9 - The Art of Representation

Summary

Chapter 9, The Art of Representation, explores the exhibition Imaginary Fact in the 2013 South Africa Pavilion at the International Art Biennale in Venice. Three key narratives about violence emerge from this exhibition: the unresolved violence of apartheid-era crimes; the structural violence of pervasive practices of discrimination; and, the physical violence which people continue to be subjected.I anaylse three artworks which epitomise each narrative: David Kolane’s The Journey, Sue Williamson’s For Thirty Years Next to His Heart, and Zanele Muholi’s Faces and Phases.I argue that these three narratives are important actions in South Africa’s transition because they warn against the repetition of violence, document the structures of violence, and expose continuing practices of violence in the ‘new’ South Africa.