Aidan Harper
AS WE know, there are many disciplines of art – such as painting, dance, poetry, music, sculpture, food, design and drama. These are normally displayed individually within their own genres and their own platforms.
The multimedia Artmode event is a concept that was formulated in 2014 by Vanessa Holiday and Luke Barritt, who had the idea to bring all these art forms together into one neat package.
The Artmode crew endeavours to find young artists in need of an outlet to showcase their unique creative talents and skills. Barritt says “The problem with many art exhibitions is that you can go and see the art, not really knowing anything about who the artist is, or how they created it. Artmode is different as we wanted to show the public who these people are and how they create.”
“We also wanted to give the artists a chance to meet the people who are interested in their work, so it’s a kind of art in motion”.
Artmode also collaborates with galleries to find new undiscovered talent, as well as with organisations that teach art skills to disadvantaged communities.
Barritt mentions, “ Artmode’s5th edition has a street art theme, so the public can expect a more cutting-edge style which will include paintings, performance art, music, sculpture and more, where they can walk around and interact with the artists and even see part of the art creation process”.
There will be 15 artists exhibiting at the showcase, which will be held in The Auto Atlantic Mini car showroom, situated on the corner of Heerengracht Street and Hertzog Boulevard in Cape Town CBD.
All this Thursday from 6.30pm to 10pm.
Two new edition Mini Coopers will also be wrapped and spray painted by some of the artists.
Artmode’s headline artist will be Boeta Phyf, who is known for his colourful 3-D hanging wood sculptures.
Phyf says, “The beauty of Artmode is that young artists producing varied art styles have a chance to display their talent in a format akin to major galleries and exhibitions without having to first go through the rigorous vetting procedures, rejections and the like that prevent many works from ever enjoying the mainstream art circuit’.
He adds, “In fact, Artmode has been an open platform in a gallery atmosphere where works of numerous young creators have been snapped up by those in the ‘biz’ and art connoisseurs alike, and progressed to the point of major recognition and had pieces of their work shown in the major art market place”.
“ Artmode is also a place where you can hone your skills and show art pieces that are a little more left of centre according to the art world”, he says.
Boeta Phyf’s own work is of a three dimensional layering using wood cuts as his medium.
He started out painting graffiti at the age of 12, drawing letters and characters and progressing to digital painting before moving on to 3-D.
His dad helps him with some of the more technical parts of the construction and his six-year old son even helps with some of the painting. He is very proud of this and says, “With all of us involved in my art we have some great family bonding sessions”.
He says “For Artmode’s5th edition you can expect a more ‘walk around’ style to my work, which will include a free-standing wooden car”.
Another artist who will showcase their work is Catherine Holtzhausen, who produces art from physical and digital layers. Holtzhauzen’s hand-made exhibits utilise the printing press and oils to create monoprints, ‘caullographs’ and a combination of the two.
Having recently graduated from The Stellenbosch Academy of Design and Photography Holtz-hausen describes her style as “sweet, cheerful and mischievous on the surface while containing a sardonic undertone”.
She also works as a freelance illustrator.
The music element of upcoming Artmode will be a performance of much-loved electronic band GoodLuck, comprising of singer-songwriter and vocalist Jules Harding, Matthew O’ Connell on synths and saxophone and producer Ben Peters on electronic percussion and beats.
GoodLuck started as a side project of Afro-pop band Jac Sharp and quickly became the main project born out of a passion for mixing live music with electronic beats.
Harding says “We had nine radio singles and five number ones from our first album. Our second album called Creatures of the Night was recorded in a Namibian desert where we created a film about it. The documentary entitled This Might Sound Crazy premiered at the ADE dance event in Amsterdam where Ben also lectured on the art of mixing live music and sampled sounds”.
The documentary can be found on their website: www.goodluck live.com.
Since then they have toured 14 countries including Asia, India, Europe and Norway. Goodluck is focusing on taking African electronic music global.
Harding says, “Personally, I am excited about playing Artmode as I have just started collecting art”. Harding also says” Artmode is great in that it is edgy and has a more street-art feel to it as opposed to classic art”.
The public can expect a high energy interactive performance from the band.
GoodLuck is also involved with Bridges For Music, a non-profit organization which helps to raise global awareness about local issues in disadvantaged communities through music.
Artmode co-founder Vanessa Holiday will also be showing off her deejaying skills on the night.
l Pre-sold tickets: www.webtick ets.co.za or at the door. Food will also be on sale. More info on the event and the exhibitors can be found at www.Facebook.com/artmodemusic