9 May 25 - 31, 2023 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents Out of Africa A stunning South Af- rican art exhibition makes an impact in the heart of Fair Park. BY SCOTT TUCKER T he Dallas Art Fair blows through the city like a tornado once a year and leaves in its wake a lot of grumbling local artists and gallerists. It’s a four- day affair that demands $250 for a ticket to the preview night and $25 for general ad- mission and offers an assortment of easily digestible commercial art. It’s usually a great place for social me- dia hounds to snap selfies with works that match their outfits, for rubbing shoulders with real estate grifters, and if you’re re- ally in the market, maybe for buying a piece of art. It’s good old-fashioned fun and fine Dallas entertainment at its best. This year’s fair was no different, but arts month in April brought an- other new ex- hibition to Fair Park that is truly worth seeing. Running through Aug. 13 at the African American Museum is the South African contemporary art exhibition, If You Look Hard Enough, You Can See Our Future, cu- rated by Laurie Ann Farrell. The show offers 62 works from the vast art collection held by Nando’s, a restaurant chain based in Johan- nesburg, South Africa. “The title of the exhibition comes from the text on one of the pieces, ‘If You Look Hard Enough, You Can See Your Future,’ by artist Stephen Hobbs,” says Farrell. “There are works in the show that manifest tough histories, but the overall themes of the show speak to a shared future, a shared humanity.” Farrell has worked as the executive direc- tor at the Savannah College of Art & Design, and was the senior curator at The African Center in New York. She was chosen to cu- rate this exhibition by the late businessman Dick Enthoven, who initiated the art collec- tion years ago. Farrell chose 62 pieces from a massive catalog of 25,000 pieces. “It took months to go through the collec- tion database,” she says. “I was looking for exemplary works that could speak to the strengths of the collection and illustrate a meaningful experience for viewers.” The show includes South African con- temporary artists such as Zanele Muholi, Claudette Schreuders, Kagiso Patrick Mautloa, Ighan Adams, Stephen Hobbs, Vivien Kohler and many others. The works on display vary greatly in size, medium and subject matter. Paintings, sculptures, tex- tiles, and photography are curated in a well-thought-out and charming manner that allows the viewer to appreciate the hu- manism inherent in each piece. “The themes of portraiture, place and ab- straction reflect the strengths of the Nando’s Art Collection,” Farrell says. “Text panels orient viewers to themes in each gallery. The hope is that people will feel immersed in shared themes of humanity and life.” The themes of the exhibition are espe- cially pertinent given South Africa’s com- plex, challenging and tumultuous history. South Africa was ruled by a brutal white su- premacist regime over the course of many decades. The regime implemented racial subjugation laws known as apartheid, which were similar to the Jim Crow laws in the U.S. For many South Africans, memories of apartheid are still vivid and raw, as the re- gime ended only three decades ago. Echos of this time can be felt in many of the works on display. One such example is artist Vivien Kohler’s featured mixed-media piece titled “Pietá,” which according to Kohler portrays both the confusion and sadness the artist felt regarding recent xe- nophobic attacks against Malawian immi- grants in South Africa. For Kohler, being able to show his work in the U.S. is an op- portunity to share his message and show gratitude for a dream realized. “Being at the exhibition was a truly life-affirming experience,” Kohler says. “It felt as if I had accomplished a mile- stone not only for myself but also for all those who had believed in me, and who had invested so much in my earlier career all those years ago.” Kohler has seen first-hand the destruc- tiveness of racial and ethnic divisions and hopes to use his work to help people under- stand that they must learn to coexist peace- fully with compassion. For the exhibition curator, Kohler’s message is right on point. “Sadly, shared humanity speaks to crimes against humanity,” says Farrell. “If you look at a work by Vivien Kohler for example, he’s exposing xenophobia to make the point that we should all be more accepting and kind to one another. We are all human.” The art show demonstrates that the U.S. and South Africa have much in common, bringing an even deeper layer of meaning to the exhibition. Although structurally im- posed racial segregation ended in the U.S de- cades before apartheid did, the country still deals with its lingering effects. Just one room over from the art exhibition in the African American Museum hangs a century-old framed Klu-Klux Klan uniform. It serves as a stark reminder of just how bad things have been and how far society has come since. “The future doesn’t belong to any single one of us; it is our collective future, both shaped by and reflecting of our shared hu- manity,” Farrell says. Currently across the world, many countries are facing threats of authoritari- anism and a resurgence of white suprema- cist ideas. Farrell and many of the South African artists in the exhibition are com- mitted to the belief that art can fight against injustice and evil with both nu- ance and grace. The greater message of If You Look Hard Enough, You Can See Our Future is that art can be a powerful tool of social change, capable of challenging oppressive power structures and allowing viewers to envision a better world. From the anti- apartheid movement to the Civil Rights movement, art gives a voice to the voice- less. Kohler reiterates the anti-colonial saying. “A luta continua,” he says. It means, “The fight continues.” If You Look Hard Enough, You Can See Our Future runs through Aug. 13 at the Afri- can American Museum of Dallas in Fair Park, 3536 Grand Ave. Photo by Andrew Sherman “Great Expectations” by Claudette Schreuders is one of the South African works curated from a collection of over 25,000 pieces of art at Nando’s. ▼ Culture “THE FUTURE DOESN’T BELONG TO ANY SINGLE ONE OF US; IT IS OUR COLLECTIVE FUTURE.” - CURATOR LAURIE ANN FARREL www.dallasobserver.com/signup go to WEEKLY EMAIL D SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY EMAIL LIST for feature stories, movie reviews, calendar picks and more!
