‘Land Matters in Art’ exhibition launched
Head of Corporate Communication and Social Investment at Bank Windhoek, Riaan Van Rooyen, Director of the National Art Gallery, Hercules Viljoen and GIZ- Support to Land Reform representative, Martina Romer going through the Land in Art catalogue at a media briefing earlier this week. (Photograph by Melba Chipepo).
‘Land Matters in Art’ opens with a performance and an Artwalk to the Goethe Centre and the Franco Namibian Cultural Centre (FNCC). The idea behind the exhibition is for visual artists to create artworks about land issues that encourage creativity and foster problem solving for both the artist and the viewer of the art work.
The artworks were selected by a panel of judges after an evaluation which lasted approximately 35 hours at the National Art Gallery in a process that encompassed in-depth discussions and detailed analysis of the entries.
Speaking at the Land Matters in Art media conference this week, Director of the National Art Gallery, Hercules Viljoen said that each of the 152 artworks selected for the exhibition will express in some or other way an idea relevant to the land matter in a unique way including ideas about land ownership and environmental concerns.
The exhibition comprises 152 art works from professional and non-professional artists working in media as diverse as painting, printing, drawing, photography, sculpture, mixed media, video, textile, ceramic installation and land art.
Bank Windhoek is supporting the exhibition. The bank has a history of investing in Namibia’s artistic wealth and has also invested in the Land Matters in Art project. The award winning ‘Legacies of a Colonial Town’ will also be part of ‘Land Matters in Art’. This exhibition will be on display at the Soweto Market in Katutura until 26 April.
Everyone is invited to join the first Artwalk during the opening ceremony at the three venues, the National Art Gallery at 18:00, the Goethe Centre at 19:30 and the FNCC at 20:30. The expanded exhibition also runs until 26 April.
