posted by Savanah on Jun 1
The country of South Africa is bound together with arts, interwoven into the culture and the history. Most of the parks and gardens are filled with sculpture, and any restaurant or Cape Town luxury hotel is certain to have pieces of work decorating the walls and the rooms, that are significant to this rich history. On any trip one takes to South Africa, one must find the galleries and museums and stroll through them, not only for the visual entertainment, but for the knowledge that is gained and leads to better understandings of the country and the people of the regions. One such gallery in Cape Town is the South African National Gallery. There are permanent collections here that are rotated to accommodate the touring shows and exhibits. At any given time one will be able to walk through the halls that are filled with everything from sculpture, to photography, textiles and jewelery, paintings and prints on paper.
The museum does lack, however, a significant amount of traditional work from the pre-colonial time period. This is due to the high cost of Western art, and the lack of sufficient funding in order to be able to afford to house the work permanently. There is also not much represented from the 1980′s, as the political situation of Apartheid made it difficult for the gallery to obtain the works of the artists at this time. The gallery has been attempting to obtain more work from this time. Beginning in 1990, work has been done to create a collection of work that celebrates the expression of the different cultures living in Africa. Sculpture and traditional bead-works is part of a collection that is well respected throughout the world. The women of South Africa create this art form in an expressive and articulate manner. The gallery joined the city of Ghana in creating the Bead Society of South Africa, as this is such an important element of the culture. The works in this gallery are stunning and one traveling here should definitely take a few days to experience all that the museum has to offer.
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