Isivivane – a powerful symbol of community and collective memory, was recently celebrated through the Isivivane Contemporary Art Exhibition. Artist and scholar Kolodi Senong graced the exhibition and was moved by the depth and contemplative nature of the works on display.
Mamba Buthelezi, an upcoming curator and one of the participants in the recent Isivivane Contemporary Art Exhibition attempted to frame the exhibition as the contemporary continuity of the ancient tradition of isivivane, which is deeply rooted in the culture of piling loose stones to create a monument or shrine.
Such a memorial functioned to pay tribute to individuals who often died lonely, out of sight of the community in the hinterland.
Buthelezi says after discovering the remains of the deceased, “community members would spread the word for others to continue stacking up stones at that particular spot every time they went past.” This allowed every person to contribute towards dignifying the deceased by constructing their remembrance, known as isivivane. Therefore, the isivivane tradition is a powerful symbol of community and collective memory.
It’s a tradition that celebrates the human spirit’s quest to help one another, and this contemporary isivivane becomes a metaphor for acknowledging people’s joint destiny as part of “ukuyo phontsa itshe esivivaneni.”
Buthelezi co-curated the exhibition with Boitumelo Makousu, under the umbrella of the Umsamo Artist Guild. The Isivivane Contemporary Art Exhibition, a pop-up group art show opened at the Old Mushroom Farm in Karkloof, Howick in KwaZulu-Natal on November 1.
Stepping into the exhibition room at the lavish lifestyle farm in the Midlands, one was immediately struck by the diverse themes that appeal to nuanced human emotions.
The Isivivane exhibition featured works from various male artists, including Muzi Ndlela, Thamsanqa Mfuphi, Mamba Buthelezi, Sir Lincoln, James Youens, and Lungisani Ndlovu.
Each artist brought a unique perspective and artistic style to the table, with some opting for multilayered compositions that veer towards experimentation and others presenting their work with canny titles such as New Dawn (2024), Igeza (2024), and Contentment (2024).
One of the art lovers in attendance raved about the rich symbolism and imagery of a vertically-inclined oil painting, Silindele isiPorofetho (2024), by Mamba Buthelezi.
The elderly lady became animated when she shared a felt kinship with the artist’s choice of subject matter and use of colour. This painting represents a half-length portrait of a female figure in a chalky long-sleeved top.
The overly-darkened figure with hands at the back of her body carries a leather whip. It portrays a member of the iBandla lamaNazaretha who appears to intentionally avoid communication with the spectator. She is painted, staring at the ground.
The source of the work’s spiritual connotations emanates from the stark contrasting white shirt, black skirt and blood-red background against the woman’s posture. Buthelezi’s representation of a strong woman who fills the image frame with her presence imbues the work with a sense of monumentality.
A discerning affinity with the aesthetic that grew out of Johannesburg’s communal Artist Proof Studio in the early 2000s appears in Thamsanqa Mfuphi’s lino prints and paintings.
Generally, these carefully constructed artworks consist of portraits of young male figures. Through exaggerated darker tones against heightened highlights, the figures’ chuckles warm the heart. The artist skilfully renders forceful compositions that create a sense of a shared atmosphere.
Take, for example, the joyful camaraderie in Ezindizela emafini Inkonjane (2024). The depicted figures’ gaze to the outside of the image frame acknowledges the presence of the onlooker.
The two young men sit next to a bunch of used tyres, expressing the lives of young people from a particular station. Depicted on a grey prison blanket with red dividing lines on either side, a weird, expressive character dominates the composition.
With its exaggerated features and vibrant colours, this character adds complexity to the artwork, inviting the viewer to ponder its meaning.
Muzi Ndlela’s artworks, New Dawn, I and II (2024), evoke a sense of introspection and exploration.Each panel consists of nine small individual canvases marked by contrasting muted colours, inviting viewers to delve into the artist’s subjective exploration of African spirituality. His use of pastel colours is taken further in depicting another canvas showing a male figure holding an umbrella, Kuloluhambo (2024).
The monochrome head of a goat in the grey scale dominates the lower right-hand corner of the canvas, adding a layer of mystery and intrigue. Generally, goats in most African cultures invoke an awareness of ancestral mediation, productiveness and personal well-being. Ndlela’s handling of flat yellow tones in the background lends the work an emotional disposition that transcends time and place.
Conversely, Lungisani Ndlovu’s erotic pop-inspired use of bright colours such as purple, green and red add a lighter spin to a heavy subject matter. For example, Hide the Joy of Mourning depicts a smiling female figure who enjoys what looks like a margarita.
A potpourri of bright colours forms a halo that puts a positive spin on the composition. A similar use of bright colours to evoke fragrant smells can be seen in the portrait composition of a blindfolded male titled Feza Iphupho (2024).
His portrayal of a sensual being with exaggerated red lips, a flat pink background and a green shirt against off-white flowers raises pertinent questions. One of these questions is, what does realising one’s dreams entail? This question, and the artist’s playful use of colours and composition, invites the audience to consider the complexities of human desires and the pursuit of happiness.
As if responding to Ndlovu’s question about realising one’s dreams, Sir Lincoln employs playfulness to recreate childhood memories. His compositions, Letter to Mom (2024), My Father Chimney (2024), and Me and My Bog (2024) indulge in a nostalgic, naive children’s sense of innocence.
Perhaps framed within Stimela’s 1994 song See the World through the Eyes of a Child (2024), Sir Lincoln painted Letter to Mom (2024). Depicted from a youngster’s perspective, the work explores memory and recollection that indulge in self-reflexology. Adding his perspective to the world of self-indulgence is James Youens’ mixed media portraits.
His work relies on expressive, bold mark-making to investigate the human psyche in the mould of the Austrian Expressionist Egon Schiele. Looking at Youens’ broad-eyed monochrome portrait of a young male, titled Astonishment (2024), reveals the artist’s desperate probe for life’s meaning. These explorative lines appear in another mixed media portrait, Contentment, which combines reds and blues to elicit emotions. Youens’ raw mark-making process reimagines compositional traits, searching for an expression and potentially waiting to unfold with time.
Tsholofelo Moche, a ceramics lecturer at the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Visual Arts reiterated the importance of the exhibition as a cornerstone “that helps to create a vibrant local arts economy and a currency for creative practices in Pietermaritzburg.”
He asserted that “what sets the university (University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Visual Arts) apart from others across the country is its ability to introduce students without prior knowledge of structured art education to experience it firsthand.”
Isivivane introduces fledgeling artists to the professional art scene while developing a community of art lovers and collectors.
Including women’s voices in the construction process will help broaden the isivivane into a life-affirming contemporary monument. The exhibition closed on November 18.
Kolodi Senong is a painter, educator and a postdoctoral researcher at the Wits School of Arts. His creative work revolves around people on the periphery of popular discourse. He can be reached on e-mail – at kolodisenong@gmail.com
