School of Arts
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Item Passing Through Fragmented Scribbles: Moving Towards Movement, Dance and Choreography Grounded in the Embodied Ecosomatic Paradigm(Arts Research Africa, 2022-09-16) Ngwenya, SmangalisoThis paper explores the artistic creation and embodied practiceled research in the context of creating an ensemble screendance titled “Fragmented Scribbles.” The work explores the embodied scribbles of knowledge that exist within conversations among intellectual, emotional, physical, social, aesthetic, creative, and spiritual realms. The research prioritizes the whole being as a site of artistic exploration, using Passing Through as a pedagogical method. The ecological perception and ecosomatic paradigm are employed to cultivate mindfulness, perceive relationships, develop conceptual flexibility, re-perceive depth, and intentionally use the imagination. The study also examines the unique narratives and associations between internal and physical ecologies of the performers and their sites of performance.Item Exploring the Transformative Potential of Practice-based Design Research (PBDR) Methods in Architectural Design Pedagogy(Arts Research Africa, 2022-09-16) Felix, SandraThis paper discusses the application of practice-based design research (PbDR) methods in transforming the design practice of architecture students. It explores how reflection and diffraction, two PbDR methods, can be used to shape students’ design practice and challenge institutional biases. The author shares the experience of implementing these methods in a third-year architecture design studio at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa. Changes were made to the curriculum, including the introduction of reflection and the use of diffractive methods, to foster personal and institutional transformation. The paper highlights the importance of collaborative dialogue, social reflection, and engaged pedagogy in this transformative process.Item "I am Coloured": The Memoir as a Decolonial Methodology(Arts Research Africa, 2022-09-16) Wentworth, RaezeenThis paper explores the shift from a “definitive” to a “descriptive” approach in the context of the coloured identity narrative. It reflects on the challenges of critiquing and redefining coloured culture and identity while still using language that reinforces existing tropes. The author argues for a move towards the descriptive, which allows for a decolonial perspective and selfarticulation. The text discusses the use of autoethnography and the creation of a production called (Un)becoming, where personal narratives were explored. It also suggests that published memoirs, such as Sorry, Not Sorry, Because I Couldn’t Kill You, and Ougat, contribute to disrupting normative cultural constraints and offer a decolonizing perspective.Item Priority Mail Process Lab: An Experiment in Migrant Dramaturgy(Arts Research Africa, 2022-09-16) Kabwe, B. MwenyaThis abstract reflects on the dramaturgy of the Priority Mail Process Lab, a month-long virtual residency program called into existence during the Covid-19 pandemic. The lab aimed to facilitate an exchange of objects, ideas, and insights between Francophone and Anglophone African artists. The paper explores the artistic research practice behind the lab, focusing on the themes of migration, mobility, and the role of African women. It discusses the curatorial intentions of prioritizing process over production, the importance of care, and the political implications of rest and emancipation. The paper also delves into the concept of migrant dramaturgy and the experiences of Black migrant cultural production.Item "Ghostly Imprints": Revisiting the Tradition of the Death Mask in Digital Clay(Arts Research Africa, 2022-09-16) Stewart, MichelleThis paper explores the representation of the dead through a creative project that involves 3D digital sculptures inspired by forensic facial photographs of unclaimed deceased in government morgues as well as posthumous photographs of the author’s mother-in-law. The project draws on the tradition of death masks and aims to create final portraits that commemorate the individuals and acknowledge the transcendental aspects of death masks. The author’s work is situated within the discourse of art theory and history, rather than forensic art, and emphasises the artistic and conceptual nature of the sculptures. The project is associated with the International Committee of the Red Cross’s Missing and Deceased Migrant Project and explores the humanitarian implications of migrant deaths in South Africa. The paper also delves into the history and evolution of death masks in Western culture, highlighting their significance as representations of true faces and their use in phrenology.Item Re-Imagining the Role of Female Players in the Making and Restoring of the UHADI Musical Bow(Arts Research Africa, 2022-09-16) Pepu, LindelwaThis paper, written from an African feminist perspective, focuses on the uhadi musical bow, a historical instrument found in museums, particularly in Museum Africa in Johannesburg. The mislabelling and lack of contextual information about the uhadi bow in the museum collection hinder the understanding of its origin and the recognition of its makers. The research highlights the role of women as the likely original makers and performers of the uhadi bow. It explores the unique features, construction, and playing techniques of the instrument. The study also profiles female uhadi players, emphasising their contribution to reviving and preserving the instrument’s cultural significance.Item The Scientific Lab as Studio/The Studio as Scientific Lab: Exploring Practice-Led Microbial Bioart in a Decolonial Context(Arts Research Africa, 2022-09-16) Farber, LeoraThis paper discusses the field of bioart, which explores the intersection of art and biotechnology. It raises questions about life, bioethics, and environmental interactions. The author’s praxis involves hands-on experimentation with living and nonliving materials in scientific labs, resulting in artistic outcomes. The concept of “intra-action” is explored, emphasising a reciprocal relationship between the artist and the material. The paper highlights the increasing collaboration between artists and scientists, leading to the establishment of bioart labs and art-science programs. The author’s own bioart praxis involves working with bacteria and yeast to create biofibers resembling human skin, which are then used to produce casts referencing colonial histories. The challenges and experimental nature of working with living materials are also discussed.Item Articulating a Movement Pedagogy in Retrograde: Mapping an Embodied Research Process(Arts Research Africa, 2022-09-16) Johnstone, KristinaThis paper discusses an artistic research project that challenges representationalism in South African contemporary dance. The author argues against the use of discursive methodologies that reinforce colonial scripts and instead proposes an alternative approach based on embodied practices. The paper explores the concept of choreography as embodied research and its potential to align with a decolonial praxis. The research project involves tracing embodied practices and creating a digital cartography to capture and explore these practices. The author also discusses the emergence of a movement pedagogy that unfolds in retrograde and disrupts conventional understandings of time and pedagogical continuity.Item Epistemic Disobedience: Institution-Building as Artistic Practice(Arts Research Africa, 2022-09-16) Gurney, KimThis paper posits the Nafasi Art Space in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, as a paradigmatic example of independent art spaces in Africa. These spaces, known as offspaces, challenge the status quo by creating divergent infrastructures through creative refusals and re-imaginations. The author conducted a prior study called Platform/Plotform, which identified key working principles of offspaces, such as horizontality, performativity, elasticity, convergence, and second chance. The study visited five African cities to examine the correlations between artistic strategies and urban life. The paper focuses on the Nafasi Academy for Contemporary Art, Expression, and Inclusion, launched in 2020, and explores its curriculum and pedagogical domains that may, like the institution itself, build cultural infrastructures while functioning like a work of art.Item A Musical History Through Vocal Expressions at the Abbey Cindi Cosmology Concert(Arts Research Africa, 2022-09-16) Moshugi, KgomotsoThis paper reports on a research project that culminated in a concert honoring South African musician and activist Bra Abbey Cindi. The project involved reissuing Cindi’s album, forming a band of young musicians to perform his music, and creating a vocal group called No Limits to reinterpret Cindi’s earlier South African choral works. The paper proposes the use of music to explore the past, present, and future, linking generations and addressing social issues. It discusses specific compositions, their lyrical and musical merits, and the process of arranging them for vocal performance. The paper also highlights the role of community engagement and the value of reimagining historical musical works.