Walter Oltmann

Current Review(s)

Walter Oltmann and Hentie van der Merwe 'Panoply: a Joint Exhibition' at KZNSA Gallery:

Hentie van der Merwe and Walter Oltmann at KZNSA

With this latest show, the KZNSA continues its recent habit of showcasing the work of major South African artists in one of South Africa's most flattering spaces. Walter Oltmann and Hentjie van der Merwe have apparently wanted to exhibit together for some time but the result, a show  titled 'Panoply', is weighted heavily towards Oltmann in terms of volume of work, an imbalance that is not helped by the visually and psychologically spectacular work of Oltmann and the quieter, more introverted work on show from van der Merwe.

Which is not to suggest that the two bodies of works don't resonate with each other. Both sets of work make use of surreal figurative elements, and both occupy, at least partially, the murky subconscious of South African life; a murk that increasingly feels global, as inequality and violence spread around the planet. I'm not entirely convinced, however, that the stated theme of costume is the common point in the show, despite the physical foregrounding of Oltmann's Suit series.

06 September 2009 - 27 September 2009

Listings(s)

Walter Oltmann and Hentie van der Merwe 'Panoply: a Joint Exhibition' at KZNSA Gallery:

Hentie van der Merwe and Walter Oltmann at KZNSA

In this two-person exhibition, Walter Oltmann and Hentie van der Merwe explore their interests in costume as a way to display the absent body. Taking the iconographic image of the displayed costume - such as we might find in museums - as their departure point, the artists, in very different visual languages, unearth how we understand ourselves in relation to traces of others.

06 September 2009 - 27 September 2009