12 Aug 2013

A new concept in art exhibition dubbed 360 Degrees of Art was introduced to the local artists during the launch of a landscape art book exhibition at Thapong Visual Arts Centre recently.  

An exhibition that was pioneered by an American painter and photographer named Kimberly Kersey-Asbury started on August 9 and her landscape books would be displayed at the Thapong Visual Art Centre until August 23.

In an interview after the exhibition, Kimberly said she was inspired to explore yet another level of artistry by Joseph Turner who was the landscape and history painter, master draughtsman and water- colourist, tireless traveller, poet and teacher.  

Kimberly said Turner’s paintings exemplified the energy, imagination and enquiring spirit of his time. And so she admired his works as ‘the greatest of the age’.
“Turner’s sketchbooks, drawings and watercolours are quite unique and normally takes the artist’s mind into space through paintings”, she said.

Using powdered pigment mixed with paint and oil, Kimberly with pictures of landscapes in her minds takes the brush into canvas and comes up with different, styles and techniques and develops a picture that communicates to the viewer.

Having stayed some few years in the Makgadikgadi pans, Kimberly’s works are mostly a reflection of the Makgadikgadi landscapes reflecting the pan’s night times, fires that baffled the area at some point as well as the empty spaces that beckoned beyond the horizons.

Now staying in the United States as an Associate Professor of Art and Design at Saint College where she teaches drawing, painting and other studio courses, Kimberly came all the way to show case this new venture of artistry to her former colleagues in the art industry.

Thapong Visual Arts Center coordinator, Reginald Bakwena applauded Kimberly for the great work that she has done especially bringing in a new concept of art to the local industry.

Bakwena said those are concepts needed by local artists to grow their horizons and even in their development as artists.

“These days, we try to bring in a new concept of art into our local artists for them to be able to compete internationally”, he said.

The roping in of new concepts of art is not only interesting but assists individuals to challenge themselves to improve on the knowledge that they already have.

He said the exhibition also allowed local and international artists to network.
 
Kimberley took time to explain her art work to the audience who had come in large numbers and Bakwena said that was encouraging as artists have now learnt the importance of fully explaining their works to the audience.

He said interactions with art works are very important on artists, as it assists them to sell their art works. Ends