Confessionale

Abstract

This exhibition consists of sixteen monumental portrait drawings of former prisoners. I explored the emotive qualities of drawing material as an autonomous means of communication and a carrier of the transformative capacity of the empathic sublime to create meaning. Thematically there is a correlation with my PhD project, but in this exhibition the focus is exclusively on portraits, which are not included in my PhD submission. In this exhibition, fragmented portrait drawings, such as the “Belshazzar” series, are inspired by myths and brought into a reflective context of life stories, where a reciprocal process between me and individuals is explored. Three exhibition spaces formed one conceptual narrative. The Italian title ‘Confessionale’ referred to the act of confession as well as a space of confession. ‘Confessionale’ referred to the sacred experience of personal and collective confession as it is performed in many religious cultures. I aimed to create a sanctified space of reflection by reinterpreting the traditional concept of confession. The confrontational power of the portraits challenged the audience towards seeing and recognising the self and the other in their mutual humanity. This points to our equality and the need for seeing and reflecting through the marginalised other. In so doing, I aimed to address the problem of social prejudice between races and social groups which stifles psychological and spiritual growth needed for healing in a post-apartheid society. The works encourage us to become comfortable in space which is inherently uncomfortable. Carl Jung (1968) referred to the psychological necessity for “shadow work” towards mental health. He underscores the necessity of dealing with the shadow towards wholeness. The drawings become a means towards this end – seeking to excavate unconscious material through memories to consciousness through the drawing process, making the invisible visible, transcending words. In so doing, the drawings position themselves in a space of mutual feeling, in an intimate space in which ‘I see you’ and ‘you see me’. This exhibition challenged accepted traditions of portraiture of depicting the marginalised other. I propagate that no portrait is ever purely objective, as the artist seeks to create from the inside out, aiming to depict ‘her truth’ as it relates to her lifeworld. The work beckons to commemorate the lives of the rejected, and through the act of drawing sought to validate our own inner experience of being rejected. The problem of presenting people that exist on the periphery of society, generally referred to as “others”, is often debated in art. In this exhibition I thus embraced this challenge and dilemma, as I have also worked in close relationship with these prisoners in a mentoring capacity. The work probes a friendship that I built with individuals over many years. I aimed to transform the simple portrait into a territory of known relationships. One of my objectives was to establish a platform of mutuality against the conformity of regarding incarcerated individuals as being ‘other’. The focus of drawing as an attempt to grasp the marks and tones of life beyond our everyday understanding of humanity constructs the map for reconciliation: I am his other, and he is my other. In the monumental "Procession: After the Citizens of Calais”, a scroll takes on a theatrical presence, and the drawing is a performative act depicting progression. This sense of flow was further explored in the exhibition spaces divided by curtains. I explored brush-painted charcoal drawings in their potential to become transformative ‘self-objects’, creating unique platforms for inter-material dialogue, communicating through a silent visual language, supporting Jung’s claim of the unification of the conscious and unconscious. British artist Antony Gormley claimed in his work done in prisons that no one can imprison the mind of the prisoner and that this faculty remains open to the imagination of everyone. My exhibition contributes to artmaking as imaginative faculty and the notion of ‘incarceration’ as a psychological and spiritual condition. This solo at SMAC Gallery coincided with the Cape Town Art Fair and included walkabouts with Baylon Sandri. Johan Myburg wrote an article about my art practice in “Die Burger", and the exhibition was well received by the public. Elizabeth Gunter presented the opening address, and several works now form part of the permanent collection in the Perez Museum, Miami.