By Anthony de Villiers
Although the National Arts Festival (NAF) is reluctant to reveal/display its annual attendance figures, it has become clear among the residents of Makhanda that attendance has declined drastically.
This is not in the interest of the art industry relied on for economic and heritage purposes.
Furthermore, it is detrimental to our highly impoverished community.
For the sake of its revival, NAF needs to reinvent itself. It needs to do this by increased funding levels which are appropriated for their use in more constructive ways, by using the resources of Makhanda to attract people and by making additional forms of artistic creativity a festival feature.
The South African art community for the sake of promoting their talent, in collaboration with NAF, need to lobby big business for much needed Corporate Social Investment (CSI).
We are living in hard economic times and CSI needs to subsidise distinguished artists who rely on profitability due to substantial attendance of the festival, and to subsidise expenses of attendees who seek to buy art work and attend performing arts shows. This would rekindle the numbers NAF once knew and
therefore boost the event, bringing young talent in need of a platform to make themselves known, the potential these means have for the art industry is significant.
In the vicinity of Makhanda there is a national treasure of tremendous value called Waterloo Farm, although it is under publicised and few South Africans are aware of it.
The NAF CEO and personnel need to use this national treasure to attract people to Makhanda during the NAF event, and to use Waterloo Farm as platform for specialized art exhibitions.
Waterloo Farm is a palaeontological excavation site. It is the only site in the world, that has revealed fossil discoveries which show how prehistoric natural development occurred in high latitude areas during the late Devonian time period, the last 15 million years of a time period extending from a period of 358.9 – 420 million years ago.
In recent times, approximately 60 fossil species, most of which are entirely new to science and many of which are yet to be named/described, were discovered at this site. Such is the spectacular significance of Waterloo Farm which warrants global prestige, that its discoveries date back to the existence of a long-lost continent called Gondwana, the continent on which discovered species concerned dwelled.
In addition to using this site as a festival attraction to Makhanda, Naf needs to ensure that the Devonian Ecosystems Project premises (where Waterloo Farm research is conducted) is used as a place for the hosting of exhibitions of prehistoric/ancient life art, which would be exceptionally fitting and appropriate.
This addition to the festival event is bound to increase its numbers of attendees. Painters of ancient life paintings such as Anton Brink and Magie Newman would stand to benefit vastly by having their work displayed in an art exhibition hosted by the Waterloo Farm project.
Dr Robert Gess, the palaeontologist responsible for the excavation and discoveries on Waterloo Farm, says: “I think that if it were possible to bring together an art exhibition showcasing our rich paleontological heritage it would be an exciting addition to the festival.”
The Makhanda vicinity has internationally renowned private game reserves, examples are Shamwari and Kwandwe. NAF needs to promote these reserves as an attraction to Makhanda during festival time and market accordingly. Furthermore, in collaboration with NAF the South African art community needs to campaign for CSI to subsidise the costs of visitation to these reserves by festival attendees. This is very much in the interest of the private game reserve industry much relied on by the economy.
Additionally, NAF needs to organise the hosting of wildlife art exhibitions by these reserves very much in the interest of the reserves, festival and art industry. Painters of wildlife paintings such as Karlin Kruger, Jemima Sargent and Andrea Maree stand to benefit enormously by having their work displayed accordingly. Stephanie Mollett, art curator for the Warren Cary Wildlife Gallery in Limpopo says, “South African wildlife art has great potential to boost the South African art market”.
Taxidermy is a form of art creativity with great potential for entrepreneurship and job creation. Taxidermy was initially practiced largely in museums; however this trend has declined and the industry has taken to the hunting industry. Taxidermists are hired by hunters to preserve and display/mount the animals they have hunted successfully.
As a means to redirect taxidermy back to heritage platforms, the art community in conjunction with NAF, needs to campaign for CSI to cover the costs of taxidermists creating mounts to supplement the festival painting exhibitions on private game reserves. This would serve as great enhancement of the purpose of those exhibitions. This holds potential to cause CSI to become a broader trend beyond the festival and these particular reserves (extending to other reserves) on an ongoing basis – regarding CSI funding of taxidermists. National heritage promotion is after all a considerable priority in our society and has noticable prestige regarding CSI granters. “The industry is growing and has great potential”, says Theunis De Tuoit, taxidermist for the Albany Museum in Makhanda.
Therefore, this prospect holds likelihood of attracting many talented people to apply their taxidermy skills in this new way, which would hold great economic benefit for private game reserves and the taxidermy/art industry.
The extent that the art industry is needed for the economy and employment cannot be downplayed, and highly impoverished Makhanda and the Eastern Cape urgently need this magnificent event as a means to enhance their economy.
It is critical that NAF takes necessary drastic measures for its revival, our art community needs to come forward to salvage and boost this wonderful display of talent.
Anthony de Villiers is a freelance journalist with an interest in economic related affairs.
