Notes

Colbert Mashile explores the relationship between rural and urban environments and the relevance of cultural heritage within a fast-paced, contemporary society. In Re-discover, he foregrounds four male figures within a graphic landscape of incised marks and lines. In the preliminary outline of the composition, Mashile first draws empty text boxes or bubbles, like incomplete or inchoate thoughts. Later, the artist inserts words and fragments randomly extracted from current media headlines into the blank spaces. The cacophony of texts fills the image space like unintelligible chatter. Thus, the juxtaposition of word and image presents a conundrum. Mashile’s text does not illuminate meaning, but rather obscures it. As Mashile states, ‘the text works within the image, but also against it, intentionally creating an ambiguity that changes the relationship of the image and how it is read.’ Mashile has exhibited widely in South Africa and abroad including the Dakar Biennale in 2006. His work is represented in collections including Wits Art Museum, Iziko South African National Gallery and Durban Art Gallery.

Provenance

Donated by Artist Proof Studio