Posted under Tsepe Tsepe Design
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The Kwasa Kwasa story changed name and will be known as Tsepe Tsepe Designs from now on. Sim and Goodman opened their bank account and will trade as Tsepe Tsepe Design. As soon as they have a more comprehensive body of work together we shall commence with the marketing and branding off their talents!
Here is some exciting examples … and WOW!
Take note of the “landscape we call home”, the city, the townships, the rural areas….!
Hermanus during holiday periods, the road…? a road leading to the Eastern Cape… a place that a young person will only visit during funeral festivals?
The orange splashes represent the sun, a time of day all of us would like to take a break to entertain ourselves with an ice cream. The umbrellas must b, I think, be for the purpose of protecting oneself from the sun!
This last platter, with a very unusual composition is extremely accomplished regarding the layout and pictorial representation of our land SOUTH AFRICA!
Come on, what do you think, do these platters speak to you?
Riaan on 29 Aug 2008 at 8:46 am #
Hi Gerrit
I have seen Southern Art grow from its early days selling “pottery” to a phenomenal portal to the insides of what can be done with - to put it bluntly fine-grained earth.
It is and always will be an inspiration to everybody out there with a love for ceramics.
Your blog and website is absolutely awesome!!!!
Good luck with the new found avenues and congrats to the TEAM.
Best regards.
Riaan
Gerard and Anuta on 29 Aug 2008 at 11:35 am #
Hello there, Gerrit
Our visit to the gallery this morning was so inspiring - such an uplifting story around your involvement with these two young guys. Their work is wonderfully advanced for relative beginners and we know that they will find their place in the sun under your expert guidance.
To answer your question: of course they speak to us! They speak of great talent and integrity. So, continue encouraging them to work from the heart and no compromise.
Well done and we look forward to following their careers - along with the career of the gallery.
Best regards
Gerard and Anuta
Estelle on 29 Aug 2008 at 4:45 pm #
What a wonderful story and the platters are astonishing. These brave young men are going to go far…
The bottom platter is just mindblowing. The composition is so dynamic… I love the colours too… If I could afford it, I would offer them $250 US for it.
In my opinion this is the true spirit of Carpe Diem.
And to the curator you mentioned in the skydiver blog, I’ll say this: Look at the platters these young men have produced under Gerrit, Gillian and Hele’s mentorship. Here you have loads of talent, rapidly developing skill and wonderful imagination…. I think our established curator just painted himself old school.
This is an example of the pulse of the nation. The language the people speak. FINE ART Baby yeah!
Gerrit Oosthuizen on 29 Aug 2008 at 6:40 pm #
Riaan
Thank you, with social marketing becoming more commonplace it is just so much easier to connect with our patrons far away…most still shy away from commenting on the blog but I do believe that it will change gradually. The most gratifying surprise is that the person commenting loyally on most of the posts is 67 years of age!!
We believe that we are and will create a new platform for ceramic artists wishing to run their ceramic art business as a viable and sustainable entity. Most ceramic artists world wide has to wake up, build confidence and shed their insecurities.
Ceramic art can compete with all the art making disciplines and that is the bottom line, but if you wish to do so successfully then you either have to market yourself well or be profitable enough to pay somebody to do it for you! I choose the self option for now as most galleries present a diluted platform!
The future looks bright and for that reason we are positive that we would afford ourselves the opportunity to finance the creation of ceramic pieces that will flabbergast you past your wildest expectations!
Keep posting, ask questions…comment!!!
Gerrit Oosthuizen on 29 Aug 2008 at 7:10 pm #
Dear Estelle
The bottom platter left me breathless… it is so now, so tomorrow, but on closer inspection a history, a dynamic living society opens up to the viewer.
I shall prepare a post with some detail images… the honesty presented in these works hurts, it is lyrical in design, it presents the womb of a mother, all embracing and protective, and that is the South African society presented in the media as a community fraught with desperation. I do experience the agonizing lack of food, the pains of hunger but the basic truthfulness of the self to be embraced or to embrace the neighbor seems to be the basic vision these two artists capture!
I may be an idealist but true happiness is fed by the optimistic spirit of Carpe Diem.
The sensitivity and sublime feeling of interconnectedness that these two artists create with, must be treasured, if only for one reason…we do life in a country with societies completely out of touch with the needs of others even when it is so obvious that it hurts looking at platters like these, observing these truths with tinted spectacles!
Thank you so much, your comments are treasured!
Gerrit Oosthuizen on 29 Aug 2008 at 7:18 pm #
Dear Gerard and Anuta
We all thank you for your spirited words and patronage. I am sure that the two plates that you acquired will be the conversation point for a long time to come!
I will soon load a public portal, with secure payment facilities, with some of their work. Keep posted and forward our exciting blog and website to all who wish to support a vibrant, viable and self sustainable art enterprise!
Kind regards
Gerrit
elza on 04 Sep 2008 at 2:18 pm #
Hoi Gerrit
Just when we were wondering what Sim and Goodman were up to, you come with this - and DO they speak to one!!! Am I wrong to suggest that this is naive art - at it’s very best? There is so much “feeling” in each of the designs on these platters. Especially the rural aspect grabbed me! You could say I “examined” every little detail on them in an effort to find more and was not disappointed. It’s all there. Once again, hats of to you and your team for the initiative you took in investing time and sharing your knowledge with Sim and Goodman. Are these comments passed on to them so they know there are a lot of people out here looking out for their work and waiting for more?
Anso le Roux on 06 Sep 2008 at 7:34 pm #
Hierdie is ‘n storie wat my hart diep raak!
Baie geluk julle! En net die beste wense vir die toekoms van die projek. Die platters is pragtig, eerlik en buitengewoon besonders!