Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Women-centric artists eye top honours at awards
FOR self-taught artist Farhana Jacobs, her efforts are largely placed in redefining the way women see themselves, in a world which often dictates this for them.
“My work interrogates the relationship women have with their surroundings, with themselves and how they navigate hostile external structures of patriarchy and limiting belief systems,” she explained.
“In my work, women’s bodies are offered as a terrain of contestation – as landscapes upon which these hostile surroundings and contexts are re-purposed and re-imagined.”
Farhana and 11 others are finalists for the inaugural Anna Award, a new annual art prize which aims to discover, recognise and nurture a new generation of women artists in South Africa.
This is particularly pertinent in August, Women’s Month, with official proceedings starting in Durban on Monday.
The art prize was launched earlier this year by Latitudes Online, an online curated marketplace for contemporary art from Africa. Together with Anna, the two brands are female-centric and have joined forces to create this new art accolade.
Roberta Coci, co-founder of Latitudes, said they had received over 600 applications, which have been cut down to the final 12. This includes Jacobs, who is thrilled to have made it so far, as she eyes the coveted final prize which includes a R100 000 cash prize from Anna, a month residency at Plaas (the Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies) as well as an independent Policy Research Institute within the Faculty for Economic and Management Sciences at UWC.
The winner will also receive a profile on Latitudes Online and a year’s supply of Anna products, while their winning artwork will be included in the Anna Awards Collection.
The 12 finalists will be presented to the Latitudes audience, who will vote for an Audience Award winner.
“I feel immensely privileged to be a finalist and to find myself in such an extremely talented cohort,” Jacobs said. “I like the fact that we’re all female artists, all seemingly telling our story with our work, with our biographies.”
The Joburg artist decided to enter the competition because she felt she had a good enough body of work to submit. “The last two years have been tough for all of us and, like many, I’ve had this pent-up energy, this need to express myself in new ways, more loudly,” she said. “I believe whatever the outcome, I’ll feel rewarded just having been through the process.”
For Jacobs, the Anna Award was also a natural fit for her as much of her artwork is female-centric. This is something personal to her, and a way for her to make a meaningful contribution to society.
Another finalist, Lerato Nkosi, said her work employs ink and stamps as a vital, organic, multifaceted material.
“Ink and stamps are mediums that stain and certify with their contact on any surface. These materials never leave a surface the same after being in contact with it,” she said.
“The stamp and ink is always used to verify and ordain documents of importance which grants the holder automatic approval to the decision of others. This process is always handled by an individual of authority.”
Finalist Fiona Davhana’s creativity comes from a personal place yet is relatable to a number of other women.
“I’m creating work that urges society to take an in-depth look at the challenges some mothers have come to face since having their children, work that creates conversations that would normally be seen as taboo,” she said.
As a young woman emerging in the art industry, finalist Nadine Mathenjwa enjoys painting, printmaking and exploring fashion within the creative space.
“As an emerging artist, I’ve experienced the hardship of creating work consistently without funding as well as sharing the same view about the shortage of female artists in the industry,” she said.