Iziko defends art choice
Sweat wants accused killer’s photo replaced by painting of alleged victim
TUESDAY NOVEMBER 29 2016
THE SEX Worker Education and Advocacy Taskforce (SWEAT) has strongly condemned Iziko South African National Gallery for its decision to include murder accused Zwelethu Mthethwa’s artwork in a current exhibition.
In a letter addressed to the museum, Human Rights and Advocacy manager Ishtar Lakhani said: “The irony of promoting the work of a man accused of murdering a woman as part of an exhibition aimed at empowering women, is not wasted on us.”
Mthethwa, an internationally renowned artist, is currently on trial in the Western Cape High Court for allegedly kicking and beating to death 23-year-old sex worker Nokuphila Kumalo in April, 2013.
Kirsty Cockerill, one of the curators of the exhibition entitled said the decision to show the work was a carefully considered plan to “open dialogue”.
“Curators are not judges, and museums are not courtrooms.”
The exhibition coincides with the campaign 16 Days of Activism aimed at raising awareness around the high rate of violent crimes against women and children.
Mthethwa’s photograph
depicts an unnamed woman, wearing a blue dress, and sitting atop a large wooden box.
The adjacent description says “this work explores the relationship between women and chests which function both as a prestige object and as containers for precious objects” and were traditionally a gift from the woman’s family before she marries.
It further says: “This type of photographic strategy has received broad criticism by many who view it as a violent approach to portraying the subject as a type rather than an individual.”
Cockerill said the photograph was beautiful, but “on the other hand it’s very uncomfortable”.
But SWEAT is now calling for the museum to take down the photograph.
In its letter to the museum, Lakhani wrote: “In their attempt to ‘celebrate empowered female capacity and artworks that counter and contextualise the current status quo’ the National Gallery has in fact served to prioritise the notoriety of the accused rather than respect for the victim, Nokupila Moudy Kumalo”.
It said the promotion of Mthethwa’s work had not only been in bad taste, but had been “deeply offensive”.
It offered a replacement for Mthethwa’s work, a painting of Nokupila (based on the only picture that exists of her, a police mugshot) by local artist Astrid Warren.
The painting was commissioned by SWEAT.
“If the gallery takes seriously its call to interrupt patriarchy, this painting is a direct manifestation of resistance.”
Yesterday morning, Mthethwa appeared in the Western Cape High Court where his defence was granted an application to reopen its case.
Defence lawyer William Booth had argued they had received “very important” information since it closed its case earlier this month, and wanted to call prominent psychiatrist, Professor Tuviah Zabow, to testify.
Judge Patricia Goliath granted the application, however, and the court adjourned until tomorrow.– ANA