Solo Exhibitions

Robin Rhode: Drawings 2000-2001 is still on view at Stevenson Gallery in Johannesburg, South Africa until October 17, 2020

In 2000 Rhode was granted a Fresh residency at the South African National Gallery, and gave a performance at the Market Galleries during a solo show in Johannesburg. Many of his performances of that period were ephemeral, like the park bench he drew on the Houses of Parliament in Cape Town, and the escape he enacted from the Slave Lodge museum in the same city. Other performances were particularly staged for photography and video, and live on in those media as his signature serial ‘poems’. A lesser known part of Rhode’s practice at the time was a series of charcoal drawings on paper, indexing everyday objects around him. Some, like a Nokia 8210 and a VHS video cassette, strongly root this body of work in a particular time. Others, like a bottle of water and a hair brush, remain mundane in 2020.

Jake Troyli: Don’t Forget to Pack a Lunch! is still on view at Monique Meloche Gallery in Chicago, United States until October 31, 2020

Jake Troyli investigates the construction of otherness and the commodification of the black/brown body, confronting and exploring labor capitalism and sweat equity as a demonstration of value, challenging the erroneous notion that it is only through arduous performances of labor that value and importance are earned. Troyli presents a new series of energetic paintings, referential to the titular large-scale multi-figure work which features a series of self-portrait avatars embedded within a succession of interwoven scenes, fashioned with a markedly classicist approach. Presented at a time when the black body is at the height of socio-political discord, this series of work is not necessarily in response to contemporary unrest, but to an eternal debate surrounding the commodification of blackness.

Group Exhibitions

La Vague Blanche is still on view at Gallery 38 in Casablanca, Morocco until October 31, 2020

La Vague Blanche is an exhibition and meeting project between a “new scene” of Moroccan artists, university researchers and art critics concerned with the question of contemporary art in Morocco today. The exhibition attempts to weave links between an emerging scene and established practices. A series of articles tackles the subject with as much diversity as there are works, with the publication of a book based on a corpus of works ranging from the year 2000 to 2020. It allows us to realize the full importance and scope of the issue among a whole generation of artists, who here offer their perspective on the shared historical experiences from which artists have drawn a shared vision of the world. Is there a Moroccan art, or only an art in Morocco? The diversity of the material will provide less of an answer than it will document the question.

PORTR-8: 8 New Faces in Contemporary Portraiture is still on view online at Doyle Wham website until October 31, 2020

Doyle Wham presents its inaugural exhibition, PORTR-8 featuring All, Brian Sambi, John Baloyi, Marc Posso, Morgan Otagburuagu, Ojwoook, Shitanda, Tuva Wolf, and Yannis Davy Guibinga. PORTR-8 is a celebration of emerging talent, which features an exciting array of innovative, experimental portrait photography by 8 African artists, from Gabon, Nigeria, Namibia, Kenya, and Mozambique. The represented artists vary widely in terms of their backgrounds, frames of reference, and photographic style, but are united by the desire to expand and challenge traditional notions and narrow interpretations of Africa, African art, and African society.

Art Fairs

1:54 Contemporary African Art Fair is opened at Somerset House in London, United Kingdom from October 8-10, 2020

The eighth edition of 1-54 London will showcase the work of more than 110 emerging and established artists from Africa and its diaspora, working in a wide variety of mediums and from a range of geographical backgrounds. The fair will once again be accompanied by 1-54 Forum, its extensive programme of artists’ talks, film screenings and panel discussions that will be curated by Julia Grosse and Yvette Mutumba from Contemporary And (C&); and take place online. 1-54 Online Powered by Christie’s (7-12 October, with VIP Previews on 5-6 October) will offer virtual booths that feature 30 works from each gallery, as well as providing a spotlight series on individual artists, all of which will be globally accessible. A curated pop-up exhibition including one seminal work from each exhibitor will take place in the Duke Street Gallery within Christie’s Headquarters at King Street, on view to the public from 6-12 October 2020.