The Constitution – KZN Society of the Arts

I left the office in such a rush that Friday, I had not been to the KZN Society of Arts Gallery in months and I needed the break.

When I arrived they were preparing for a talk on the art of the season. The exhibition was about democracy and the constitution of South Africa. A topic I had not thought about since childhood. They had copies of the constitution at a few stands and showed a range of monochrome pieces that captured some of the revolutionaries of our time including the great Steve Biko, Hellen Joseph, Charlotte Maxeka and the former President Nelson Mandela. Please do me the favor of looking up these names if you haven’t heard about them.

I loved the sentiment and my favorite pieces of the show were these Nguni women upstairs .. They were associated with the Ndebele beads below them.

They made the show for me as the other pieces were mono chrome & challenging with shadow work & complex stories.

These 3 women, were the sauce. I later learnt that the work is by Barbra Tyrell who donated these pieces to the Constitutional Court Art Collection. Right next to them was more charcoal based work with more Nguni Symbolism within the context of Democracy, so you had to really give them your time to comprehend. Watch this summary below.

Unfortunately I got upset by work and had to leave before the show started but I loved being the space, had a Red Cappuccino , made of rooibos for people allergic to caffeine. Also, I met a new friend.