Alfred Thoba: True Love
Strauss & Co Johannesburg, 89 Central Street | Until 1 March 2024
The life and work of South African Modernist Alfred Thoba (1951 – 2022) is highlighted in a new commemorative exhibition at Strauss & Co’s Johannesburg space, running from 5 February to 1 March 2024. Titled True Love, the exhibition is a collaboration between Strauss & Co and Kalashnikovv Gallery, and will commemorate Thoba’s 50-year career as an artist. A selection of his artwork will be exhibited alongside archival materials and a reconstruction of his home studio, which was at 12 Gainsborough Mansions in Hillbrow.
About
Alfred Thoba
South African, 1951-2022
Alfred Thoba was born in Sophiatown, Johannesburg. Largely self-taught, he is famous for his politically-charged paintings. In Sue Williamson’s Resistance Art in South Africa (Juta, 2010), Thoba discusses having to move around at night with the work 1976 Riots in order to avoid unwelcome attention from the police during the apartheid regime.
In the post-apartheid era, Thoba’s works remain politically and socially engaged. His recent works deal with the effects of Westernisation and urbanisation on rural and cultural values. His work is inspired by newspaper articles which he clips out and stores for later use. The finished works are often accompanied by a letter written by the artist himself.
Thoba’s seminal work 1976 Riots set a world record for the artist when it was sold by Strauss & Co for R913 480 in June 2012. This was followed up in May 2013 with Fruits of Life which sold for R818 496. A major retrospective of his work, Alfred Thoba: A Step Becomes a Statement, was held at the Wits Art Museum from 14 March to 3 June 2018.
Press Release
A new exhibition by Strauss & Co and Kalashnikovv Gallery celebrates the legacy of South African Modernist Alfred Thoba
Born in Sophiatown, Johannesburg, Thoba was a largely self-taught artist, best known for his politically charged paintings. Deeply concerned with the disenfranchisement of black South Africans, both during and post-apartheid, Thoba’s work explores contemporary events and moments of historical significance, while also portraying the private and political aspects of sex, marriage, and love.
Named after a painting by Thoba of two lovers embracing, reproduced in the South African Playboy magazine in the 90s, True Love provides a deeper understanding of his Modernist approach to his practice, and his personal life, inextricably linked to his painting.
Central to this is the reconstruction of his home studio, offering a rare, immersive look into the artist’s life and process.
“After he passed away, the Kalashnikovv team visited his studio and documented the space, taking photos of everything,” explains Strauss & Co-Head Curator and Senior Art Specialist Wilhelm van Rensburg. “I think the reconstructed studio, with Thoba’s works-in-progress and personal items, will have a real impact on art historians and art lovers. We have the last painting he traced on the easel, for instance. It indicates his working process, and his practice, which is very important to be able to see.”
