DÁ FALA

While Alexander’s figures are, in many ways, emblems of monstrosity, they are oddly beautiful. Her creatures expose the human animal for all it is and all it could become. Though clearly concerned with social issues, Alexander’s sculptural installations and photographs do not judge, nor do they convey a particular political or moral standpoint. “There is no glorification of human misery here, only recognition of human tenacity and will, dignity among the wretched, a hint of the thread that connects us all and beyond.” (Ash Amin, On Being Human)

Alexander’s artworks have a formal and technical excellence and deliver a potent emotional impact, sending warnings about historical consequences and carrying hints of things to come. Consistent with the artist’s creative process, the curatorial concept of this exhibition will be re-defined in each venue, with the artist, the guest curator, Pep Subiros, and the host venue working in close collaboration. Adjusted to the environment and architecture of each location, the exhibition becomes site-specific, allowing figures and tableaux to participate in the process of transformation. Local audiences will experience, with immediacy, the familiarity and mutability of Alexander’s universe.

Guest curated by Pep Subiros, writer and director of Gao lletres.

An illustrated catalogue accompanies the exhibition, edited by Pep Subiros with contributions by Jane Alexander, Ashraf Jamal, Kobena Mercer, Simon Njami, Pep Subiros, and Lize van Robbroeck.

Jane Alexander: Surveys (from the Cape of Good Hope) is organized by the Museum for African Art, New York, and supported, in part, by the National Endowment for the Arts and Macy’s.

For more information about this traveling exhibition, please contact exhibitions@africanart.org.

The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, New York City. April 18 - July 29, 2013.

Eis-me aqui,
Gonçalo Mabunda,
metalmorfoseando
e esculpindo
a arquitectura dos sonhos na “Utopia da Lei”
Sabem, por vezes apetece deixar-me andar
e, já que a LEI não protege mesmo,
porque não ser um Homem sem Direitos? …

Gonçalo Mabunda

Gonçalo tem usado armas desactivadas da guerra civil de Moçambique, que durou 16 anos. Família, amigos, morreram durante esta guerra e cada obra sua é concebida para representar alguém que foi morto com esse mesmo material. Segundo as suas palavras “Se destruirmos as armas, elas não voltarão a matar”. Entre os seus trabalhos mais famosos, destaca-se a “Cadeira Tribal Africana”. É inspirada nas tradições étnicas africanas e representa uma crítica aos vários governos deste continente que constantemente manipulam conflitos armados para reforçar o seu próprio poder.

___

I’m here,
Gonçalo Mabunda
metalmorphosing
and sculpting
the architecture of dreams in the “Utopia of the Law”
You know, sometimes I feel like letting it go,
and, because the LAW does not realy protect,
why not be a Man without Rights? …

Gonçalo Mabunda

Gonçalo has been using desactivated weapons from the 16-year-long Mozambique civil war. Family, friends died during this war and his work tries to represent each person who died with this same material. In his words, “if we destroy the weapons, the same weapon’s not going to kill any more”. Among his most famous works there is the “African Tribal Chair”. It is inspired by african ethnic traditions and represents a critic to the several governments within Africa, who often manipulate armed conflicts to reinforce their own power.

web
press realease