Qatar showcases South African artists

Curator of UCT's Michaelis Gallery, Nadja Daehnke, fine-arts lecturer Svea Josephy and two UCT graduates were five of seven artists featured in an exhibition of South African contemporary art in Doha in Qatar.

Dichotomy: Two views of Doha in Qatar.

Lien Botha and Hasan and Husein Essop were invited to take part in the exhibition at the Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar Gallery, titled Crossing Boundaries: Contemporary art and artists from South Africa. The exhibition showcased work that deals with the complex issues of the Middle East and the question of identity in Islam.

South African artists Sharlene Khan and Nomthunzi Mashalaba completed the diverse line-up, which represented artistic practice in photography, mixed media, print, installations and text.

Riason Naidoo, director of the South African National Gallery, delivered the address at the opening of the exhibition, which ran from 26 January to 5 March.

"A whole lot of interest in South African political context is given in each artist's work," said Naidoo. "South Africa has both technology and history, which results in great artwork."