Forming part of the video programme LOST LOVER at Rampa, Porto – curated by Lara Koseff – was the installation Illusions Vol. II, Oedipus (2018), by Grada Kilomba.
Playing with the illusion of a two-layered scenario, Grada Kilomba created a silent film in which the characters move inside a white space while the artist, outside, gives voice to the images and becomes a contemporary 'Griot', complete with post-colonial urgency. "Sometimes, I feel that I live a space of timelessness," the artist narrates, "in a space where past and present seem to coincide.” llusions Vol. II, Oedipus (2018), which was commissioned by the 10th Berlin Biennale and is the second part of her Illusions series, which revisits Greek mythology using the African oral tradition of storytelling. In Illusions Vol. II, Oedipus, Thulile Gamedze writes, Kilomba "extends the trajectory of her Illusions series – which began in 2016 with the story of Narcissus and Echo – by presenting an iteration dedicated to the myth of Oedipus, which explores the fatal tensions between a father and son doomed to tragedy. Using film and music combined with oral storytelling traditions, Kilomba uses the topics of loyalty and the politics of violence to consider the role that destiny can play for those embedded within a system of reproductive and cyclical oppression."
Courtesy Grada Kilomba © + Goodman Gallery
Playing with the illusion of a two-layered scenario, Grada Kilomba created a silent film in which the characters move inside a white space while the artist, outside, gives voice to the images and becomes a contemporary 'Griot', complete with post-colonial urgency. "Sometimes, I feel that I live a space of timelessness," the artist narrates, "in a space where past and present seem to coincide.” llusions Vol. II, Oedipus (2018), which was commissioned by the 10th Berlin Biennale and is the second part of her Illusions series, which revisits Greek mythology using the African oral tradition of storytelling. In Illusions Vol. II, Oedipus, Thulile Gamedze writes, Kilomba "extends the trajectory of her Illusions series – which began in 2016 with the story of Narcissus and Echo – by presenting an iteration dedicated to the myth of Oedipus, which explores the fatal tensions between a father and son doomed to tragedy. Using film and music combined with oral storytelling traditions, Kilomba uses the topics of loyalty and the politics of violence to consider the role that destiny can play for those embedded within a system of reproductive and cyclical oppression."
Courtesy Grada Kilomba © + Goodman Gallery
Open call project ︎
Art
Siviwe James
Ubuhle Ngaphaya Kwameva
Opening Sunday 2 February 2025 at 10am
Victoria Yards, Lorentzville, Johannesburg
Phumelele Kunene
In My Element
Opening Sunday 2 March 2025 at 10am
Victoria Yards, Lorentzville, Johannesburg
Art
After
Baby Vol.2
Siviwe James
Ubuhle Ngaphaya Kwameva
Opening Sunday 2 February 2025 at 10am
Victoria Yards, Lorentzville, Johannesburg
Phumelele Kunene
In My Element
Opening Sunday 2 March 2025 at 10am
Victoria Yards, Lorentzville, Johannesburg
INCCA is pleased to announce the two incredibly talented artists selected from our Art After Baby (AAB) open call – Siviwe James and Phumelele Kunene. Each artist will hold their own solo exhibitions in February and March 2025 at Victoria Yards, Lorentzville, Johannesburg. We look forward to revealing more and platforming their powerful work to our network in the coming weeks.
The second edition of AAB is again supported by the National Arts Council South Africa (NAC) Presidential Employment Stimulus Programme (PESP 5).
The selected artists both create deeply personal work that reflects not only their positions as caregivers and artists, but also how they have navigated loss, which has impacted their roles as mothers and created new, unexpected paths for them as creatives.
The overall aim of AAB is to confront what remains a taboo subject, and to find pathways for the accepted applicants to participate in an industry often still dominated by men and/or privilege, and also to explore how art-making itself can be a cathartic salve for the many challenges of motherhood, caregiving and/or trauma and loss. AAB aims to provide artists with a short period of breathing room to focus on their work, and motivates those who are battling to juggle a career in the arts to find spaces and avenues to continue producing. In addition, we hope to establish routes and approaches for others in similar positions.
Previous recipients include artists Ditiro Mashigo and Naledi Chai.
The second edition of AAB is again supported by the National Arts Council South Africa (NAC) Presidential Employment Stimulus Programme (PESP 5).
The selected artists both create deeply personal work that reflects not only their positions as caregivers and artists, but also how they have navigated loss, which has impacted their roles as mothers and created new, unexpected paths for them as creatives.
The overall aim of AAB is to confront what remains a taboo subject, and to find pathways for the accepted applicants to participate in an industry often still dominated by men and/or privilege, and also to explore how art-making itself can be a cathartic salve for the many challenges of motherhood, caregiving and/or trauma and loss. AAB aims to provide artists with a short period of breathing room to focus on their work, and motivates those who are battling to juggle a career in the arts to find spaces and avenues to continue producing. In addition, we hope to establish routes and approaches for others in similar positions.
Previous recipients include artists Ditiro Mashigo and Naledi Chai.
We hope to establish routes for others in similar positions.
Siviwe James
Ubuhle Ngaphaya Kwameva
Opening Sunday 2 February 2025 at 10am
Victoria Yards, Lorentzville, Johannesburg
Siviwe James is a researcher, arts practitioner, and archivist whose works speaks through visual and sonic archaeology, as reconstructions of place and meaning. James’ practice inserts fragments of time in the voids of history, creating new imaginaries as landscapes of knowledge of the lives and worlds of Xhosa people, working with both personal and public audio-visual archival materials and everyday interviews.
Ubuhle Ngaphaya Kwameva
Opening Sunday 2 February 2025 at 10am
Victoria Yards, Lorentzville, Johannesburg
Siviwe James is a researcher, arts practitioner, and archivist whose works speaks through visual and sonic archaeology, as reconstructions of place and meaning. James’ practice inserts fragments of time in the voids of history, creating new imaginaries as landscapes of knowledge of the lives and worlds of Xhosa people, working with both personal and public audio-visual archival materials and everyday interviews.
Phumelele Kunene
In My Element
Opening Sunday 2 March 2025 at 10am
Victoria Yards, Lorentzville, Johannesburg
Phumelele Kunene is a South African photographer, curator, and filmmaker with a background in photography from the Market Photo Workshop and digital filmmaking from the Big Fish School of Digital Filmmaking. She honed her skills while working as a Gallery Assistant and Photographer at David Krut Projects from 2015 to 2017. After gaining industry experience, Phumelele founded Still Imagery, where she now serves as Executive Creative Director.
In My Element
Opening Sunday 2 March 2025 at 10am
Victoria Yards, Lorentzville, Johannesburg
Phumelele Kunene is a South African photographer, curator, and filmmaker with a background in photography from the Market Photo Workshop and digital filmmaking from the Big Fish School of Digital Filmmaking. She honed her skills while working as a Gallery Assistant and Photographer at David Krut Projects from 2015 to 2017. After gaining industry experience, Phumelele founded Still Imagery, where she now serves as Executive Creative Director.
Explore Previous AAB projects and texts below