ARTAFRICAREVIEWSLUSH / STAFF WRITER: SCC
NO OBLIGATION TO
GET ALONG
‘Lush’ at SMAC Gallery, Stellenbosch
Gender and race politics have an unprecedented pop-cultural presence and, as a result,
there is a certain cynicism that accompanies hearing about an all-girl group-show called
‘Lush.’ There is the suspicion of a feverish attempt at intersectionality, a bracing for the
impact of thinly veiled tropes. Fortunately, these expectations have gone unsatisfied.
Instead, ‘Lush’ embodied an evolution in how we consider female artists.For the exhibition, SMAC gallery penned artists into “lacunose territo[ries]; where the
work of each artist can sojourn for the duration of the exhibition...” This curatorial
device had a deeper effect than that of establishing the autonomy of the bodies of
work; it engendered a cognitive rerouting. The tradition of (forced) cohesion associated
with group-shows had no place here, the ‘girls’ had no obligation to ‘get along.’ These
territories concentrated the voice of each artist; muting the dialogue between the works,
whilst amplifying the dialogue between the work and the audience. The gallery was the
site of interchangeable intimacies.The first offering was of Alexandra Karakashian’s elegant abstract paintings; her territory
is a demonstration of taste. The balance between tone, texture and colour is balletic. The
polish of her work is consolidated with attentive touches, like variations on the picture-
frame, depending on the palette of the work.Marlene Steyn’s work swaps grace for wit. Tropical foliage and languid, nude female
forms feature heavily – a Gauginesque evocation – but the mixed media artist disrupts
the art-historical discourse. The inclusion of playdough makes her installations derisive
rather than a dedication. The figures are prone and prostrate rather than posing; canon
turns into wallpaper with the repetition of these forms in unlikely shades of purple and
blue. There is no romance.1/3 ARTAFRICA