Time and Again: A retrospective exhibition by Penny Siopis

Time and Again, an exhibition by acclaimed South African contemporary artist, Penny Siopis, was opened by William Kentridge at Iziko South African National Gallery on Wednesday 17 December. 

This exhibition reflects over three decades of Siopis’ creative production, and draws on the recurring themes of history, sexuality, race, memory, estrangement and violence.  Working within the genres of painting, video and installation, this innovative artist explores intimate narratives that speak of personal and collective history, trauma, shame and loss.

And the buzzzz at the crowded opening was palpable!  This is an exhibition that captivates and engages on many levels.

Whatever the medium – whether oil paint, glue, found objects or time-ravaged home movies – materiality is as important as the subject matter which comments on historical representations that have shaped South Africans over time.  UCT art professor, Colin Richards wrote: ‘Siopis’ creative affair with materiality and surface is as much an intellectual as an intuitive passion.  Tracking that passion through her work offers us profound insights into her distinctive creative responsiveness, riskiness and resilience.’

Although Siopis’ artwork is clearly grounded in the present, both past and future are deeply implicated in its content and physical appearance. The processes of change, decay and ageing (all traces of the passage of time) are integral to her approach, and highlight the artist’s skilful ability to make time tangible through her manipulation of process, chance and materiality.

Time and Again features key examples from Siopis’ seminal bodies of work, and include the artist’s early Cake paintings that gained her international recognition.

Melancholia, Penny Siopis

Also on show are her History paintings, the Shame and Pinky Pinky series, as well as the more recent ink and glue paintings. The exhibition draws on major institutional and personal collections within South Africa. These include the Johannesburg Art Gallery, the Rupert Art Foundation, Wits Art Museum and the William Humphreys Art Gallery, in addition to numerous private collectors.

Audiences will have the opportunity to experience Siopis’ object-filled installations, and view films that speak to her personal and South African collective history. Key works here are the ever-popular My Lovely Day and Obscure White Messenger. Visitors will also be able to trace the evolution of Siopis’ ideas, themes and techniques, and to see their development in the context of our country’s history.

A comprehensive book tracing the trajectory of Penny Siopis’ artistic production is being published by Wits University Press, and is titled Penny Siopis: Time and Again. Edited by Gerrit Olivier, this book contains essays and interviews by leading artists, critics and cultural commentators that contextualise this prolific artist’s contribution to South African art history. The book will be available to purchase at ISANG throughout the duration of the exhibition.  A version of the exhibition will be installed at the Wits Art Museum, Johannesburg, in April 2015.

WHERE: Iziko South African National Gallery,Government Avenue, Cape Town 8001

WHEN: 18 December 2014 until 10 March 2015

INFO: For enquiries about the exhibition, contact Ernestine White on Tel: +27 21 467 7234 or email: ewhite@iziko.org.za