Skip to main content

Must-See: AVAMP 2013 Exhibition @ NAGN

In the lower gallery of the NAGN (National Art Gallery of Namibia), genuinely my favourite part of NAGN because it looks and feels like a modern art gallery (great lighting included), artworks are currently on display as part of the AVAMP Graphic Art exhibition.

The AVAMP exhibition (July 2013 - February 2014) in association with the Arts Association Heritage Trust, is truly a great collection of carefully selected fine works of art. Below are two images of an artwork on display by artist Jo Rogge, and it caught my eye immediately, from across the room.



Each artwork is properly labeled with a short bio of the artist.

The AVAMP exhibition opened on the evening of the 18th of July in the lower gallery and the enthusiasm  of NAGN director, Hercules Viljoen, was infectious. As usual, Hercules was impeccably dressed in a cotton shirt, tailored jacket, formal trousers and shoes. Standing in the centre of the lower gallery, surrounded by arresting pieces of great art, Viljoen and new PR manager, Selma Kaulinge, introduced a fairly large, diverse crowd of art aficionados to the graphic artists, many of whom are no longer among us but left their beautiful marks on canvas.

Selma Kaulinge, the new PR manager for the NAGN, wore a red, knit dress, showing off her amazing legs, a gorgeous vintage extra-long gold chain, contrasting with a rather large hounds-tooth printed jacket. The jacket aside, her red dress certainly drew attention, complimented with matching red lipstick and softly shaded eyes. A simply cut, single tone, tailored jacket would have worked wonders, Selma. Her appearance, speech and introduction, were very good, overall. Pictured below: Ms. Selma Kaulinge.


Also at the exhibition, Namibian art legend, Papa Shikongeni, who insisted I photograph him next to his artworks. If Rastafarian is a style (of some sort), and we're all aware Mr. Shikongeni is an artist (meaning, 'he's different'), and THE artist on the Namibian landscape no less, that said his dress up for the opening of the AVAMP exhibition was disappointing. Perhaps a clean, ironed shirt with a jacket, a decent pair of shoes and clean, styled hair, next time? This look is sooo early 90's, makes the wearer look scruffy and unwashed. Impressions and presentation really counts. If I hadn't recognised his face, I would have avoided Papa altogether.


Take time to see the moving and beautiful pieces of art in the lower gallery of the NAGN (open Mon - Fri: 08:00 - 17:00)? A quick walk-through for the first day is recommended to appreciate the variety, colours and composition of the display, followed by a more detailed study of each piece during lunch thereafter. It's definitely a must-see!


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

PRESS RELEASE: Insight Namibia Magazine Celebrates 100th Edition (September 2013)

In a magazine market known for its fly-by-nights and flash-in-the-pans, Insight Namibia cc marks its 100th monthly edition with the September 2013 issue . The first edition appeared in September 2004 and throughout the last nine years, Insight maintained its position as Namibia's premier current affairs magazine . Originally started and currently based in Windhoek, Namibia, the magazine's founders, Robin Sherbourne, David Lush and Tangeni Amupadhi,  journalists in their own right, at the time (2004) wrote that Insight was 'born out of a feeling that Namibians yearn for more than just hard news.' Readers were promised a publication that went beyond the daily headlines and covered 'the story behind the story' . The magazine was not started with a bank loan; the pioneers pooled their savings to get it off the ground and to this day, that same financial discipline, has ensured that Insight has never taken a loan to cover its operating, printing and overhead cos

Tattoo: Ethiopian Coptic Cross (Meskel) Design

     C hristianity arrived on the shores of southern Africa approximately 600 years ago, and unbeknownst to the bright-eyed European missionaries who disembarked from sodden ships at the Cape of Good Hope, it had been practiced on the African continent, and flourished as an independent religion for almost 1,000 years before, in Ethiopia. Today, the oldest Christian faith on the continent, rumoured to be closest in resembling early Christianity, is the Ethiopian Coptic Church (or the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church).      The cross is the popular universal symbol of Christianity and across the world, in every Christian community, it remains within the parameters of a simple design (+) , almost 2,000 years old. The Ethiopian Coptic Church is the only known Christian community that produces a remarkable version of the cross, called ''meskel''; even more remarkable, this development occurred independent of the influence of European Christianity. Meskel patterns and des

RECYCLE NAMIBIA FORUM: 6th Schools' Recycling Competition

The Recycle Namibia Forum (RNF) is once again inviting schools to participate in the 6 th Schools Recycling Competition (SRC) which commences on 1 March 2014 . Prizes for the top three schools with the most collected recyclables, includes N$10 000 as first prize sponsored by Namibia Breweries Limited, N$5 000 for second prize sponsored by Collect-a-Can and a third prize of N$2 500 from Plastic Packaging.  There will be additional prizes for the best performing school in the Khomas, Coastal and Northern regions. (Photograph: Eleanor Savage - f, Jonathan Wepener - b and Alex Hawala - r, of  the Windhoek International School Environmental Club) RNF chairperson Patricia Hoeksema comments: “The winner of the 2013/14 competition will be announced in Windhoek on the 12 th of March 2014. In total, 52 schools participated last year i.e. 2013/ 2014. To date, the schools have in total collected just more than 108 tons of recyclables , which consisted of 29 tons of glass, 9 tons