ArtifiedBeing Solo Exhibition Review
uMbusi, also known as ArtifiedBeing, recently concluded his first ever solo art exhibition at Botaki Ba Afrika in Hatfield, Pretoria. The exhibition was titled ArtifiedBeing, a name the artist gave himself when he knew that he was a messenger to the arts. The theme of the exhibition was: the beginning of an infinite journey.
Image: Artist Archives
BACKGROUND
uMbusi realised that he was ArtifiedBeing when he was able
to create art using various artistic genres. He searched for the meaning of the
word on Google but found nothing; and since the word was non-existing, he
decided to be the first one to use it. He believes it is a beautiful and true
way to describe himself as a messenger of the arts.
uMbusi is an abstract creative and likes to use the term
uMdali more than artist to describe himself, “I give the non-existing breath to
this world, it makes me godly in a way.” He leaned more to the abstract world because
of the way it allowed him to engage more with his emotions. His work is very
thought provoking and has very few boundaries. “Art can never be closed in,”
passionately explains uMbusi, “it needs to breathe and explore
unconventionally. Art means you are God, so create and bring life to what you
do. uMdali womhlaba did not bring us to this planet to use what’s already here
without enhancing life through innovation. Art for me means I use what’s
already here to create more and more. Also, art is a marker of time as it marks
events that will be the symbol of history in the future and not only the artist's
story can be told through it but all that has happened around the time the
artwork was created.”
He has been showcasing his work at art-related events for the past 3 years, but says his professional art career only started on the 10th of September 2022. That is why he decided to name the exhibition after his creative name: ArtifiedBeing. It was the artist’s way of saying – hello art world, I am here now.
Image: Artist Archives
uMbusi is from Vosloorus, a township in the East Rand of Johannesburg.
He says it is a messy planet with beautiful people around him – both the mess as
well as the beauty are his initial influences. Art does not always stem out of beauty,
so we must give dark art the same level of appreciation as we do to the art
that expresses optimism.
EXHIBITION
The solo exhibition can be summarised as very abstract and
experimental in nature. When reality is portrayed realistically in the artworks,
it is only does so briefly – it is like the artist cared more about searching
beyond what he knows than deciphering what he already knows. The works were
created in a collage style that merges different aesthetics to make a unified
finished product. His preferred mediums of choice for this exhibition included
oil pastel, paper, acrylic paint, marking pen, glue, teabag, and a marking pen.
One of the artworks was created as a digital collage.
In addition to the body of work in presentation for the
exhibition, there were some semi finished or finished artworks displayed all over
Botaki Ba Afrika’s gallery floor. I wonder what the intentions of the artist were.
I also wonder if these artworks were the rejects of the exhibition. One has to
admire, however, the fighting spirit of these rejects because they made it to
the exhibition selection list, even though they were only displayed on the floor.
Of all the art pieces on display, one stood out above all others
for me. It is titled Alkeluban 1 (2022), a work uMbusi collaborated on with Tumi,
an artist from the East Rand of Johannesburg. Alkeluban is another name usually
used to describe Africa. “Tumi and I painted and added the collage work looking
at the xenophobic state in the country. It made me question how we as South
Africans are confused on what the concept of xenophobia is, and how detachment
grows more as this issue is entertained,” says the artist.
Image: Artist Archives
From this exhibition one can already tell that uMbusi will
be one of those artists who constantly break barriers and push the limits. He
has an insatiable appetite for exploration, and a curious viewer can only
wonder how his art journey will unfold. There is more to the arts, and his
process seems brave enough to help innovate it. “I aim to push the narrative for
the viewer to realise that the beauty of creation isn’t about the creator, but
the art. I don’t make art to be known, I make the art for the art to be known.
It’s never about me but my work. We’re messengers on this planet, and the message
is the important factor,” says uMbusi.
Art comes in various genres, and the ArtifiedBeing will
create in all forms; we just have to wait and see what he makes.
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