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Art meets history: a bold exploration of resilience at The Blue House

Reclaiming Quarters, a thought-provoking exhibition, breathes new life into the haunting spaces of South Africa's past, transforming memories of oppression into narratives of resilience and hope.

The David Krut Projects at The Blue House in Parkwood recently hosted the revolutionary art exhibition Reclaiming Quarters.
In collaboration with renowned artists Mary Sibande and Lawrence Lemaoana, the David Krut Workshop, based in Jeppestown, unveiled the exhibition as part of the Occupying the Gallery mentorship programme. This initiative introduces artists from diverse backgrounds to the art world, offering them a platform to explore and create in unconventional spaces.

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The exhibition delves into the concept of ‘quarters,’ a term historically associated with the segregation and dehumanisation of non-European people during apartheid. However, through the eyes of the participating artists, these spaces have been reimagined as symbols of resistance, endurance, and possibility. The exhibition showcases a profound exploration of printmaking and collaboration while offering a sharp commentary on South Africa’s painful history.

The narratives behind the art

Mary Sibande’s Domestic Workers’ Quarters poignantly reflects on the invisible servitude endured by black women under apartheid. These isolated, hidden quarters behind white employers’ homes symbolised the lives of domestic workers, always on call yet never seen. Through her avatar Sophie, Sibande transforms these quarters into spaces of dignity and defiance. Dressed in an extravagant Victorian gown, Sophie challenges the outdated stereotypes that reduced black women to household objects, subverting the power dynamics of the past. Sibande encourages viewers to engage with themes of invisibility and endurance, stating that Sophie’s leisure activities represent newfound freedom, challenging historical constraints.

Lusanda Nditas Ke a Bereka (Dr Philip Tabane).

Lawrence Lemaoana’s work focuses on the legacy of apartheid’s migrant labour system, a system that tore families apart and subjected men to harsh living conditions in overcrowded hostels. Lemaoana reimagines these hostels, designed to control and isolate black men from their families, as sites of resilience. His work critiques the systemic fragmentation of families while highlighting the ongoing struggle of men who were reduced to mere labourers. In doing so, he pays homage to the lost connections and the enduring strength of the men who lived through these conditions.

Sibande and Lemaoana’s works come together to reclaim these ‘quarters,’ transforming them from symbols of oppression into spaces of empowerment. Through their art, they invite us to reflect on how space can be both a tool of control and a site of personal and collective liberation.

Mary Sibande. Photo: Naziya Davids-Easthorpe

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Navigating memory and resistance

One of the exhibition’s most powerful voices is Hoek Swaratlhe, whose work examines the aftermath of the Group Areas Act of 1951, which displaced countless non-European communities into segregated townships. Using architectural plans and found objects, he tells the story of resilience in the face of systemic inequality. His work captures how these segregated spaces became places of survival and defiance, as communities banded together to resist the oppressive system.

Hoek Swaratlhe’s Sotra.

For Swaratlhe, the architecture itself becomes a canvas for survival. His incorporation of everyday objects from these townships adds a deeply personal layer to the work, reminding viewers that while these spaces were intended to divide, they became places of community and culture. “Even in spaces designed to control,” Swaratlhe explained, “people found ways to resist and build something of their own.”

Lusanda Ndita. Photo: Naziya Davids-Easthorpe

Shifting the narrative

Anya Lureman, the exhibition manager, reflects on the transformative power of Reclaiming Quarters. “This exhibition redefines spaces once tied to oppression into places of resilience and empowerment,” she said. “Through each artist’s work, they have shifted the narrative from places of dehumanisation to sites of possibility.”

Mary Sibande’s Leisurely Reading Sophie With Her Newspaper.

The artists featured in Reclaiming Quarters have turned the narrative of apartheid on its head. In spaces that once served as instruments of control, they now find stories of endurance and transformation. Through their collaboration and artistry, they reclaim not just the physical quarters, but the memories and histories embedded in these spaces. The exhibition is a powerful reminder that even the most oppressive structures can be reimagined as symbols of strength and hope.

Anya Lureman, the exhibition manager. Photo: Naziya Davids-Easthorpe

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