Knysna artist to shine at Africa's largest Art Fair

KNYSNA NEWS - A Knysna artist is to shine at one of Africa's largest Art Fair during the return of the Investec Cape Town Art Fair, which takes place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) from 15 to 17 February.

TOMORROWS/TODAY is a cross-section of the most exciting, emerging and less known artists from Africa and around the world chosen by Investec Cape Town Art Fair curator Tumelo Mosaka as being thought-provoking voices.

TOMORROWS/TODAY highlights a wide spectrum of artistic practice at Investec Cape Town Art Fair 2019, Knysna’s John-Michael Meterlerkamp is one of the artists that will be showcasing their works during the seventh edition of this art affair.

According to Mosaka the aim of TOMORROWS/TODAY is to shine a light on emerging and under-represented artists, set to be tomorrow’s leading names. It is open to those working on and beyond the African continent and as the title implies, the ongoing theme is one of transformation, and experimentation showcasing unorthodox art forms addressing current social and political issues.

“The art scene is not short of rising stars,” says Mosaka. “The point is how to provide visibility.”

“For Investec Cape Town Art Fair visitors – especially those who intend to invest in the future – it is important that the art fair sets the bar while ushering in a new crop of artists. For this reason, the fair has established this major platform.”

One of John-Michael Meterlerkamp's art works.

“In essence, the thought-provoking TOMORROWS/TODAY section reiterates the Fair’s support of artists who have developed their talents outside the structures of the art market,” says Mosaka.

Investec Cape Town Art Fair is pleased to introduce the following ten artists, and their galleries, due to exhibit on TOMORROWS/TODAY:

Herewith a bit more info on John:

John-Michael Metelerkamp is an artist born in 1982 and based in Knysna, South Africa.
His practice of work deals with intriguing sensitivities about both reality and the subconscious, confronting trauma, anxiety, and awkwardness. The artist has said that his paintings serve as an honest expression of humanity’s shared human condition, where an attempt at confronting life – as well as seeing its humour– has been made.
In previous bodies of work, the artist considered his past, present, and future in the hope of learning about who he was and where he found himself in specific moments.
His work is most fascinating when viewed across it's varied scope; in the relatively short span of time he’s been painting he’s fast-forwarded through many phases, including (but most certainly not limited to) depictions of beady-eyed people in swirling landscapes, a brief exploration in Cubism, characterful wild animals and peculiar still lifes.
The artist says: ‘My work is autobiographical in the context of my recovery and journey to being a more whole person. Painting has so many elements in it that I find effective at accessing a certain mood or energy. I don’t step back until I feel I have something to look at. I don’t edit my thoughts and have tried in the past to find the most awkward colours that work in harmony. I’m concerned with mental states. Human life is crude and the beings in my paintings are my way of displaying the world’s agenda manifesting itself in a dichotomy of physical versus spirit.’
There’s a clearly sympathetic tone in his work, one with an honest attempt at understanding people.

John-Michael Meterlerkamp relaxing at home.