RETRO PRINT SALE
- Curator’s statement by Mandy Conidaris
What do I mean by a ‘retro’ print?
We’ve all heard of ‘retro’ fashions and trends – from clothing and accessories to décor – sometimes newly made items that imitate styles from the past. But the concept of retro also embraces the real thing – the act of looking back at the actual item.
This show features prints created between 1998 and 2000, and most of the artists are unknown to us today in South Africa. Unexpectedly, this can make viewing such an exhibition an enriching experience, in that it no longer matters who the artist is, but rather our own unique response to the image becomes important. And here, despite their vintage, many of the prints still seem so contemporary in their imagery.
In keeping with my aim as a curator to look at past artworks in a fresh way, I’m exhibiting these prints to honour a printmaking tradition that became popular in the 1990s and onwards – the print exchange.
What is a Print Exchange?
Printmaking is the only fine art medium that can create multiples of a single image. The work of the artist takes place on a matrix – etching or scratching a copper plate, drawing on a litho stone, cutting into a block of wood or slice of linoleum, or making up positives for a screenprint. The resulting matrix is inked and then printed multiple times up to a predetermined number, which forms the print edition.
The techniques of printmaking allow a group of artists to exchange their works in such a way that all the artists may keep one identical work by each of them.
In the case of a print exchange, the print edition size is determined by the number of participants, plus a few extra for the organisers to exhibit and/or keep in their collections. Each artist usually covers their own printing costs in the knowledge that in return, they will receive an array of different prints for their own collection. A print exchange generally has some technical limitation, usually size so that the works may be presented to the artists in specially made portfolio boxes.
Although print exchanges may happen informally through a group of friends or colleagues, more formal exchanges are often arranged to celebrate an event. Sometimes there is a theme, although the images aren’t expected to be literal as it is hoped that the artists will interpret the theme through their usual styles and subject matters.
Why did Print Exchanges become so popular in 1990s?
Politically, the end of the Cold War resulted in a transition to democracy for several countries worldwide that had previously been under the rule of dictators or authoritarian regimes. That included our own country, with South Africa’s first democratic elections taking place in 1994. The overall ethos of the 1990s was one of both optimism where the concept of democracy embraced the idea of equality between peoples, and collaboration.
In the artmaking community, the idea of artists exchanging artworks –symbolising the exchange of their experiences – led to a trend towards the Print Exchange.
The prints on exhibition here are drawn from four print exchanges that happened between 1998 and 2000.
Three of these print exchanges celebrated events. Locally, the event was New Ground – Common Ground, the First South African Printmaking Conference at Rhodes University in 1998, organised by Dominic Thorburn. This exchange featured prints by staff and students from the visual arts departments of twelve institutions. Internationally, the miniature exchange was arranged to celebrate the inaugural Impact Printmaking Conference at the University of Western England in 1999; and a further exchange that was arranged for the second Impact Conference in 2000.
For me, the most exciting exchange shown here was a co-operative one, organised in 1998 between the iconic Frans Masereel Centre for Printmaking in Belgium and two local printmaking studios – Artist Proof Studio in Johannesburg, and Hard Ground Studio in Cape Town. This featured 54 artists – 13 each from our two local studios and 26 from the Frans Masereel Centre. Each artist was given a playing card as their source. Artist Proof was given the suite of Hearts, and Hard Ground Studio, the Spades.
I was fortunate enough to participate in all four print exchanges. Over the years, I have framed a few which hang in my home, and I have gifted many to friends. But the remainder have been kept in a safe acid-free portfolio box in my print cabinet.
I feel it is time for them to be viewed and appreciated again, and I hope that, through this exhibition, some may find new homes to be freshly displayed.
I would like to express my thanks to Gordon Froud and the Stokvel gallery for their support.
How have I determined the prices since many artists here are unknown to us?
As my wish is for the prints to be rehomed, I am offering them at low prices. Since many artists here are unknown (illegible signatures) or unknown to us, my pricing method has been both objective and subjective. As an experienced printmaker, I have looked at the complexity of the technique used by each artist – and as a viewer, my own response to the image.
I hope that at least one, and perhaps many, of these images will resonate with you.
Marnix Everaert (Belgium)
(Uncertain title)
1998
Etching and screenprint
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x26,5 cm
Image size 32 x 19 cm
Artist unknown (Belgium)
(Uncertain title)
1998
Linocut
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 32 x 19 cm
An Blockx (Belgium)
Screenprint
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 32 x 19,5 cm
Osiah Masekwameng (SA)
Untitled (King of Hearts)
1998 Screenprint
Edition 59/70
Paper size 38 x 26,5 cm
Image size 32 x 19 cm
Jonathan Comerford (SA)
King Korn
(King of Spades)
1998 Screenprint
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31 x 18 cm
Franky Cane (Belgium) Untitled 1998 Screenprint
Edition 59/70
Paper size 38 x 27 cm
Image size 31 x 19
Frieda Maes (Belgium)
Untitled 1998
Linocut
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 32 x 19 cm
David Yule (SA)
One Eyed Jack (Jack of Spades)
Paper size 38 x 26,5 cm
Image size 30 x 19 cm
Untitled (Two of Spades)
1998 Hand-coloured etching
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 30 x 17 cm
Untitled (Three of Spades) 1998 Linocut Edition 59/70
Paper size 38 x 26,5 cm
Image 32 x 19 cm
Frank Castelyns (Belgium)
(Title uncertain)
1998 Screenprint
Edition 59/70
Paper size 38 x 26,5 cm
Image size 32 x 19 cm
Enk De Kramer (Belgium)
Untitled 1998
Etching and drypoint
Edition 59/70
Paper size 38 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31,5 x 19 cm
Pascale De Meirsman (Belgium)
Untitled 1998
Etching
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31,5 x 19 cm
(Ten of Spades)
1998
Linocut Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 32 x 19 cm
Sheila Flynn (SA) The Soul’s Settlement (Five of Hearts)
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 30 x 21 cm
Nico
Untitled 1998
Etching
Edition 58/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31,5 x 19 cm
Artist unknown (Belgium)
Untitled 1998
Screenprint
Edition 59/70
Paper size 38 x 26,5 cm
Image size 33,5 x 21 cm
Dirk Boulanger (Belgium)
I asked for bones but they gave me coffee
1998
Etching Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31,5 x 19 cm
(Eight of Spades)
1998
Linocut Edition 59/70
Paper size 38 x 26,7 cm
Image size 32 x 19 cm
Kim Berman (SA)
The Four of Hearts
(or The Cradock Four)
1998
Etching Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31,5 x 19 cm
Wout Vercammen (Belgium)
Untitled 1998 Screenprint
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 32 x 19 cm
Untitled 1998
Screenprint
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31,5 x 19 cm
All Set … (Seven of Hearts) 1998
Linocut Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31,5 x 19 cm
(Queen of Spades)
1998
Etching
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31,5 x 19 cm
Unsigned (Belgium)
(Possibly Enk De Kramer)
Untitled Reduction woodcut
Edition 59/70
Paper size 38 x 26,5 cm
Image size 38 x 25 cm
Untitled (Five of Spades)
1998 Collagraph Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31,5 x 19 cm
Hans Verdyck (Belgium)
Etching
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31,5 x 19 cm
Flora More (SA)
Untitled (Ten of Hearts) 1998 Screenprint Edition 59/70
Paper size 38 x 26,5 cm
Image size 32,5 x 19,5 cm
Untitled (Five of Spades) 1998
Etching Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 31,5 x 19 cm
3 hearts (broken)
1998
Screenprint
Edition 59/70
Paper size 37,5 x 26,5 cm
Image size 32 x 19 cm
Artist unknown
Home From Home
1999
Collaged digital image
Edition 3/12
Paper size 35,5 x 28 cm
Image size 15 x 19,5 cm
Bronwyn Findlay (SA) Vase
Hand-coloured linocut
Edition 16/60
Paper size 38 x 28 cm
Image size 30,5 x 19 cm
Artist unknown
Etching
Edition 10/12
Paper size 35 x 28 cm
Image size 29 x 28,5 cm
Artist unknown
Boat map I 1999
Screenprint
Edition 11/12
Paper size 28 x 35,5 cm
Image size 17 x 27,5 cm
Sipho Mdanda (SA) 1994 - 1998
Etching Edition 15/60
Paper size 28 x 38 cm
Image size 19,5 x 27,5 cm
