Artquake

[motho]

Carlas paintings do look like death warmed up thou, 

[The Angry Hand of God]

it probably is, so mayb u shud do an exhibition on AG, an auction even

I don't know. I'm a bit obsessive about my work. I wouldn't want to sell it, cos I'm never happy and I wouldn't want to know that I sold something and a year later I see it and think: "shit that's f***ing ugly, why didn't I change that?"

I think this is the reason I almost never finish anything, cos I'm constantly changing shit and restarting. I have a closet full of incomplete shit back home in bloem.

[motho]

our misguided photography lecturer once took us to see an exhibition at the Museum Africa, we asked questions that we thought were important but u could see that him and the curator were busy loosing their patience

[king daniel]

It seems apparent that there are some clear cut racial divisions within our art scene out here in Cape Town. A case in point is that approxiamtely two weeks ago, after an opening in the city by a Mozambiquan artist, at the Kimberley hotel in Roeland street there was a fracas which erupted, resulting in one of the staff members there beating the abovementioned artist with a baseball bat, and when the police were called in, they found the windows of the whole place smashed as a resistance to the whole thing. There are many questions which came out of this entire incident. Such as do we actually have a place in our own continent to practice our chosen artform in this day and age. Or is the art clock ticking backwards. And do black artists need to live in fear of these individuals who apparently run the art scene out these parts? I for one found the whole incident rather nerve racking. And what suprised me more was that it was kept on the low and not publicised as it should have been. Especially in a time when we are dealing or attempting to deal with such issues of xenophobia and racial intolerance on our continent. Certain individuals can be blamed for this trend, but at the risk of making them even more famous i will not name them. it reminded me of a sticker i once saw that stated, 'here lies an art graveyard.' Who can bring cape Town art back from the dead?

[king daniel]

Deep sea diving
Peeps be drivin me up the wall
So f*** em all
Plus all they do is bust my balls
So i cut them
Off  right at the roots
And reaped the fruits
To teach our youths
Of a bitter sweet harvest
Still  a moving target
Selling what’s new in markets
Its true we spark it
So take no advantage
Of the lesser man
Teachin lessons and
Professin plans
Before getting banned
It was all good
And cape town was a small hood
Do what norwegians might call wood
educatin myself like kids in malls should

i got one foot in
and one foot out
oblivious to nametags
that some would shout
done good doubt
me or follow suit
and you’ll most probably
miss tomorrow too

shadows in a league of they own
so leave them alone
i seen em at home
with the dogs they feedin they bones
as life goes on
am i so long
within this to witness
the truth executed
most them deluded
from the team they booted
rumour demma spread
with no daily bread
mi se dem mad inna head
pockets heavy laden with lead
so whats happenin
when i’m rappin in
unfamiliar tones
many similar clones
but none livin exposed
with no private lives
so hide their knives
before they lose those stripes
 separatin the force
of gravity
what a calamity
like butch ca**idy
fillin your cavities

[motho]

Who can bring cape Town art back from the dead?

Just moved down to the Cape myself. Recently met these hippies who do reli dope pieces in Obs but they flippin expensive (for me) but they selling their shit themselves and exhibiting it in their hood...maybe thats one way of bringing it back from the dead?

King Daniel, r u an artist?

[king daniel]

 Where do the priorities of the ma**es lie?

A good question indeed. So, what is our answer? In order to fully understand or a**ess this matter, one would require some background or contextualisation on the issue. Firstly, we as contemporary South Africans and moreover on a global scale, live above our means.This relates to trends of consumerism and major corporation backed chain stores offering most or all goods on terms or higher purchase. The result of these purchases are quite obviously that one is obligated to pay for the same item over and over again.

Secondly, when we look into a simple ghetto scenario within our country, one sees a disturbing tendency or trend for homeowners to also own cars which are twice if not four times the value of their houses.As we know all to well, the majority of properties are in actual fact owned by banks through bonds and home loans.So obsessed are our citizens with visible commodities that one can see or hear sound systems which in most instances are worth more than the vehicles they emanate from, additionally rims worth more than cars can also be found. Which begs our original question-Where do the priorities of the ma**es lie?


A simple look into South African journalistic trends reveals similar results. Poverty is on the rise as well as is crime and unemployment, however the public is constantly bombarded with the same historical or cult figures time and again. These are individuals whom, as far as i can see have gained these social positions largely due to their immense wealth and/or political sway. A case in point would be the slain businessman Brett Kebble. For a number of years it seems our print media has dedicated at least one column a week to the man. So even after his pa**ing the flesh, he remains iconoclastic in local circles.Can this be related to wealth, social standing or politics? For the time being, it is near impossible to ascertain.

Yet another persona who seems to have cut his way deep into our fabric is the newly-elected leader of the ruling party, none other than Jacob Zuma. It goes without saying that either through PR or some kind of enigmatic character has managed to brand himself to the point of dominating the headlines for the past couple of years. He singlehandedly personifies the prhase, 'no publicity is bad publicity.' Because, like Amy Winehouse the more they talk about him the more popular he appears to become.

To conclude, perhaps the answer to our dubious question lies within the question itself. The public in general need to decide for themselves where they stand and if they choose to read between the lines of the media's sensationalist reportage.We know that it is more often than not, ignorant of the facts altogether.And on another level, it appears that most of the citizens need to downscale their lifestyles to the point of affordability, so that they will not value one commodity over another. As soon as this can take place, then we can begin to progress as a nation, and look at the future from a whole new angle or perspective.
 

[BHLAKHROZE]

^^^ now a**uming that you and i are able to 'see' this or read it. by that i mean that we possess the ability (to whatever extent and for whatever reason) or maybe in terms of knowledge or skills to engage with what happens in public space. what about the ma**es. you raise very valid points. indeed the landscape has grown and changed dramatically and i dont necessarily think this is a bad thing. just perhaps that there is the missing understanding of the fact that people need to tie this in with a certain sense of awareness and responsibility. and perhaps caution. even amongst those who know this already. but now of the ma**es. what would it take to get people to begin to approach their lives and their roles in society with an appreciation for more of the funcionality of things and not just their mere being. for them to begin to understand the context beyond just themselves. and thereby have or begin to develop the internal mechanisms to be discerning.

how do you get the ma**es to change their focus slightly. how do you get them to rea**ess their priorities or start to see the need to at the very least. how do you begin to inspire that in the ma**es.  since this is an 'artquake' - what role can and should artists take in this. can they even. and how would they shape that. is there a relevance that artists possess to be able to a**ist in a process like this. within a south african context here and now. and i think maybe even is it fair to expect that of them. or is it about jostling with the existent spaces in such a way as to make them decipherable and also in a way that enables the movement of the kind of expression that says something else. how.   

also there is the question of people being lazy to enquire and to develop that spirit of tilting for change for themselves. that slight matter of ignorance apparently being blissful. how do you then get people to own such a process were it something one could map out.

how do you differently speak to the ma**es. 

[king daniel]

On Wednesday morning, after leaving Long street, me and a group of friends were treated to the obligatory Rodney King beating courtesy of a notorious gang of armed thugs, namely Cape Town police. After pulling me over on de waal drive(yeah it's still called that), and finding everything in order (notwithstanding the fact they had guns in our faces and six police vehicles surrounding us), the one officer casually excused himself because, according to him he needed to a**ault one of us. He then pulled the smallest amongst us out, and began to exercise his a**umed right to police brutality. The friend who was a**aulted was subsequently placed in a police van for protesting.

When one of the others attempted to film the whole a**ault, a female officer grabbed the phone from him.Then, as another of us was busy phoning someone to tell them what was transpiring, he too was a**aulted and placed in the van with no statement made as to what they did wrong or what the charges against them were. In addition to that, they proceeded to a**ault the third one of us and place him alongside the others in the van. This was not only unconstitutional but actually against the very laws these guys are supposed to uphold. And it  again highlights the fact that our constitution may in theory be the most advanced document of its kind in the world as we are so often reminded, but in practice is impossible to implement. The remaining officers then told us to go home.

What I find questionable about this occurence and others like it is that they occur almost daily in Cape Town and its surrounding environs. Which for me signifies that Cape Town as a city is in the hands of the police. And that in turn renders the Western Cape a police state. Strangely enough, earlier the same night we were digressing on the same issue, and came to the conclusion that in Cape Town and Southern Africa wholistically, little or nothing has changed since the inception of our so-called liberation. The only clear change is that the white cops stand behind and watch the black cops do their dirty work,ie.torture their victims. And the one obvious fact is that the real criminals continue with their mission without any disturbance. How long shall we sing this song?

For me, the worst part of living in a post-democratic South Africa has been the way we as peforming and/or visual artists are treated by bouncers, security guards, police officers and whomever else decides to view us as their enemy. This is all the more reason to hide one's face and remain underground. For we are constantly humiliated hara**ed and embarrased by these supposed authority figures. They are the very ones who lower our self esteem and force some of us to find solace in the comfort zone of drink and drugs.

Ultimately, being black in this country is still the same if not worse than during the apartheid era. There are still many gross inequities within our socio-plitico-ecomomic infrastructure, many of which will never be erradicated. This situation will remain the same until such time as some drastic ation is taken at gra**roots level.

[king daniel]

she was flyer than a flyer
on fire like a tyre in the days of sophia
thas my word i'm no liar
a bird on a wire
she my queen i'm her sire
arousin my desire
from skintone to attire
many nights we perspire
on the straight she was dire
told her of freedom fighters
and king graffiti writers
no one i met was tighter
so sweet like a cider
make any future brighter
and her heart was lighter
underground like a miner
i had to dine and wine her
made me slightly politer
sang sweet songs like a choir
onna real it was quite a
lifetime pleasure designer
cut i dread like delilah
but you know she was finer
laid back like recliner
introduced her to midus
and a couple other biters
stopped the rain like a wiper
on target as a sniper
i was her dalai rhymer
we made music pied piper
plus her fruit was riper
thoughts of her make i hyper
in our way was these mysers
took a slice of my lifer
still the slither like vipers

this is a love joint like no other
take it form the heart and mind of a soul brother
practice this a couple of years you wont stutter
got nothin positive to say then yo mother
(repeat once)

kept it free from the capevine
had us such a great time
i never had to stagedive
look it up in my casefile
i'm on some deep space nine
millimetre replaced by
suspended sentence the chains i
wore gone a changed guy
who'll prolly always stay high
from bo-kaap to lakeside
we were two of the same kind
and she kept the stakes high
as well as my mates why
she had to deflate my
ego and take flight
i was jailed like the shaik guy
communicate through A.I
DS that claims lives
test negative and take five
she would make a safe wife
all these suckas who date spies
never ate a killer plate by
shorty who never chased lines
thas when i turned the page tried
ate biltong and made braais
hopin to concieve a child
in her ear i rap like 8 mile
had this touch that could tame wild

this is a love joint like no other
take it form the heart and mind of a soul brother
practise this a couple of years you wont stutter
got nothin positive to say then yo mother
(repeat once)