I've taken a while thinking about this show, Ingabisa, because I'm two minds about it. On the one hand it is interesting work. It is erotic and politicised at the same time, a good combination in my books. The sculptures use cow hides, which are moulded into female shapes, creating these disembodied forms, revealing the curve of an ass or a breast in the folds of the material. At the same time using cow, the symbol of lobola, equating women with monetary exchange in patriarchal system makes the eroticism a little uncomfortable. The title, a word meaning a young virgin ready to pick a husband or be picked, confirms this impression. On the whole it's a strange yet satisfying combination of feelings, and relevant to the current dominant attitude towards African women.

On the other hand, I worry, having seen Nandipha's previous and very similar work, that she has hit on a successful formula, and is repeating it. This misgiving is reinforced by the presence of prints of photographs of sculptures available in the back room, a cheaper and editioned alternative. It gives one a sinister whiff of money that is at odds with sinister whiff of money I mentioned above.

Still, I'm looking forward to see where it goes in the future, and hoping that the only smell I get is that of a tannery.

Labels: cow hide, Ingabisa, Michael Stevenson, Nandipha Mntambo