One of the key aims in the conceptualisation and development of the Moses Mabhida Stadium, was for it to be a stadium which symbolised the aspirations and spirit of the people of Durban and KwaZulu-Natal. The goal was to create a place where people could learn about the past and see the future and one which built bridges between old and young, between races, cultures and nationalities.
The stadium has already become a landmark structure within the city, and an inspirational venue for players; spectators; and visitors. But it is not just in its engineering and architecture that the stadium is symbolic, the artwork that has been installed to decorate the walls inside the stadium is also symbolic of the talent; creativity; and spirit of our local artists. While some of the new stadia are concentrating on precinct art, it is less common to have a programme where art is such a functional part of the stadium interior.
A further aim that was pursued in the development of the stadium was to ensure that the construction and development process benefited as many people as possible. With this goal in mind a public competition was held to call for submissions from artists. After a briefing of 95 artists, over 70 submissions were received, and the judges were overwhelmed with the level of talent and creativity that was shown.
Some difficult choices had to be made, constrained by the space available and by budget limitations. Works were selected to fit into the spaces created by the architecture and to give a distinctly South African feel – concentrating particularly, but not exclusively, on KwaZulu-Natal artists. Artworks have also been selected on their ability to represent the stadium’s purpose and to reflect and embody the energy; power; and excitement relating to sporting activities.
The result is that the Moses Mabhida Stadium art collection is entirely unique. The 40 artworks in the stadium are the result of an almost year long process which commenced while construction was still underway. The artworks have been the joint work of over 300 artists. The collection, which belongs to the eThekwini Municipality, will be placed under the long term curatorship of the Durban Art Gallery.
KwaZulu-Natal is famous for its beadwork skills, and two major works in the Presidential Atrium show this off to great advantage. One is the Dreams of Africa map – a fantasy map of Africa which has a 3-D wire and beaded sun shining upon a patchwork of houses; animals; and dreams of the makers. This ambitious piece was created by the Woza Moya group which is part of the Hillcrest Aids Centre. 200 women from the Valley of 1000 Hills and Hillcrest neighbouring area worked on this tirelessly for several months. The women took home packets of beads and the individual panels were stitched together in a brushed steel framework to make the spectacular artwork. The map used more than 1 million beads and is one of the largest maps of Africa at four metres high.
The African Art Centre in Durban stitched; embroidered; and beaded a magnificent South African flag where each block of colour has its own texture and pattern. They hired special workshop space where the group of women artists met weekly working on large panels colour by colour. The sections were stitched together by a flag making company resulting in an exciting version of the national flag.
Another highlight is the totem-like installation – Ancestors. This is carved from exotic tree trunks (alien wood was used in order to instil a respect for the indigenous environment) by six men and one woman from the iSimangaliso Wetlands project. It was conceived by Andrew Verster and Andries Botha, and developed organically when the carvers started working and adding their own interpretations. The work is reminiscent of the carved doors found in ancient African royal households where the images represented different kingdoms. These have the grandeur of their historical forbears with a contemporary twist.
The Presidential Suite entrance is flanked by two large resin and pigment discs with inset beads in earthy colours by KZN artist Jeremy Wafer. These give the area a distinctly African yet contemporary feel. Through the door one is confronted immediately by an etched glass panel designed also by Andrew Verster who used a historic etching of a Zulu royal kraal but adapted this to suggest the stadium architecture. This was etched by Audie Neal.
Some of the works by individual artists include the The King Protea by Xavier Clarisse – an interactive piece based on the Protea Flower with its petals carved from rich rosewood set off by brass elements and which opens to reveal two hundred small zinc figurines linked arm in arm. He has also created two murals of meticulously made wood which represent the North and South hemispheres while relating to the imbenge (Zulu basket lid).
Mbhekeni Mbili, a young up and coming artist who was Winner of the
Nivea Start Award at the KZNSA, has painted whimsical scenes of soccer games and other rural and urban activities. These fun pieces are intriguing in their detail.
Lindelani Ngwenya, who is becoming well known for his intricately woven copper wire sculptural figures, has adapted them to a mobile where the figures float weightlessly in the high volumes of the Presidential atrium giving the impression of football in motion.
The Ocean Atrium, which faces the sea, has artwork inspired by the view and location. The lower level has works which have direct links with the sea. A group of artists from the Keiskamma Project have made felt, embroidery and appliquéd pictures of the beach which are overlaid with photographs of young soccer players in action printed onto large sheets of Perspex.
Perspex is used in a different interpretation of the beach on the opposite walls where Stephen Hobbs and Marcus Neustetter have taken images of the stadium and beach areas from Google Earth and transposed these into contemporary pieces where coloured Perspex is over laid in several depths giving an up to date view of how we read maps today. These works are 5 metres high.
One of the most striking and largest pieces is the landscape scene which is 8.5 metres x 1.5 metres done by Durban artist Derrick Nxumalo who has worked on this piece on and off for the past 20 years. The ambition and intricacy as well as the scale of this piece is remarkable.
Recycling is evident in many of the works such as those by the Umcebo Trust who have become well known for making magic from unusual materials. They have used wire; copper pieces; and beads to make two murals – one depicting a shoal of Manta Rays with a beach scene of palm trees facing it.
Mbongeni Buthelezi’s ingenious technique of melting discarded plastic items has now grown to a spectacular depiction of soccer players which looks just like thick paint but is in fact all plastic.
A project was initiated with Lifeline and the Sakisiswe group from Westville Prison, which has resulted in a happy and lively collage of spectators at the soccer match. 25 people participated in this project which was facilitated by the Curate.a.space team of Gabrielle Brown and Cara MacCallum.
The African Art Centre also facilitated the selection and display of wire work; carving; and doll-making, which is on display in the cabinets of the Ocean Atrium, and which gives a lively showcasing of the multitude of talent. This display is situated beneath a mosaic wave design which has been worked on by a group of ceramic artists in the Du Rand studio.
Other artworks include the painted portrait of President Zuma by Lungelo Gumede; the beautiful landscapes by Victor Shange; and the works in progress by photographer, Roger Jardine, and painter, Jabulani Cele.