There has been an uproar and backlash about the painting, he painted. This downfall sounds like a mother telling her daughter to stay in her toxic, abusive relationship because that is how things are. I was mostly shocked, to read Facebook post from artists whom in the passed have express in their songs, plays, poems how the justice is so unjust and the government is not for the people.
Let us call spade a spade shall we?
I am a believer of ART, and ART should by all means provoke masses, speak for the unspoken. Art should disturb, touch, anger and question how we live, how we relate and how we survive.
Let us take out, the moral route, let us take out what our culture say about morals…heh? Lets us take out the ungodly godly part of this, let us remove the religion side of things, let us take out any sexual connotations…
Yeah! see where I am going with this…
Then possibly see what the painting means and what it tries to convey. How it stand as a stand alone: don’t try to churchirize, moralize even sexualize it.
Basically this painting, speaks about what you wrote in your play, the difference is that the volume is a bit louder and it is after all a paint, brush, mind and the government. All the anti-march against our presidency, all the talks of why our presidency must fall, all the ranting about how the government does nothing for artists is expressed in this painting. Whether you like it or not you have your truth and we know it, let his truth be known as well.
It is funny how we quick to share, like, comment when someone’s speech hits a nerve, only to find that the painting might be standing close-by to the speech.
I read on Facebook, that since when ART disrespect? Well the mere truth is as soon as we think what ART should be, we have lost the bigger picture.
The painter was able to paint what he feels, he painted what he sees everyday that is his story.
The only thing I miss, in this whole water-oil situation is how he did not give me space to find equivocation. How he did not make me travel in his journey and he selfishly dismantled his views to be his views only. The painting has some kind of distance between the human eye and Art, it did not invite me through…Oh maybe that does not make sense.
I feel the painting was made in a therapy session. It feels like a first draft of a play.
Because…
I don’t feel anything, I am not moved, I am not angered, I am not surprised, I am not provoked I think it has to do with the style, and the colour pattern he chose. It is unfortunately artistically not well done. Whether does it carry a message, yes it does. It does say something… It is not a masterpiece.It feels cheap, maybe that is what the painter intended me to feel…cheap.
Is it ART or Is it just another angry South African artist? It’s both.
Just not my taste of ART. I am a Van Gogh typer girl.