Artist Proof Studios in Johannesburg celebrates its 21st anniversary this year with a 10-day festival of exhibitions and workshops showcasing works by three generations of APS-affiliated artists.
Ten South African artists who have worked with APS, including William Kentridge and Colbert Mashile, will collaborate on and exchange print portfolios with a group of Boston-based printmakers who have acted as mentors to APS artists and staff since the inception of the organization in 1991. This process will culminate in an exhibition that surveys this relationship titled the Boston-Joburg Connection: Collaboration and Exchange at Artist Proof Studio, 1983-2012, which will be hosted at the Tufts University Art Gallery, in Boston.
Artist Proof Studios in Johannesburg celebrates its 21st anniversary this year with a 10-day festival of exhibitions and workshops showcasing works by three generations of APS-affiliated artists. Ten South
African artists who have worked with APS, including William Kentridge and Colbert Mashile, will collaborate on and exchange print portfolios with a group of Boston-based printmakers who have acted as mentors to APS artists and staff since the inception of the organization in 1991. This process will culminate in an exhibition that surveys this relationship titled the Boston-Joburg Connection: Collaboration and Exchange at Artist Proof Studio, 1983-2012, whichwill be hosted at the Tufts University Art Gallery, in Boston. This exciting collaborative event will be curated by art historian Professor Pamela Allara, who will also be in Johannesburg for one month while she guest-curates the international section of the exhibition Coming of Age, which opens at the Johannesburg Art Gallery later this year.From 23 April six international visiting artists will conduct workshops with three groups of South African artists at the APS premises. These visiting artists are Peter Scott and Rhoda Rosenberg, both of the School of the Museum of Fine Arts’ (SMFA) Printmaking faculty; graduate student assistants, Ella Lundberg and Erin Grimes, also from SMFA; and Birgit Blyth and Judy Quinn, artists specializing in alternative photographic techniques. The workshops will culminate in a series of prints which will be presented in a book and exhibited at APS at the end of the 10-day period. These works will also be included in the The Boston-Joburg Connection at theTufts Gallery.
Although APS launched in 1991, the organisation’s history dates back to 1983, when Kim Berman, a Tufts/Museum School graduate, decided to initiate a non-commercial print workshop for artists of all levels in South Africa. APS was foudned in Johannesburg, in 1991, together with artist Nhlanhla Xaba. Located in the Newtown Cultural Precinct, APS was conceived as a platform for new modes of working in the cultural sector in South Africa’s transition to a democratic society. The organisation was formed with the intention of training potentially talented, up-and-coming artists, from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. The Studio focuses on intaglio and relief printmaking processes, including lithography and silk-screen printing,
as well as other mixed media printing techniques. APS now trains between 80 and 100 learners each year.
