Current Review(s)
The Black Picket Fences of Jared Thorne's 'Black Folk'
Jared Thorne at Iziko South African National GalleryAs I write this, debate rages on in the press around President Jacob Zuma’s latest proclamation: that dog-ownership is un-African, a hallmark of ‘white culture’ that necessitates loving an animal more than one’s fellow man. Un-African is one of very few words that make the hairs on the back of my neck prickle. Not only does it imply a correct way to uphold tradition and cultural identity, but embedded within it is the suggestion that those in power are duty-bound (and well within their rights) to police that culture. In 2012, single black women who did not prioritize marriage and childbirth were un-African. In 2011, media speculation about Nelson Mandela’s health was un-African. 2006 saw President Zuma publicly label homosexuality un-African - although he later withdrew that remark. What these instances seem to suggest is that the margins of ‘Africanness’ are narrowing with each passing year.
The minute Zuma’s most recent comment was publicized, Twitter was ablaze with puppy love. A flood of images of black suburban families and their pets swamped other social media platforms. Some were very endearing: who knew that Zwelinzima Vavi owned a Boerboel named Superhero? In the storm of the backlash, however, a common thread became increasingly apparent. The most vocal respondents, the angriest pet-owners, were members of the black middle-to-upper-class community.
28 November 2012 - 19 January 2013
Listings(s)
'Black Folk'
Jared Thorne at Iziko South African National GalleryThe Gordon Institute for Performing Arts (GIPCA), in association with the Michaelis Galleries and hosted by Iziko Museums of South Africa, presents the 2012 Donald Gordon Creative Arts Fellow, Jared Thorne’s exhibition 'Black Folk'.
Thorne embarked on a transcontinental search for expressions of Black middle class culture. Seeking to challenge hegemonic, as well as self-imposed constructs of Black identity, his work centers on issues of race, class and gender and engages questions of authenticity, representation and history. He challenges viewers to redefine their conceptual understanding of modern Black culture. Thorne asks why so many Black Africans find the Mother City’s embrace suffocating instead of welcoming.
“Paramount in my work and research is how social class plays a significant role in defining how one witnesses ‘Blackness’,” comments Thorne. Through photography and audio interviews, he seeks to facilitate extensive visual and verbal dialogue on how identity is created in the global south, specifically in Cape Town. Combining large format film photographs alongside excerpts from various interviews, Thorne hopes to present a new vision of Black South Africans.
Jared Thorne grew up in Boston, Massachusetts. He holds a BA in English from Dartmouth College, a Postgraduate certificate from the San Francisco Art Institute and a Masters Degree from Columbia University. He has worked as a journalist at CNN, where he was a member of an Emmy award-winning team in 2006. Thorne has served as a lecturer at Queens College, Columbia University, and currently teaches in Stellenbosch Academy's photography department.
The exhibition, the culmination of Thorne’s Fellowship at the University of Cape Town will be on show at the Iziko South African National Gallery Annex.
28 November 2012 - 19 January 2013
