VISUAL LANGUAGES (2025)
The exhibition "Visual Languages" was made possible by Die Suid-Afrikaanse Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns (the South African Academy for Science and Arts), which provides a platform for the introduction of visual art across a wide spectrum. This exhibition focuses on the art-making and conceptualisation processes of artists who are also affiliated with the Department of Fine Arts at the University of the Free State, whether as lecturers or postgraduate students. At such an institution, the term "Visual Languages" is important because the individuality of each student is cherished, within a unique contemporary context to which students and lecturers must remain sensitively attuned.
Over the years, I have developed a connection with the Department of Fine Arts at the University of the Free State, both as a guest lecturer and an external examiner, which has afforded me a glimpse into the department’s working methods and the distinctive tone it sets, as well as the dedication with which the art-making process is approached and the high quality of the resulting artworks. The emphasis placed on the development of individual voices or languages is reflected in the structure of the course and the richness of choice in terms of materials and working methods offered to students. What struck me about this art school is that each lecturer’s “office” also functions as an art studio: in this way, academic lecturers continue to develop as visual artists, and students can experience the creative process first-hand. This dynamic is enriched by the department’s regular collaborations with guest artists such as Prof Willem Boshoff, who brings with him an immeasurable wealth of knowledge and experience.
The Department of Fine Arts at the University of the Free State is supported by its collaboration with the Oliewenhuis Museum – a national art collection – as well as with the UFS Art Gallery. Not only are the students exposed to the workings of a professional gallery and to art of outstanding quality and variety, but they and the lecturers are given the opportunity to present their work professionally. In this way, a valuable and visible art culture is created in Bloemfontein, which is also reflected at national level: artists from Bloemfontein are regularly named prize winners at national art competitions and their work forms an important contribution to art production in South Africa.
It is a great privilege to present the outstanding art of this group of lecturers and postgraduate students from the Free State here, together with Prof Janine Allen, head of the Department of Fine Arts at the University of the Free State. The accompanying catalogue will serve as a valuable source of documentation and research.
Jan van der Merwe
BREAKING GROUND: A STETHOSCAPE EXHIBITION (2025)
This group exhibition features new artworks by thirteen artists from the Fine Arts Department at the University of the Free State. The diverse body of work – comprising installation, performance, painting, printmaking, sculpture and new media – explores multiple interpretations of the idiom "breaking ground" through conceptual, metaphoric, and material approaches. Some artworks are made with the very materials of the earth – plants, stones, and found objects – while others engage with themes of breaking and rupture, emerging from acts of destruction, pollution, erosion and decay, where processes of breaking are reimagined as forms of creation. This exploration extends to works that confront the aftermath of rupture, addressing themes of loss and traumatic memory. Other pieces consider shifting landscapes, examining how borders, boundaries, edges, and technological developments reshape our understanding of land and place. The exhibition also probes the instability of groundwork, of foundational structures, particularly when basic human needs are compromised, and how such disruptions shape everyday life. Breaking Ground invites viewers to explore how artistic experimentation can unearth new ways of thinking about rupture, transformation, and resilience.
Siobhan Swart
ECHOES OF RESILIENCE: TRAUMA, HEALING, MEMORY: A STETHOSCAPE EXHIBITION (2024)
Our upcoming Stethoscape exhibition, titled “Echoes of Resilience: Trauma, Healing, Memory", explores the profound connection between trauma, healing, and memory.
"Stethoscape" – a fusion of "stethoscope" and "landscape" – symbolises the heartbeat of the Free State, reflecting the deep emotional and physical terrains that shape our lives. "Echoes of Resilience" encourages artists to delve into the complex and often poignant interplay of trauma, healing, and memory within this unique context.
Participating artists include Willem Boshoff, Pauline Gütter, Bontle Tau, Janine Allen, Teboho Mokhuto, Sibenoxolo Foji, Johandi du Plessis-Kleynhans, Lyrene Kühn-Botma, Louis Kruger, Siobhan Swart, Mikayla Swartz, Leon Wittuhn, Louiza Combrinck, Jacobeth Selinga, and Adelheid von Maltitz. The artists engage with these terrains through a variety of experimental approaches, including painting, performance, sculpture, sound, installation, and multimedia. Their works explore how landscapes can serve as metaphors for personal and collective experiences, how the natural environment mirrors resilience, and how memory is inscribed in both the human spirit and the land itself.
Echoes of Resilience offers audiences a space to reflect on the subtle interplay between fragility and strength, absence and presence, past and present. The exhibition presents innovative, thought-provoking interventions that illuminate the enduring impact of memory and the potential for recovery, revealing how artistic practice can articulate the intimate and collective dimensions of resilience.
Sibenoxolo Foji, Jacobeth Selinga and Siobhan Swart