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Art Towards Social Development

A work made of lithograph in black and dark red on off-white coated paper.

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  • A work made of lithograph in black and dark red on off-white coated paper.

Date:

1982

Artist:

Thamsanqa (Thami) Mnyele (South African, 1948-1985)
Gordon Metz (South African, born 1955)

About this artwork

Portraying an artist walking a tightrope between the black and white realities of apartheid South Africa, this poster advertises the exhibition Art Towards Social Development, held during the Festival of Culture and Resistance. Organized collaboratively by Medu and other South African artists, the exhibition was among the first to assess the intersection of art and politics under apartheid.

As noted in press material, the show captured an “embattled people, a hopeful people, a people engaged in deciding how South Africa will emerge out of the abyss of Apartheid fascism and which direction it will take.” The nearby film offers glimpses of the exhibition, which subsequently traveled to Sweden and the African National Congress headquarters in Lusaka, Zambia.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Prints and Drawings

Artist

Thamsanqa (Thami) Mnyele

Title

Art Towards Social Development

Place

South Africa (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1982

Medium

Lithograph in black and dark red on off-white coated paper

Dimensions

Sheet: 86 × 61 cm (33 7/8 × 24 1/16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Artworkers Retirement Society

Reference Number

2018.446

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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