jewelry construction with me! Interested people can e-mail me for more information on signing up - [email protected]

https://www.instagram.com/corrinagoutos/

https://www.facebook.com/corrinagoutosjewelry/

http://corrinagoutos.com/

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hollyhawthorne · 6 years

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INVESTIC CAPE TOWN ART FAIR 2019 QUESTIONS

1. Find each gallery booths for the three galleries that we visited on Thursday 14 Feb. What do you notice about each of these booths that are similar and different to the actual gallery (do you recognize the gallerists, the style of work/ artists and ways the work is hanging, a “vibe” etc.).

- At BLANC GALLERY in Woodstock, we saw a solo show by Bronwyn Katz, which consisted only of three-dimensional works. The works were few and took up two spacious rooms. At the fair, Blanc exhibited a number of artists’ three-dimensional and two-dimensional works, obviously resulting in a more condensed and claustraphobic style of curation. I recognized that the same gallerist had been looking after the works at both events.

- Woodstock’s GOODMAN GALLERY hosted a solo show by Nolan Oswald Dennis. There were both two and three-dimensional works there, with some expanding straight onto the surface of the walls. A few of these walls had been painted grey. All of the works were presented along the perimeter of the room, with no sculptural works moving out into the middle of the space. At the fair, however, there were sculptural works for people to navigate their way around. None of the walls there were grey, but there were some yellow stripes on the floor that existed prior to the fair. There was a seperate room for the photography and video work of Tabita Rezaire, which was quite a tight squeeze, adding to the theme of confrontation that I felt her work explored.

- STEVENSON GALLERY in Woodstock is currently presenting Simphiwe Ndzube’s work, most of which is sculptural, or two dimensional with attatched objects jutting out of the frames. The walls were painted in light pink and blue, there were also handprints of smeared paint, reminding one of the human behind the final product. None of this evidence of labour was included in the curation of the fair. Here; Kemang,Botha, Cohen and Grose exhibited a variety of works.

2. Over the course of the day, decide on THREE works you absolutely love and THREE you most dislike or find frustrating. Make note of these with full details, and why you like/dislike them.

WORKS THAT I LIKED

- B. Wurts, Untitled, 2001, acrylic paint, paper

I really enjoyed Wurts’ comic or diary-like language that was created through the use of quick scribbles of random phrases and chaotic drawings, as well as the interesting variety of tone and line. The artist used scrap papers, reminiscent of post-it notes, arranged in layers that were itching to be paged through. This created an interesting paradox, where one needs to touch the work in order to see all of the drawings, but is not allowed to, given the formal gallery setting. I love the themes of horror paired with humour, as well as child-like drawings used within the professional realm of a gallery.

- Pino Deodato, Untitled

These were the only details of the work, written lightly on the wall in pencil. The sculptures appeared to be made from clay, though. This work was quite strange. While I didn’t immedietely love the look of it, I loved the strange and eerie feeling which I got from it, as well as the evidence of the human hand and its imperfection. By this, i mean that there were visable finger marks on the sculptures. The figures reminded me of childrens’ dolls, which was creepy but also quite mundane at the same time, due to the subdude colour pallette and absense of any wild brush strokes or obvious symbols of horror. I quite enjoyed the scale of the work, because as the viewer, you had to go really close to it and get involved in order to see the details.

- Ed Young, balloon performance and installation piece

I thought that Young was really clever with this piece. By having his assistant hand out balloons, people were bound to take photos with them. Even I posed for an instagram picture with mine. Those balloons followed viewers around into every corner of the fair, making their way into almost all of the press photos. Later, when I thought about how redundant these ‘balloon selfies’ were, i realised that people were literally posing underneath labels such as ‘scumbag’ and ‘moron’, highlighting how people will literally do anything to be trendy. I’m not sure if this was intensional, but I thought that that the use of humour was inspirational to my own practice.

WORKS THAT I DISLIKED

- Mr, While Walking, 2017, Acrylic and silkscreen print on canvas.

This work frustrated me. I assumed that it was a nod to pop culture, and more specifically to the sub-cultures that exist around anime. This work looked to me like a poster than any kid would have in his/her bedroom, giving a nod to mass-production. I felt like this was a really tired and overdone theme... however whilst I was typing this i realized that this print was the only one of its kind that was made, which is quite interesting...

- Ley Mboromwe, Mokonzi aza mutema made, 2019, acrylic on canvas

Borrowing ideas and drawing inspiration from other artists is inevitable. However, there is a fine line between influence and blatant copying, and this piece is literally a knovk-off Basquiat. The only explaination that I can think of is perhaps a reimagining of Basquiat in an African context? This peice just confused me.

- DD Trans, Untitled

Whilst I liked the idea of the brightly coloured balloon ties being juxtaposed to the oldstyle painting, I found it to be quite random and was left wondering if there was any contextual meaning behind it? I just feel like the placement of the balloons could have been more considerred.

3. What are the predominant mediums and processes that dominate the majority of works at the fair this year?

I noticed a lot of painting, as well as the use of found objects. I enjoyed the fact that I saw a lot more “quick, spontaneous, loose” work in comparrsion to last year. But im not sure if thats just because I was looking out for those qualities...

4. What are the most obvious differences between the way different booths are curated? Look at spacing/ size/ hanging/ booth furniture and so on.

Some booths are more interactive (viewer can walk between sculptures/installations), while some are curated very traditionally, with uniform framing. Some booths were very spacious, placing emphasis on the chosen works, while more claustraphobic booths displayed lots of works. Some booths had little office type spaces where gallerists could sit and discuss the art with buyers/veiwers.

5. How do the various booths differ in terms of signage, text, labeling/ titles: note the different ways.

Some artists have the imperical data for their work displayed tradditionally on printed labels, while some data has been drawn onto the walls. Some have no titles at all. Some artists included descriptions/analysis with the work, while some did not.

6. What is the general layout of the fair? Why do you think it is laid out this way?

The walkways between the booths was made wider this year. This is undoubtably because in 2018 the pathways were very tight, making one gallery space indistinguishable from the next. Besides this, the layout of the fair is still maze-like, with no particular path mapped out for viewers. This encourages the viewer to gravitate towards and away from certain works according to their intrests, forging their own path through the room. The divisions which were clear though, were that the commercial galleries dominated the central spaces, whilst smaller local galleries fell to the sides. Very old modern art galleries exhibited on the far left side of the room, probably the least viewed area.

7. What is the lighting like at the fair? Describe.

Not good. The bright white lights were quite clinical and also caused glares to appear across most of the works.

8. What do you notice about the way people dress at an art fair? Look carefully at how the people working in the booths present themselves ,as well as other people at the fair and make observational notes.

There were lots of kids in school uniforms. Other than that, amoungst the adults, the fashion that I saw was quite strange. Other than a few posh art buyers, dressed in designer, people appeared to be dressed very casually. This was quite a let down, as last year we saw many flamboyant and expressive outfits.

9. Who or what are the various “markets” at this fair? What are the different types of “products” being sold and promoted here? Who is the fair aimed at?

The art fair is aimed at buyers, a very specific target market consisting of wealthy art collectors. It also caters to the public who are interested in art.. You had to pay for a ticket which means their target market is people who have money to spend on entertainment. (middle to upper class). Products aimed at the general public include books, food, drinks and psoters, whilst the aim of the fair is to sell art to the rich.

10. Find a work that you think exemplifies the spectacle of wealth. Note why you think so.

For me, the most obvious example was Athi-Patra Ruga’s The ever promised erection I. This is simply due to the materiality - or rather how it appears. The piece seems to ooze of expense, dripping in gold and jewels. Also, the symol of a bust signifies royalty or significant importance.

11. Find a work that feels like it doesn’t “fit” in this art fair context. Note why you think so.

12. How easy is it to ask about prices? Take turns with your fellow CA students to enquire about the cost of works at various galleries and take note of prices across the fair, as well as the way gallerists may treat you or react to you asking for these details. Do it at least TWICE yourself in two different places.

I didn’t find it easy at all to find prices, mostly out of my own fear of talking to fancy gallerists. However, I did speak to one or two friendly faces who were more than happy to discuss the prices and process of buying pieces.

13. What do you notice about sponsorship and branding at the fair? What brands are visible and who is the clientele / target market of these brands? Why would they choose a fair to push their product?

The whole fair is obviously sponsored by Investic, whose branding is visable on all of the art fair parafenalia. Another big brand was moet champagne, which is appealing to a target market of wealthy people, like art buyers. Fairs are great for advertising because a large volume of people come through every day that the work is up.

14. Why do you think this fair takes place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre? What other commercial events take place here? (look up examples)

The venue is large enough to fit in lots of booths and many people. The venue is also in central Cape Town, so quite accessible. Other events here include gift fairs, jazz festivals, comic con, business conferences etc.

15.What are the oldest artworks you can find at the fair? (made the furthest back in time)

The whole section dedicated to the “greats” in South African art history. E.g. William Kentridge, Irma Stern.

16. Who are the youngest artists you can see represented at the fair?

Smith Gallery exhibited a number of works by freshly graduated Michaela’s students such as Michaela Younge and Talia Ramkilawan.

17. How do the SOLO booths differ from the other booths?

Naturally, there would be more cohesion in the look and curation of the booth of a solo artist. There is more of a focus on that particular artist. Shared booths are trickier to curate I think, in regards to allowing a good flow of work.

18. Who are the big names that keep popping up this year? Note why you think this is so.

I heard a lot of buzz around Roger Ballen appearing at the fair. I think this was because he’s such an oddball and his work fascinates people. The fact that his name popped up a lot for me could, however, be because I follow his work quite closely and actively look for news on him.

19.What kind of trends in subject matter do you notice this year? What kind of trends in materials do you notice this year? Note why you think this is so.

I noticed a lot of mixed media works, as well as found objects. In terms of subject matter, I saw a lot of figures, and subject matter relating personally to the background or current situation of the artist. I think this is because artists commonly use art as a means to express themselves.

20. If you could be represented by any of these galleries, whom would you LOVE to show or be represented by?

Smith, because I liked how young emerging artists were all alongside one another.

21. If you could work FOR any of these galleries, whom would you LOVE to work for? And in what capacity?

Smac Gallery, as a curator. Or anything that allowed me to handle Georgina Gratrix’s paintings!

22.What other questions came up for you while wandering around the fair?

How could one possibly give attention to all of the works here? What would the best route be to walk, because I kept walking in circles.

23. If you were to start a gallery or art institute, would you (hypothetically) want to show at the fair? And if so, how would your stall look and differ or be similar to what you have seen today? (you can make a sketch below)

I would possibly show, but I’d love to have a solo booth to create somekind of installation work, seperate from the rest of the booths (almost like a resting spot for viewers).

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