The John Kramer exhibition at The Cape Gallery will be opened by Patricia Schonstein, who will be giving a recitation of her poetry.
John Kramer: Why the focus on the small-town aesthetic?
“I am endlessly fascinated by the South African small-town especially in the Western Cape and Karoo.
In the early 1970’s I began to record the shop-fronts, corner cafe’s, bioscopes and general dealer stores in Worcester with my 35mm camera, fearing they may soon disappear. The supermarket was coming to town. Television was still to make its presence felt. I wanted to hold onto the memory.
Trying to establish my voice as a painter and searching for a subject I realised that these ordinary buildings that I had grown up with meshed with my idea of doing something essentially South African. This idea clarified after my first overseas trip to Europe in 1974. On my return, I suddenly realised how bizarre and extraordinary the local townscape was. Influenced by the neo or photo-realism movement at the time I began to use my photos as a subject for my deadpan realist works. I eliminated any presence living beings from my paintings as I wanted the viewer to concentrate on the man-made details and advertisements and lettering.
I tried to comment on a particular kind of building which expresses something of the people who created it or who live and work in it, but who, themselves, are not conscious of the image which it projects.”
View more of Johns Kramer Work here
WHERE. The Cape Gallery, 60 Church Street, Cape Town 8001
WHEN: Opening on Sunday 2 February at 4:30 pm. Exhibition closes 27 February 2020. Gallery Hours: Mon to Fri: 09h30 to 17h00, Sat: 10h00 to 14h00
INFO: T +27 21 4235309  E web@capegallery.co.za  VisitÂ
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