More than a decade back the Swiss Arts Council (Pro Helvetia) did an unusual and risky thing – they set up offices in Africa using Cape Town as a base – a strange choice considering Jozi is usually the place where most agencies who want an African focus base themselves.
Pro Helvetia works throughout the SADC regions and sends Swiss artists all over the region for tours, exhibitions, residencies and more. As its latest newsletter informs us: “several successful Pro Helvetia projects have been completed [in the last year] and there are several more in the offing: From Indian classical music to genre-defying electronic music performances; from an exhibition that places South African ‘resistance art’ in conversation with Dadaist works to a dance production that problematises identities in post-Apartheid South Africa. Also, in our ongoing efforts to foster inter-cultural exchange, see our call for applications for studio and workshop residencies in 2010/2011. Artists from a wide range of disciplines are invited to apply.”
By now you may have missed the visit of Filewile (who performed in Cape Town with Rattex at various venues including in Gugs), but you still have an opportunity to see an exhibition entitled Dada South at the Iziko SA National Gallery (12 December 2009 – 28 February 2010) curated by Roger Van Wyk. See South African artworks from the 1960s to the present “exhibited alongside a collection of original works by historical Dada artists, challenging the notion that only art that directly addresses political subject matter should be considered South African ‘resistance art’”.
And for lovers of Indian classical music, you are “in for a treat in February 2010 when world-renowned, Swiss-based sarod player Ken Zuckerman will be touring South Africa in a festival titled ‘Three Shades of Raga’. Zuckerman is one of three principal artists featured at the festival and will be accompanied on tabla by the highly rated Pandit Anindo Chatterjee. The other artists are violin virtuoso Kala Ramnath, and the doyen of Indian classical vocal, Pandit Jasraj”. More information at tabla.co.za. The gig in CT is on February 12th, 8pm at the Artscape Opera House.
Lastly don’t forget that Pro Helvetia Cape Town facilitates studio and research residencies in Switzerland for artists from Southern Africa. Artists and cultural practitioners in the areas of the visual arts, music, literature, theatre and dance are eligible to apply. Applications for 2010/2011 can be submitted until 1 February 2010, using www.myprohelvetia.ch.
