In the lush grounds of Shepstone Gardens on the outskirts of Johannesburg’s Houghton Estate, artists, collectives and galleries will be coming to the RMB 2023 Star Art Exhibition from 26 to 28 May.
In the lush grounds of Shepstone Gardens on the outskirts of Johannesburg’s Houghton Estate, artists, collectives and galleries will be coming to the RMB 2023 Star Art Exhibition from 26 to 28 May.
Latitudes, one of the largest online markets for African art with more than 1 500 artists from around 200 countries, will present the artworks to the physical space and transform the art gallery and exhibition model into an online platform throughout the year.
“We aim to be inclusive, accessible and optimistic,” said Lattitude co-founder Roberta Coci. “It’s a rebellion against the rigid rules of art fairs.”
And Open Studios Joburg will show art lovers the studio universe of the city.
RMB Latitude Art Fair also aims to be a more democratic affair that does not only cater to wealthy collectors. The artist’s name and access to the studio break the murky nature of the industry. Like the Turbine Art Fair in Johannesburg, Latitude is an opportunity for people to buy their first artwork.
“We don’t want another art fair in Sandton with a dollar cut or no price, or no artist’s name. The more art fairs, the more opportunities to buy and sell art,” said RMB’s Carolynne Waterhouse.
The exhibition will host the RMB Young Artists’ Playground, a place for children to explore art through a play party.
The Gothic and Mediterranean architecture of Shepstone Gardens will house works of art from 31 South Africans, with the likes of Art Africa, Delaney Studio x Lady Skollie, Everard Read Gallery and Kalashnikovv Gallery. The seven international exhibitions include Uganda’s Afriart Gallery, Netherlands’ No Man Gallery, Spain’s Suburbia and Germany’s Galerie Artco.
Expect works from artists such as Katlego Tlabela, known for her bright blue colors or Frances Goodman’s punchy pink tones that will juxtapose the neutral backdrop of Shepstone Gardens.
Co-emergence of African art
The central theme of the exhibition is “emerging together”, says Nkhensani Mkhari, curator of special projects RMB Latitudes.
Art viewers approach art with their own life experiences, realities and perspectives, while artists convey their own message.
“This is not only for rich collectors, but how the family makes a journey in space, about growing and creating a third space between two bodies”.
Mkhari says that Africa is seen as a monolithic place, but there are nuances to different African cultures. This Latitude RMB Art Exhibition will show our diversity, and the way we echo and reflect each other.
The theme examines how these diverse and often vernacular aesthetics and cultures influence each other in the diaspora and contemporary African art. After all, “diaspora” also refers to distance, and “echoes are products and symbols for places”, says Mkhari.
Collage city
The center of Johannesburg has many artist studios, and is considered an international art city. On 27 and 28 May, the OpenStudios.Joburg project will drive people to art buildings and projects in the city, creating a city of collages.
“The studio space is a complex, confusing and strange world. However, it is the artist’s natural habitat,” says Sara Hallat, founder of OpenStudios.Joburg.
The art world most often showcases the final product, but not the artist’s studio where unfinished works are visible, Hallat said.