Category: Uncategorized

Artist Margaret Nel shares Stories with Provocative Paintings at Retrospective

~ debeernecessities ~ 1 Comment

The Pretoria Art Museum, in conjunction with the Association of Arts Pretoria, is presenting a major retrospective exhibition by South African artist Margaret Nel at the Pretoria Art Museum until January 28, featuring a selection of over 70 paintings, spanning a career of over four decades.

Due to popular demand, the Pretoria Art Museum will be hosting a final walkabout of the exhibition A Retrospective: 1970 – 2017 on Saturday,  January 20 as the artist Margaret Nel discusses selected key works from the show.

Entry to the museum is free for those attending the walkabout. Light refreshments will be served before the walkabout commences at 11. Book your spot at info@margaretnel.com by Thursday, January 18 .

For those unable to attend the walkabout, but who still wish to view the exhibition, the show closes on Sunday, January 28.

 

DIANE DE BEER spoke to the artist just before the opening:

Artist Margaret Nel’s world reflects her artistic mien, from her art to her home and her personal style.

She lives in Pretoria’s famous round house on Tom Jenkins drive and upon entering the space, the way she has fashioned her interiors – from the paintings on the wall (her own work and others) to the interiors – the way she presents herself, all has a specific artistic ambience. It’s almost as if one is moving with and walking into an evolving artwork.

In the process of finalising her exhibition, we chat about a career that stretches from the 70s and is ongoing. “I am always painting,” says Nel. “There’s not a year that goes by without having produced something.” She is already working on an exhibition to be presented at the Oliewenhuis Art Museum in Bloemfontein next year.

Apart from a period in the 80s, when she stepped away from her art because of a young family and life in general, it is what occupies her heart and her mind and what she surrounds herself with. And when perusing the information available on the current exhibition, everything she does is done with a fine eye for planning, not leaving anything to chance.

She has even thought about the criticism ahead of this retrospective. But she’s excited and keen to hear what people think, especially the knowledgeable ones. As someone who shows her work, she knows viewers feel and have the right to criticise. While as a young artist, she might have struggled with that, now it is something she embraces.

She wonders how others will view her progress, something she is quite happy with. “I am confident about my work,” she says softly. And that steely demeanour might have something to do with the fact that while studying and starting her career, female artists always found themselves attached to part of a boy’s club. “We had to deal with that, always in the minority.”

1998_Waiting-for-the-Renaissance
Barren Land: 1998: Waiting for the Renaissance

Now, regarding her work in a retrospective, she is interested to see how it holds up in a solo exhibition. “Usually it is juxtaposed with the work of other artists and then it becomes difficult to judge,” she admits. She realises that certain periods like what she refers to as her Post Modern period could be perceived as out of step but believes the themes are even more relevant. “I touched on subject matter, such as xenophobia and diminishing and compromised natural resources, at a time when these issues were not as relevant as they are currently.”

The original title of the exhibition was Loss as it felt that as a concept, loss was the overarching theme, connecting the five distinct periods that her work falls into, over 40 years.

1970-Tea-time-I
The Outsider: 1970 Tea-time

“Loss of identity and control and loss of mental acuity are covered in the early period titled The Outsider as well as in the second titled Barren Land, where loss of culture and heritage as well as the potential loss of a sustainable future are also explored. The third section titled Incident talks about loss of security and a place of safety, specifically in the South African context but also in the global context.

“The fourth section titled Exposed deals with loss of protection from outside elements. And finally, the fifth, deals almost exclusively with universal feminist issues such as loss of identity, and loss of youth, loss of a voice in a male dominated society. I also obliquely speak about domestic abuse in the latest work, a subject very close to my heart and very difficult to comment on in a subtle way. Cuts of meat, enclosed in a fragile skin of plastic which is often shown ripped open is used as a metaphor.”

2013_Isolate_I
Exposed: 2013: Isolate

“I use models, myself included, not to paint portraits but to try to get across an idea. The double portrait of myself where I used a cell phone to capture a ‘selfie’ is titled Isolate and speaks about old age, loss of youth etc etc.” She shows herself as she really is – warts, ageing et all. There’s no fooling about here. Art is a release, therapy, autobiographical if obliquely so and you must face it head-on.

“Ultimately I explore aspects of the human condition that have directly touched me.”

Nel strikes one as someone who makes very specific choices in life. She might seem the introvert when one first meets her, but easily opens up and shares her feelings when she feels comfortable – her choice.

Her reason for showing her work in this large retrospective is also specifically driven. She admits, as artists should, that she wants people to see her work. “And hopefully educate and make people more aware of the issues that I find important.”

2015_Custard-bun-6s
2015: Custard buns

All her paintings have very specific titles, offering the viewer a key to unlock the work and she has detailed descriptions that might further the understanding of the artist’s point of view. But she is as thrilled if other layers or meanings are uncovered and explored by viewers.

“The work can be interpreted on many levels though, even quite superficially, and ultimately it must be left up to the viewer,” she says firmly.

 

Her art is eye-catching, intriguing, draws you in, challenges and encourages you to engage with many different emotions. This might be her chosen landscape, but with individual interpretations and varied life experiences, different people will react and embrace the work individually.

And that’s how it should be and how it is intended.

 

Pretoria Art Museum
Cnr Schoeman and Wessels Str
Arcadia Park
Arcadia

Pretoria

Open: Tuesdays to Sundays 10am to 5pm

 

 

 

The Theatrical Side of Season 2 of The Centre For The Less Good Idea

~ debeernecessities

Pics by Stella Olivier

Kgomotso Moncho-Maripane

Guest Writer

 

Gerard_portrait credit Stella Olivier
Gerard Bester

Gerard Bester describes his role as Associate Director for Season2 of The Centre for the Less Good Idea as dealing with one’s own ego and insecurities.

“It goes in waves, sometimes one feels useless and awful, other times one feels charged and creative,” he says.

It would be forgivable for a theatre enthusiast to romanticise the process in their minds because Bester, together with Nhlanhla Mahlangu and Mwenya Kabwe are theatre geniuses. The three of them drive the theatrical elements for the centre’s second season happening in Maboneng from tomorrow until Saturday.

Launched in March, the Centre is very much about process and exploring secondary ideas that come up when cracks and fissures occur in the initial big idea. It nurtures artists in finding the less good idea, and creates and supports experimental, collaborative and cross-disciplinary arts projects, over two seasons every year.

Founded by William Kentridge in November 2016, it provides a space for short form work whose life does not necessarily belong in a theatre or a gallery.

The first season, curated by performance poet, Lebo Mashile, choreographer/dancer, Gregory Maqoma and young director and playwright, Khayelihle Dom Gumede, pushed the boundaries of alternative spaces and language.

The second season is heavily nuanced by the collision of art and technology as brought in by co-curators, Tegan Bristow; Nhlanhla Mahlangu and urban culture entrepreneur, Jamal Nxedlana.

Bristow is an interactive media artist, lecturer at the Digital Arts Division of the Wits School of the Arts and co-founder of the Fak’ugesi African Digital Innovation Festival. She curated the Post African Futures exhibition for the Goodman Gallery in 2015 out of her research into technology, art and culture in Africa. She’s a supporter and an active player in the futurist movement that is characterising the African arts landscape right now, where science fiction and African futurism are not only themes but the approach, and technology is a medium for creating art. It is art that interrogates the present and shows history’s intrinsic link to the future.

Mwenya_portrait credit Stella Olivier
Mwenya Kabwe

Bristow invited inventive theatre maker and academic, Mwenya Kabwe as part of over 40 Johannesburg based multi-disciplinary practitioners involved in this season.  What they came up with laid the foundation for the sprouting of ideas that came after.

“One of the first conversations that Tegan and I had was about a series of short descriptive futuristic African worlds that I had written for a research project. She liked how they dealt with time and space and for their visual quality. These got called on quite early in the first brainstorming session for Season 2, as points of inspiration to launch from,” Kabwe explains.

She also collaborates with Bristow and musician Cameron Louis Harris, on an interactive performance piece called Jacaranda Time, performed by dancer/choreographer Sonia Radebe and actor Namatshego Khutsoane.

But her shorts are linked to the bigger story of Edward Nkoloso, a Zambian grade school science teacher in the 1960s, who around Zambia’s independence, established a space academy with the objectives of space travel. His story was made popular in urban culture by photographer Cristina de Middel and Ghanaian filmmaker Frances Bodomo’s short film, Afronauts. It’s a story that resonates deeply with Kabwe (who is Zambian herself) which she presents in a production of A Zambian Space Odyssey.

“Edward Nkoloso is presented in the world as a parody in slightly foolish ways of space travel, but he is also being reclaimed as a revolutionary whose metaphor for Zambia’s independence meant literally soaring to new heights and reaching the moon.  A Zambian Space Odyssey is a live proposal in reading him in these two different ways,” says Kabwe.

Known for her experimental, workshopped and directed theatre and performance work, it is her form of writing that she is experimenting with here.

Nhlanhla Mahlangu credit Stella Olivier
Nhlanhla Mahlangu

In addition to curating, Mahlangu, who worked on the first season as one of the musical directors, gets to showcase his seminal solo work, Chant, directed by Bester.

Mahlangu’s ingenuity as a musician sets him apart as a dancer/choreographer and performer. Bester, a performer who’s been called a “Post Modern Anti Hero Character” due to his innate connection to movement and ability to break the fourth wall when engaging an audience, comes also with his arts administration experience.

The two met 20 years ago when Bester was managing a programme Mahlangu was part of as a student and they have worked together ever since. They now revisit Chant, which premiered at the Julidans Festival in Amsterdam where it was commissioned in 2011.

The work is Mahlangu’s ode to the women who raised him.

“Nhlanhla has this extraordinary, rich memory and connection to his own history that speaks beyond the personal. What was an important realization when revisiting the work, was how to really honour the skills that Nhlanhla has and to distill each of those. There’s a new emotional intensity to the piece and the idea is to connect and to hold on to that,” Bester says.

The word Chant and the force behind it is a constant motif in Mahlangu’s work with other titles including The Worker’s Chant and Gqisha! The Chant That Calls, a collaboration with Dom Gumede.

“For me the chant is the literal and the metaphor of the constant endlessness of blackness and struggle. A chant is an endless song that you sing until your body goes into an altered state of consciousness. My work is driven by music and a chant is how I look at black lives, history and future,” Mahlangu explains.

He’s also created a piece inspired by Kabwe’s series of shorts with the music and score based on children’s games that black kids grow up reciting at school and playing in the streets.

“There are deep-seated political connotations to these children’s games and I’m highlighting those,” says Mahlangu.

For more info on the programme and bookings for Season 2 of the Centre for the Less Good Idea (October 11 – 14) visit www.lessgoodidea.com

 

 

 

 

PS: Afterthought …

~ debeernecessities

DIANE DE BEER

 

Nataniel costume

 

Nataniël has just finished his annual season at Emperor’s celebrating his 30 years as a solo artist with a season of 30 Years, 90 Minutes: Nataniël Celebrates 3 Decades On Stage.

One of my treats during these 30 years, has been revisiting a production towards the end of a run.

Because his shows have always been dense both visually and in content, review nights were particularly tense for me. This second time round, without stress, is my particular penchant.

I am not just inhaling and observing a one-off season, but one that has been 30 years in the making, was particularly informative and revealing about his creativity, his innovation and imagination.

That’s the way to do it! “I don’t want to bore people with one thing after another of the past,” he said. This was not going to be a best of…

What it was however was an insight into his mind, his personal favourites and a showcase of what he does best starting with his songs and his stories and then everything that he builds and layers around that.

The arrangements of the cover songs he sang, You’re My World by Cilla Black and Lately by Stevie Wonder ( a song he wished he had written, so perfectly it suits his voice) among others, were completely delicious as was some of his own music like Fall which he described as his personal favourite of what he titles his no-hit wonders!

Nats1

His voice has matured magnificently and he is completely comfortable and confident and  enhances his distinctive voice with the additional sounds of Dihan Slabber and Nicolaas Swart. And he is joined by a spectacular band led by Charl du Plessis (keyboards) and completed by Jean Oosthuizen (guitars), Hugo Radyn (drums) and Werner Spies (bass) who have worked with him for a very long time which means they can push the boundaries- and they do.

It’s a complete package that holds the rest of the show in a soundscape that runs through all the emotional hefts of a Nataniël story. And this was a show of single stories, each one a showcase of this master at spinning a yarn that has you screaming with laughter yet leaves you with a moment of melancholy that runs deep.

He tells a tale of a vision that he was holding on to while making  a truck-load of paper flowers. The repetition of the task was offset by what they were hoping to achieve – only to fail disastrously. Then comes the question. “What happens to you when the most beautiful thing you have ever seen is only real in your imagination? You go mad…”

And then it all becomes clear. The set that has been constructed on stage from the start of the show, is this particular image and with Nataniël’s extraordinary lighting abilities (he changes his costumes instantly with the colour and angle of the lights), he achieves exactly that. Not only for himself though, it’s also a vision for his audience. And it starts with what might seem a silly story about student escapades!

He speaks about extraordinary people doing ordinary things. But he constantly presents us with what seems ordinary – only to surprise us with wonderful stage wizardry.

That is the wonderment of his craft. And why it has been such bliss to watch the growth and explosive evolvement of this artist and his shows. It is a completely immersive adventure as you step into this fantasy landscape once that first note comes at you, usually from a darkened stage which reveals itself.

His shows are always that – a slow reveal.

Yet nothing is slow about his costumes (designed by Floris Louw) that glitter and dazzle, not in the expected fashion though and more Louis IV than Liberace.

This was his final curtain – for now – after 15 years at this venue, and he wanted to leave in style – which of course he did, powerfully.

He also wanted, in typical Nataniël style, to easily segue into his next venture, a smashing book on his costumes called Closet, to be released on October 9. His latest TV series also starts this week on Wednesday, Edik van Nantes 3 on DStv’s kykNET (144) at 8pm with repeats following.

So while he’s stepping off the big stage for just a moment, he leaves you with marvelous memories.

Thirty years of uniquely Nataniël performances have done that. He truly is a national theatrical treasure.

There’s still a chance to catch the show for some: Opera House, Port Elizabeth: 20 and 21 October; and Sand du Plessis, Bloemfontein; 26 to 28 October:

Theatre students from the UK and SA are saying it for themselves – on stage

~ debeernecessities

DIANE DE BEER

 

It’s time to update this story which is moving into its immediate end phase. There will be more lasting benefits that linger. I first did this interview approximately a month ago in time for the local performances which I witnessed and now the South African students are on their way to Britain for the performance with ODDMANOUT theatre company, in Darlington, UK. I’ve added current details with impressions of the show as well as kept the relevant info on this amazing showcase for a group of young local storytellers. To hitch a ride with this savvy group, know that the theme focusing on young women and their particular problems and potential was chosen long before this current worldwide focus on #me too in the wake of the Weinstein scandal with others tumbling out at the rate of knots:

Picture: Craig Chitima

SONY DSC
Darlington Khoza, Boikobo Masibi, Sinenhlanhla Mgeyi, Ncumisa Ndimeni and Mathews Rantsoma

Walking into one of the Market Theatre’s new-ish rehearsal spaces in Newtown (more than a month ago), I’m confronted with one of the rehearsals for the latest Market Lab collaboration, Encountering the Other, with ODDMANOUT theatre company, in Darlington, UK.

Twelve young people, six from South Africa and six from North East England,  were in the process of coming together in a few days to create a production exploring the realities and possibilities of young women in the current moment in a global context.

But before they got there, the two groups worked separately in their respective countries  creating as much work as they could through their specific processes which in the Lab’s case was mostly improv. “I think where our processes are very much movement based, the UK works much more from a text based space,” explains The Head of the Market Theatre Laboratory, who is also a director on the project, Clara Vaughan. And she confirmed this once the two groups started working together to shape the final product.

Supported by British Council Connect ZA, it is a creative partnership involving both live and digital performance and a coming together of young actors from different countries who can learn from each other both socially and artistically.

And having watched a bit of what the South African Lab students were doing while rehearsing, I know that their enthusiasm, their particular skill sets and their improv abilities would bring extraordinary energy to the project. I did in fact have to check whether this really was improv while watching.

And in the final production, the two groups coming together is so fascinating because of their different approaches and where they come from. The universality of these youngsters’ world is what they worked with most strongly as they played off each others particular energy.

This project came from a strong sense of the shared values of the two organisations: The Market Theatre Lab describes themselves as a creative hub supporting the development and emergence of talented young theatre-makers and contemporary, socially engaged, experimental performing arts.  And having witnessed their work through the years and the graduates moving on to further enrich our theatre landscape, what they’re doing works brilliantly.
ODDMANOUT was established by North East England theatre-makers, Scott Young and Katy Weir to create work with a strong focus on stories of social change and theatre with story-telling at its heart.

And so the twain met.

In the selection of actors who auditioned, the South African contingent split into an equal gender mix, three men and three women: Ncumisa Ndimeni, Mathews Rantsoma, Sinenhlanhla Mgeyi, Darlington Khoza, Tumeka Matintela and Boikobo Masibi.

lab-gender-roles-e1506432235192.jpg
Ncumisa Ndimeni, Sinenhlanhla Mgeyi, Mathews Rantsoma , Boikobo Masibi, Darlington Khoza and Tumeka Matintela

“We simply selected them according to the best auditions,” notes Vaughan. But what that particular mix meant in the rehearsal context, is that both the women and the men benefited in particular ways while exploring issues. “The women for example were surprised that the men had as many body issues as they did,” she says. It also meant that the men were much more aware of sounding sexist. “But we’ve tried to create the safety of a playful environment which will encourage everyone to participate and learn,” explains Vaughan as she includes her fellow director Jacques De Silva.

Because the British contingent were all women it also meant that the three South African men added a distinct flavour to the piece representing both genders while focusing on female issues.

Following two performances of Encountering the Other locally last month, the South African team fly to the UK on Friday (November 17), to host a series of workshops on specifically South African theatre-making techniques with the budding actors from the North East of England. This will be followed by a one-off performance of Encountering the Other at the newly restored Darlington Hippodrome on 27 November.

And they should knock their audience’s socks off. They did ours!

And says Clara Vaughan, the shows with mainly young audiences went fantastically and the Q&A sessions afterwards were vibrant and exploratory.

When last we spoke, she was hoping to make a detour to London for these first-time travelers but she had to find funding. Contact her urgently at clara@marketlab.co.za if you can help.

 

 

Aardklop pumping with innovation, imagination and creative possibilities

~ debeernecessities

DIANE DE BEER

With arts festivals still being the surest thing for many actors in this country, many of our best plays are premiered at these events before they start touring to mainstream theatres.

This year’s Aardklop (Potchefstroom’s annual festival from 2 to 8 October) while Afrikaans-driven, has many options for everyone simply interested in the arts and tehatre. An understanding of the language helps with a wider choice of course, but here are a few options worth checking.

Innovation is always part of a festival, and one of the most exciting is a one-on-one theatre experience that opens up all kinds of possibilities.

DEURnis is a one-on-one site-specific theatrical production with a very intimate yet cutting-edge and experimental approach. It involves a single audience member  who views three separate dramatic pieces per package (there are four different ones to choose from), with each of these having one performer and one audience member.

Each piece is is approximately 20 minutes long and written for a particular room/space in a house, so as a viewer, you move from one room to the next to see your three chosen plays.

It is the social issues that permeate the different works that affect individuals in different ways depending who you are. And for those who aren’t interested in gimmicky theatre, that’s exactly the trap they have avoided by aiming for excellence and substance in the texts.

“We have been inundated by people interested in writing for this venture,” says Johan van der Merwe, who with Rudi Sadler has started a production company Theatrerocket responsible for this exciting and well-executed concept.

They understand that the control has to be constant to see that everything works superbly. And as they had many plays to choose from, they have managed to execute their strict code.

It’s a fascinating experience, being the only one in the room in situations with a stranger telling a story that is often inclusive (never intrusive) but affects you as the viewer in very specific ways.

This is not a financial venture for the company. With only single actors and audience members, the numbers don’t add up. But because of the way it has been done, the performance experience the actors (at this stage mostly young) accumulate can’t be calculated. And chatting to a few of them in-between performances, they are equally thrilled by how much they are learning in the process. “Each performance is different because of the reaction of the individual viewing,” says one performer.

Having sat through a day of all of the plays (even a cabaret included), it doesn’t matter which package you choose. They’re all extremely well crafted and in sometimes scary ways, fun to experience. I loved it and more than anything, it is a concept with great potential. Personally I can’t wait to see how Theatrerocket is going to grow and expand this novel experiment.

One of their current quests is to find some older actors who want to participate. “It’s been a problem because most of them have families and the money isn’t the motivating factor here,” explains Van der Merwe.

Among the other shows and events to check out, including their searing production of Reuk van Appels, are the following:

  • The visual arts always feature strongly at this festival. With the title Saamklop (roughly translated as togetherness), it deals with South Africa’s rich history of collaboration, community engagement and artistic freedom. The focus is on artistic collaborations and community art projects exhibited together in a curated exhibition that spans many venues. Participants include the Bag Factory, Keleketla Library, The Found Collective, The Dead Bunny Society, NIROX Foundation Trust, The Artist Proof Studios and the Centre for the Less Good Idea, a William Kentridge initiative. A broad range of artworks, including paintings, drawings, videos, live performances, workshops, poetry and experimental new media projects will be on show. It’s worth traveling for. Curator (from Pretoria) Dr Johan Thom highlights the vital, creative role of community projects and artistic collaborations in contemporary South Africa’s art scene.
  • If you haven’t yet seen Pieter-Dirk Uys do either an Afrikaans or English version of his (in essence) life’s story, The Echo of a Noise, tick that box.  “I allowed myself to investigate the story behind the stories,” he explains.
  • A mover and shaker on the musical front, Charl du Plessis has two noteworthy productions. Stemme vir Môre (Voices of Tomorrow) combines the voices of Noluvuyiso Mpofu (soprano) and Bongani Kubheka (bass baritone) with Du Plessis on piano and features opera highlights. With Veertig Vingers (pictured) which points to four sets of hands, he creates a musical storm. Joining him on keyboards are Elna van der Merwe, Albie van Schalkwyk and Pieter Grobler as they perform favourite tunes from the classical, pop, jazz and rock genres.
  • For those who are au fait with the language, some theatre highlights include the Marthinus Basson directed Asem and Melk en Vleis; Dawid Minnaar in Monsieur Ibrahim en die blomme van die Koran; Weerkaats starring Milan Murray; Klara Maas se Hart is Gebreek, ensomeer: Die Vloeistoftrilogie with Wessel Pretorius, David Viviers; Nêrens, Noord-Kaap starring Albert Pretorius, De Klerk Oelofse and Geon Nel; and Elize Cawood and Wilson Dunster in Mike en Mavis (pictured).

There are more details about the festival or shows available at http://www.aardklop.co.za. Tickets at Computicket.

“The Alchemy of Words” plays with different disciplines creatively

~ debeernecessities

DIANE DE BEER

alchemy of words

Photographer: Dee-Ann Kaaijk

After premiering with a sold-out run at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown, Naomi van Niekerk’s The Alchemy of Words will be touring Southern Africa: landing in Johannesburg at the Market Lab’s Ramolao Makhene theatre from Thursday to 1 October, on 5 and 6 October at Cape Town’s Theatre Arts Admin Collective, 11 October at CCFM in Maputo and on October 14 and 15 at the Etienne Rousseau Theatre in Sasolburg.

Arthur Rimbaud, says Van Niekerk, for those who don’t know, is regarded as the ‘enfant terrible’ of French poetry who published his first immortal poem at the age of 16 only to completely abandon writing poetry at the age of 21! During this short period he managed to create a body of work that has had a profound impact on the poetry of his own time and on that of the 20th Century. André Breton, Dylan Thomas, Jack Kerouac, Bob Dylan, Patti Smith and Jim Morrison are some of the artists and musicians that have been influenced by his writing.

Who is this literary pioneer and creative genius who continues to receive letters from fans all over the world even 123 years after his death?

I am now making myself as scummy as I can. Why? I want to be a poet, and I am working at turning myself into a seer… The idea is to reach the unknown by the derangement of all the senses. It involves enormous suffering but one must be strong and be born a poet… – Arthur Rimbaud, 1871.

In The Alchemy of Words, three artists from different disciplines –puppetry, film and music – search to capture the enigma of this French poet and what it means to be a pioneer. It aims to be an immersive experience that combines artistic projections, puppetry and live music inspired by the diverse imagery from Rimbaud’s poems – smoke filled battlefields, the lush countryside of the French Ardennes, colourful vowels, crimson seas and more.

Naomi van Niekerk

Van Niekerk’s personal affinity to Rimbaud started when she studied for three years in a small town in northern France, Charleville-Mézières which also happens to be the birth town of Rimbaud. His face is everywhere and all the shops are named after him. “I discovered his poetry and started translating it from French with a dictionary (as part of learning the  language) and was intrigued though I never really got into it, it was too complex!”

If you have seen any of Van Niekerk’s collaborations, you will know that she works in a unique way. “I don’t describe or see myself as a theatre-maker. I’m an artist and performance is one of the mediums I work with,” she explains.  “I’ve always been working in many mediums such as scenography, puppetry, filmmaking and most recently printmaking. I was always drawn to shadow puppetry because it fits into a frame like a graphic novel and within that frame anything is possible. My light box gives me the same freedom – to create a world in a frame without needing too much. In my case some sand, cardboard and scissors… I also love to draw, its an obsession that started when I studied in France and could not speak French, it was a way of communicating ideas and absorbing new experiences.”

Experiencing her work on stage is like seeing many different artworks appear and disappear as you watch them being made.

partners at play

With The Alchemy of Words, she collaborates with two artists, composer Arnaud van Vliet (a regular collaborator) and puppeteer Yoann Pencolé, someone she studied with in France. It wasn’t an easy process because of living on different continents, but Van Vliet who is also the dramaturge of the piece, selected a series of Rimbaud poetry and set it to music. During a short time together in June (just before the National Arts Festival where the piece premiered) Pencolé and Van Niekerk would work out scenes which Van Vliet would see in the evenings and critique. “The music existed before we started and so did many of the projected imagery. Our challenge was to create a narrative thread,” explains Van Niekerk.

While she is currently hooked on film, she enjoys working in different mediums and the one feeds off the other. “With theatre it feels like I’m taking my prints/drawings off the gallery walls and into the street, making it accessible to a broader public than the elite Fine Art community. Theatre is a shared experience that happens once, within a specific framework of time. The performance then continues to exist in the memory of the audience.”

She believes that The Alchemy of Words has wide appeal. “Some people connect with the words of Rimbaud’s poetry, others enjoy the visuals and the music and we’ve had some fantastic responses from children as well. Anyone who would like to engage with imagery and poetry on both emotional and intellectual level, should see it.”

“This is one of my goals – giving the public a memory that they can linger on.”

  • This collaboration between South African and French artists was made possible by the generous support of the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS)

 

 

Sugar and spice and all things nice, the cuisine of Mosaic chef Chantel Dartnall

~ debeernecessities ~ 1 Comment

DIANE DE BEER

chantel dartnall 4
Chantel Dartnall

One of the few Gauteng chefs not disregarded by national (and international) food award judges, Chantel Dartnall from Restaurant Mosaic at the Orient (just outside Tshwane), is someone who is constantly evolving, never resting on her laurels.

She has just been named the world’s Best Female Chef at The Best Chef Awards 2017, which took place in Warsaw.

She was also placed at number 32 in the Best Chef Awards Top 100 list for 2017, ahead of luminaries such Spain’s Elena Arzak at 33, France’s Sebastien Bras at 35 and celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal at No 37. Dartnall was also the only South African chef listed in the top 100.

Launched in Poland in 2016, this international competition seeks out the world’s top chefs in terms of culinary artistry and visual presentation. The winning chefs are selected in six categories by 300 voters comprising chefs, food writers and culinary experts across the globe as well as 1,5 million followers on the competition’s digital platform.

Dartnall – who has twice been named South Africa’s Chef of the Year – beat out strong competition from globally acclaimed chefs including the aforementioned Arzak (Best Chef – Lady 2016 winner) of the three Michelin starred restaurant Arzak; Emma Bengtsson who is at the helm of the two Michelin-starred Scandinavian restaurant Aquavit in New York; Sophie Pic who gained three Michelin stars for her restaurant, Maison Pic in France and Clare Smyth, the first and only female chef to run a restaurant with three Michelin-stars in the UK with her establishment Core.

She takes everything she does seriously and yet, she’s always visible to her customers and ready to talk food. She loves sharing her inspirational ideas and talking about the origin and where her current interests lie.

soupe du jour 2
Cauliflower, Goose Liver Mousse, Brussel Sprouts, Black Truffle, part of her Autumn menu and demonstrated for the students

Seeing her work with the students from the University of Pretoria’s Department of Consumer Science recently when they launched their new kitchens, another side of her personality emerges. She’s comfortable and eager to pass on her trade secrets and because of her high profile in the industry, large crowds don’t faze her. She loves ploughing back and remembers how and where she started and the hard work it takes.

It was 11 years ago when she started cooking in the Mosaic kitchens. Having worked in a few commercial kitchens following her graduation, it was here she started formulating her future. From those early days, her food had a special quality. One immediately knew that this was something worth experiencing and through the years, while paying her dues (with tough lessons along the way), she signaled that she would realise her full potential … and more.

tidal pool 2
Tidal pool with Salmon Ceviche, Verbena aspic, Vanilla, Seaweed Salad

It was clear even then that she would develop and establish a signature style and that she understood the process. Each season with menu changes, the growth was visible and her creativity intensely personal. She is someone who travels regularly as she samples food from the top tables around the world and then she invests in her own imagination which is at the heart of her cooking.

“I think the biggest change over the past 11 years was moving from an environment that was new and uncertain for all of us – to the space we are now.” The word she uses to describe that is confident which is a great place to be. It brings belief and allows you to constantly leap those barriers.

Her Autumn menu which has just run its course was spectacular – a visual feast. And then it excelled as a taste sensation. Named Tabula Rasa (a Latin phrase referring to a blank slate and anything existing undisturbed in its original pure state) and her commitment towards a natural approach was clear.

She has always been able to achieve magnificent visual explosions. It’s almost like being embraced by a colourful Spring garden. You want to sit back and wallow in the exquisite picture. It’s always been a magical part of a Mosaic meal.

20160511_153627
A plate of dreams

How many times have I just marvelled at the magnificence of the plate? Not the food, before I even get to that, the physical plate! They’re so rare and so perfectly picked for each dish, its hard to resist as they linger in your mind’s eye

And then the detail of the dish itself. I have always thought that Chantel’s food should be savoured and shared on rare occasions. It’s that special and I have been privileged countless times. It is all in the detail, the delicacy of the plating and the deliciousness of the food.

sea mist 1
Sea Mist with East Coast Lobster, Saffron, Coral

She says that through the years, their emphasis has become more pure. “The focus is truly on emulating nature in each of our creations.” There’s no chance of leaving Mosaic without feeling spectacularly spoilt. Everything possible is done to make sure it is a rare night.

If this sounds like a total rave, that it is. But I have been a guest for all 11 years and witnessing the transformation has been special especially as part of the Pretoria food scene. We have many fine unacknowledged chefs and restaurants in the city arguably because they don’t fit into the standard requirements, but Mosaic was determined not to be ignored and they shouldn’t be.

african aromas 1
African aromas with venison, Madumbi, Soetdoring Smoke

Confidence has allowed them to move on and forward and the current object foremost in Chantel’s head and probably heart is her Spring menu which launched on the Equinox (September 22). Titled Cosmorganic it alludes to the “supposed character of the universe as a living organism whose atoms are endowed with sensibility, asserting that the organic in the whole of the universe as well as in the narrow sphere of a single body on the earth, is the first thing from which the inorganic is separated.”

That’s a mouthful, but then so is Chantel’s thought-processes as she creates the individual dishes. Just look at the pictures of the individual plates from the Autumn menu, each one with its own story and personality.

first frost 1
First Frost with Forelle Pear, Ivoire Chocolate, Tonka

These meals do not come easily and they’re pricey. Their Market Degustation menu of five courses is R850 and their Grande Degustation of eight courses is R1 250, that is without the wine pairing which adds respectively R460 and R585. I will easily pay that for the meals I have been fortunate to enjoy. It’s something unforgettably special and if food is a passion for you especially when this kind of artistry comes into play, save the money and go. It will be memorable.

Mosaic is an experience and as much as it is about food it is also about the people who are watched over by Chantel’s adorable mom Mari. She’s always there to greet you, to see that your every need is met and to make sure you’re personally cared for. Add to that the sommelier team of Germain Lehodey and his protégé, commis sommelier Moses Magwaza, who inform you of the luxurious wines you’re being served.

What I feel about Mosaic comes from the heart and in the end, it truly is about sweetly savouring every mouthful – and reveling in the moment.

Restaurant Mosaic at The Orient

http://www.the-orient.net/Home

Tel: (012) 371 2902/3/4/5

The Orient

Francolin Conservancy

Elandsfontein

Crocodile River Valley

Pretoria

 

New kitchens and a culinary science degree keeps them ahead of the curve

~ debeernecessities
food
Sunflower spring with carrot jelly and orange blossom yogurt cream

DIANE DE BEER

To celebrate their spanking new kitchens, the University of Pretoria’s Department of Consumer Science invited celebrated Mosaic chef Chantel Dartnall to guide the students through a fine-dining lunch for the media while also introducing their latest BSc Culinary Science degree which keeps them ahead of the curve:

 

All of us at some stage of our lives, man or woman, has to take stock of our kitchen. Think how much more challenging this becomes in a teaching environment.

The University of Pretoria’s (UP) Consumer Science Department this year unveiled newly renovated food laboratories that will accommodate more students with better equipment – some of the latest, in fact – and benefit their latest degree.

More students will be able to participate in the cooking experience, which means more trainees. Previously, the labs had 26 stations in total, but this has now been expanded to 60. Gas stoves have been fitted in keeping with current commercial trends. The new labs can also offer induction cooking and blast freezing as well as a range of food science equipment for modern day research and training.

After much research, these kitchens have been designed to be trendy, ergonomic and user friendly, with industrial equipment and surfaces. A lot of this this wouldn’t have meant much to any of us but for the many cookery programmes on television, which have allowed us to become more comfortable and informed about the technologies and advancement in the culinary space.

chantel
Chantel Dartnall with students busy preparing lunch

“Culinary research is a growing area which can be expanded with new facilities and modern up-to-date equipment. This puts UP at the forefront of culinary art and science training and enables future graduates to contribute to consumer food product and services development,” says Dr Gerrie du Rand, head of the Food and Nutrition section at the department.

 

The latest BSc Culinary Science degree, which focuses on the art and science of food offered by UP is the only degree of its kind in southern Africa. And these kitchens are good news especially for these students, who have to be at the forefront of what is happening in the culinary world.

The degree itself taps into the latest buzz in education in the US, where strong links between creativity and science is being touted and applied with great success. That, according to the hottest research, is what should be driving prospective workers when choosing their study direction.

All you have to do to check the evidence is to type in the words science/creativity/students and you will find a host of articles about the latest findings and studies pointing to the rewards in your future if you should pay attention to this advice.

IMG-20170817-WA0022
A student busy with finer detail

Take, for example, Nicholas Cary and Erik Voorhees, the pioneers of the world’s most powerful crypto currency, Bitcoin.

They put part of their success down to having been in the business leadership programme at the University of Puget Sound, a liberal arts college in Washington. They called it “a hive of intellectual curiosity”.
What they do there is enforce interdisciplinary programmes, so students of international political economics and business leadership are pushed to expand their thinking beyond their own narrow fields; and cross-train in the history department. Others studied the warrior poets of Asia!
Like a growing number of others in the US, this campus prizes broad-mindedness and intellectual discussion.

Think of the legal profession, one where creativity perhaps doesn’t immediately spring to mind. Yet someone explained the other day that the best part of her job was the solving of legal problems. That’s when she is at her most creative. It’s the same way a scientist will get to solve a particular problem. That’s what the arts do, they teach us to think creatively.

Now, if only someone had explained this to me when I was studying maths and science at school? We weren’t even told how a particular maths problem would be used in the real world? So you learnt by rote.

If food is your particular fancy, with their trendy culinary science degree kicking in next year, check the syllabus:
First-year departmental subjects: Basic food preparation; Other subjects: Academic information management, Language and study skills, Marketing management, Biometry, General chemistry, Physiology, Introduction to microbiology, Molecular and cell biology, Mathematics. Second-year departmental subjects: Food commodities and preparation Other subjects: Biochemistry, Marketing management, Food microbiology, Principles of Food Processing and Preserve, Bacteriology Third-year Departmental subjects: Food service management, Nutrition, Nutrition during the life cycle, Consumer food research, Large-scale food production and restaurant management Other subjects: Food chemistry Fourth-year departmental subjects: Product development and quality management, Food service management, Recipe development and standardisation, Culinary art, Research project, Experiential training Other subjects: Research methodology, Sensory evaluation

(Also see story on Chantel Dartnall that follows)

Artists in motion and how they do it: with the charm of cuisine and chanson

~ debeernecessities

DIANE DE BEER

A chef (Renette Vosloo) and a chanteuse (Willemien Rust) have hooked up to present evenings of cuisine and song in  Tshwane:

 

Renette and Willemien
Renette and Willemien

It’s not a new idea, but it is the freshness of the approach, the two individuals involved and the absence of these kinds of events, that makes this something special.

What they have done is taken their unique strengths – the one song, the other cuisine – and formulated a season of evenings where the one puts mouth-watering food on the table, and the other interprets the different dishes with a song from a chosen culture.

It started last month and runs until the beginning of October.

They began by asking specific questions. How would Edith Piaf’s iconic song Non Je Ne Regrette Rien taste? Why would Carla Bruni’s voice pair well with cinnamon and honey? How would Tiken Jah Fakoly’s song Dernier Appel translate on a plate?

It’s a way of playing with fun themes, tantalising the imagination and entertaining guests in a novel way – allowing them to escape a harrowing world out there.

That’s what good entertainment always does – and they’ve sealed the deal.

blackboard menuThose interested in food, might know Renette Vosloo as the Rooitamatie (red tomato) chef whose restaurant has had a few transformations in Pretoria, others might know her from a top-4 appearance on 2014’s Kokkedoor on Kyknet or her presenter’s job on Saturday mornings’ Ontbytsake (7.30 am on Saturdays on Channel 144 with repeats). Her food story with cooking in a 13-episode series will be broadcast next year.

She’s back in the capital city with her Rooitamatie guest house and supper club. It’s always been her preferred way. It’s all about visiting a home – and that is where she is most comfortable. If that’s not your idea of fun, it’s not for you.

The guest house is situated between two major hospitals (Zuid Afrikaans and Jacaranda) with the bulk of their guests focussed on hospital visits.

The supper club which spills onto the front balcony and then into the garden doesn’t take too many diners which makes it an intimate evening and one best enjoyed with a group of friends. They offer dinners only when booked for a group of six or more. They’re not licensed and the menus are discussed with diners before the time .(renette@rootamatie.co.za).

Bouillabaisse
Pissaladiére
Decadent Chocolate

On the night our menu started with an amuse bouche (pissaladiére, almost like mini pizzas), a particular favourite of the chef, with anchovy, a hint of chilli and a light pastry accompanied by Francois Hardy singing about young love; followed by a starter of black noodles, squid ink,  braised squid, slow roasted tomato “bouillabaisse” to the sounds of Emily Loizeau’s Eaux sombre; Carla Bruni’s Quelqu’un m’a dit where the sounds invest the fleetingness of life with the original flavours of saffron chicken, tarragon cream, rose water and almond rice pilaf; and what else with the decadent dark chocolate tart, white chocolate shards and white crème Chantilly than Edith Piaf’s iconic Non, Je ne Regrette Rien?

This is where Willemien (also known as Willemien/Philomène Rust -née Heyns) steps in. The two great loves of her life: French and music. (The Philomène side of her name, she laughingly describes as a bit of an identity crisis! But it also encapsulates who she is and what she does.)

For the past six years she has lectured in French at the University of Pretoria. In 2014, she received her Masters in French, and in all this time, she was juggling many balls – perhaps too many. The non-academic side of her life was dominated by music, her own solo singing but also numerous collaborations. And suddenly – as it would with her kind of passion and talent – the music has emerged very strongly and she decided to take a creative sabbatical this year for as long as it takes.  “I’ll be back in academia at some stage,’’ she says referring to herself as a creative entrepreneur who performs, presents creative writing programmes where French is taught (on invitation) and also does film translations.

Willemien in songBefore she presents her interpretation with a song, Renette introduces the dish and then before the performance, the singer explains the intuition that determined each individual taste. Willemien believes this year is her time and she’s left her day job to concentrate on her singing. Sometimes it will be the music of others and at other times, it will be her self-penned songs in theatres and at festivals.

With her French background, selecting an evening of French music is an excellent choice. She obviously feels at home, knows the music which allows for inspirational choices and acts as her own accompanist on piano. She also invites a friend to add extra instruments for texture and ambience. On the night it was Pieter Bezuidenhout on accordion and synth.

She determines her menu choices by selecting one iconic/popular song, and uses contemporary singers to introduce recent sounds, with some of her own compositions to showcase her own work. Before the dinner starts and once it has concluded, she plays light background music.

This is how her music is given centre stage.

It is a night full of surprises. The ambience is warm and comfortable with the odd dog meandering through the room, and one almost expects a toddler to stick his head around a door. It’s that kind of place. The food is imaginative and tasty, and the music a worthy companion on the night.

Follow-up dates:

Francophone Africa:
(Tiken Jah Fakoly, Amadou & Mariam, Angélique Kidjo…)

20 September: Rooitamatie Guesthouse (Adelle Nqeto & James Robb will be joining her)
27 September: Victoria House SOLD OUT

Francophone Islands (Mauritius, Madagascar, Reunion) :
(Grèn Sémé, Slam artists…)

4 October: Rooitamatie Guesthouse
11 October: Victoria House

 Ticket includes: 4 course meal with wine; live intimate concert “paired” with each course. Bookings at least a week in advance at philomene.et@gmail.com

 

Television Telling it Like it Is in the Real World

~ debeernecessities

Diane de Beer

AMERICANCRIME BENITO
Benito Martinez in American Crime

If you aren’t watching American Crime, the latest series which started about two weeks ago, try to get to see it.

Proving the relevance of current television, the series – now in its third season – has dealt with racism and the other in some shape or form. But the present season has tapped right into the centre of The Donald’s heart. And if this vision of illegal Mexican immigrants in the US is just part of the truth, they are already living the nightmare the American president is planning for them if all his immigration laws are passed and the wall comes to fruition.

Most countries, I suspect, have their own version of illegal immigrants and we all know how that goes. As workers these poor people are exploited and because they are already on the wrong side of the law, they have no legal resource whatsoever which means they are being trampled on by everybody.

And who would want to be in a country illegally? I’m sure this is not a choice but simply survival. If your own country’s economy goes into the doldrums like it did in Zimbabwe’s case, where are you going to go? You need to work to survive and usually a large family is looking at you to make things happen. It’s like a new kind of slavery with no way out – that’s if you make it across the border where usually further exploitation is also perched just waiting to pounce on those already down and out.

But back to the US, let’s tap into family values, such a strong motivator in America. It’s often used to justify most everything. In this TV version, everyone’s preferred option, denial, is again at play. For centuries, landowners have abused their worker and because it was passed on from father to son, no questions are asked. “It’s always been like this,” says a son with an awakening awareness as his sister-in-law is driven to do something about life-threatening living conditions.

Getting things right and shipshape from the start would perhaps result in similar costs, but the longer you wait, the tougher it becomes to create better conditions.

FELICITY HUFFMAN
Felicity Huffman in American Crime

In the first two seasons Regina King, Felicity Huffman, Timothy Hutton, Richard Cabral and Lili Taylor formed part of the cast and have again been included in this latest harrowing tale which adds to the magnificence of the viewing. To watch Huffman for example morph into the different women she is expected to portray and inhabit is jaw-dropping. And Regina King is unrecognisable just because of a hairstyle. Grey’s Anatomy’s Sandra Oh and Cherry Jones (24) have joined the cast with extraordinary performances by Benito Martinez (How to Get Away With Murder, The Blacklist) and Ana Mulvoy-Ten who drive two of the three storylines.

It’s not easy to watch because of the nastiness of the story but it is important in the context of today’s world and so well produced that while it is tough to bear, it is riveting and impossible to turn away from once you’re hooked.

Catch up with the missed episode (there are three of them) on Google and if you have DStv, the fourth episode will be broadcast on Thursday on MNet (101) at 9.00pm with repeats following.

This is the real world, no matter what others tell you. We might think we have it rough but for too many it is just about survival and trying not to do anything that will further deteriorate your already miserable life.

Look around you.