What makes art, art?

Published 12 February 2024 in Art for All

by Nolan Stevens

Ever wondered what makes art truly art? If you're new to the world of art and you’re thinking of buying your first piece, it helps to understand what art is.

Art is a way to tell stories, just like we do through music, dance, and theatre. From the earliest cave paintings, which showed daily life and events, to today's modern and conceptual artworks, art has always been about sharing narratives.

At its heart, art aims to share stories

This storytelling began with the prehistoric cave dwellers, who used rock paintings to document their lives, including hunts, spiritual rituals, and daily activities. As time moved on, especially during the Enlightenment era (or Age of Reason, as it’s also known), art took on an educational role in the west. For example, churches used paintings and stained glass windows to share bible stories with people who couldn't read.

Soon, art began to focus on individuals in positions of wealth and power, such as kings and queens, moving away from purely religious figures.

Alongside this shift, there was a growing desire to experiment with the form, context, and representation of art. This led to questioning and exploring the world, marking the beginning of the Renaissance period. Artists started to look beyond just depicting reality, paving the way for modern art movements like cubism, abstract art, and pop art. 

These movements not only experimented visually but also commented on societal and global issues, as seen in works like Francisco Goya's ‘3rd of May’ and Pablo Picasso's ‘Guernica’, which both reflect on the horrors of war.

In more recent times, contemporary art has focused more on personal narratives, touching on themes like race, gender, and global conflicts. Contemporary art, often seen as innovative or avant-garde, uses new mediums and sometimes unconventional materials. 

This shift to a more individual focus allows artists to build on the visual language of the past while commenting on current issues.

So far, this essay has presented art history from a western perspective. However, one of the roles of contemporary art is to challenge and critique forms of art that are marginalised, which has given rise to movements like African Contemporary Art. This particular space becomes a visual reaction against the othering, so often imposed onto African-ness or black-ness.

For this reason, many artists from Africa and the diaspora address themes such as displacement, objectification, and poverty, thereby enriching the global art narrative.

Artist such as Asisebenze’s own Fumani Walter Maluleke, Mummy Khumalo and Zamani Xaba are great examples of artists whose narratives are in line with some of the global topics.

For example, Fumani’s work grapples with the duality of traditional culture and modern day urban city life. Evident in the use of his grass thatch mat substrates onto which he creates his rural landscape paintings.

His works have transitioned from works on paper, to figurative painting of his mother and other protective figures in his grass mat works, to sprawling unpopulated painted landscapes on grass mats. This will in time undoubtedly lead to bare cut, shaped or moulded grass mats. 

Throughout all these phases of his creative progressions, the narrative has remained a constant. If the original purpose of these grass mats served as resting spaces and sources of comfort and solace, Fumani builds on this ethos by using an unashamedly African material and  perspective.

Mummy Khumalo’s surrealistic creations, on the other hand, are rooted in Afrocentric-Feminism. Her creations are equal parts spiritual, erotic and otherworldly by combining her identities as a sensual being, spiritual practitioner and a mother. 

Mummy’s works present a stance of unshakable defiance. She presents and assumes characters in her creations who would typically be spoken about in hushed tones because these identities are commonly viewed as unsavoury or unbecoming of a black African woman.

Sensuality in the black African community is seldom celebrated publicly, nor is traditional African spiritual practices spoken of openly. Mummy, however, bucks the status quo and opts for a visual narrative not often witnessed. Her exotic fetish goddesses refuse to be ignored.

Then we have Zamani Xaba, who’s artistic practice has also shifted through numerous incarnations, although the narrative of the seeking out hope has remained a constant element. 

This is evident from his earliest phases – which saw presentations of a pastel-drawn tailor venturing to the big city to make his fortune – to the transition into works of a silhouetted naked tailor struggling to carry the weight of his hefty sewing machine, much like Atlas’ struggle to carry the globe. 

His silhouetted tailors soon sprout wings in an effort to not give in, after which we are presented with paintings and prints of Orwellian megalithic sewing machines imposing their will over unseen masses in the Johannesburg cityscapes.

Finally, Zamani presents us with an alternative medium of wings made from repurposed carpets, alluding to a rejuvenating spirit within the down-trodden.

Each of these Asisebenze artists weave narratives that are African at their core, each addressing topics relevant to today’s society. 

In conclusion, art is defined by the diverse stories it tells through visual means. As a viewer or buyer, you become part of the journey, contributing to the interpretation and understanding of what makes art, art. If you're curious about art and thinking about starting your own collection, remember that art is not just about what you see; it's about the stories, emotions, and ideas that resonate with you.

So, why not join us this year? Sign up below to join our mailing list and be among the first to hear of new events, shows and happenings at Asisebenze Art Atelier – the pedestrian entrance is on 28 Plein Street, and safe parking for 100 cars immediately on the right as you turn into Joubert Street.

We have a full calendar of events planned for 2024 and we’d love you to join us on a journey of discovery and appreciation of our artists’ most personal stories.