Death has often been depicted in art but perhaps not as exhaustively and imaginatively as the award-winning work of Port Elizabeth-born artist Kathleen Sawyer.
She was one of four young South African artists who have been honoured for their outstanding contemporary pieces in the 2013 Absa L'Atelier art competition. While three of the works provided social and political comment, the fourth - Sawyer's - explored the universal theme of death and transformation in a novel and engaging way.
Sawyer, 23 - who spent five years studying at Rhodes University - said yesterday that her Somata work consisted of seven "artist's books", each dealing with narratives surrounding change in the body which included mutation, disease, growing up, decay and death.
"Obviously I have chosen to focus on the more abject fluctuations of the body, partly due to the inherent taboo surrounding issues such as these.
"After some encouragement from my mentor I decided to use the drawings themselves as the basis for my work and from there I merely focused on what interested me — namely the body, disease and horrible death." She said the major challenges included trying to fill entire notebooks with finely-detailed drawings.
"This was quite time-consuming until I realised I could intersperse drawings with relevant text or blank pages to enhance the narratives therein. "The most frustrating work was the piece based on Victorian death photography — a practice made commonplace in an era where photography was still fairly uncommon.
Sawyer said her interest in artmaking had been omnipresent in her life, but she only became really serious after she took science instead of art in Grade 10 "in some misguided attempt to be a veterinarian". However after scoring zero out of 30 for a class test which she actually studied for, she realised this was not a good idea.
"After dropping science and picking up art I flourished and realised that there was nothing else I would rather do."
Sometimes the only chance to obtain photographs of loved ones was after their death. "The body would often be posed with family members or even children, as if the deceased was sleeping. I created a flip-book which animates as the viewer rifles through the pages." Of her merit award, Sawyer said she felt very happy and fortunate. "It has renewed my confidence and motivation to become a ‘serious' artist.
It has shown me that there are viable opportunities for artists to succeed." Sawyer won a one month's stay at the Ampersand Foundation in New York and as part of the prize, she also becomes a Fellow of the Ampersand Foundation.
"The residency in New York functions on a kind of cultural exchange that is meant to be an opportunity for research. "The idea is that the artist gets out of their comfort the space and explores, while utilising the resources such a place has to offer by visiting galleries and exhibitions, networking, engaging with other artists and curators.
"And, using the time as an opportunity to ruminate on one's own artistic mission and generate ideas by doing so." Sawyer said she was currently working on a small series of book art which uses "werewolf ism" as a metaphor for female puberty.
Pauline Gutter, of Bloemfontein, took the overall L'Atelier award and main prize for her piece, Die Huweliksaansoek, while Mongezi Ncaphayi of Johannesburg was awarded the Gerard Sekoto Award for the most promising artist with an annual income less than R60 000 for his work, Migrant Workers' Hostels.
The other merit award winner, apart from Sawyer, was Jaco van Schalkwyk, of Johannesburg for his mixed media installation Beloofde Land?/ Promised Land?. Now in its 28th year, the competition, in partnership with the South African National Association for the Visual Arts, is rated the longest-running and most influential art contest on the continent.
Dr Paul Bayliss, Absa Art and Museum curator, said more than 565 entries were received from across the country. "It was so fascinating to see the depth of creativity exhibited by the entrants. It points to how our emerging artists are growing.
Caption: MOTIVATED SKETCHER: Kathleen Sawyer has been honoured for her outstanding pieces in the 2013 Absa L'Atelier Art competition.
By: Brett Adkins
Article Source: The Herald