Artists

Emerging in the early 1990s, Belinda Blignaut (b.1968) was one of the group of young Johannesburg-based conceptual and experimental artists whose work served as a commentary on the social and political un[1]certainty of South Africa, often in challenging or, at the very least, critical terms. Belinda Blignaut’s work suggests an urgency for protest and change. - Through varied mediums and series over decades, she has been processing issues around transformation, with the body at the centre of all. Through an en[1]gagement with readily available and everyday materials, processing immediate surroundings, she hopes to translate the ways we adapt, a quiet visceral investigation into life and the creative process. - Blignaut has shown locally and internationally in various group exhibitions, biennales and solo shows. She has cu[1]rated group exhibitions and runs art projects for those with special needs from her studio. Her practice speaks of an urgency for social change.

Taking her interest in the relationship we form with clay out into the lives of others, she began facilitat[1]ing expression for all through classes from her studio. She has registered a non-profit organisation and works with people who have special needs, documenting research with a team of professional carers and psychologists.

“Surfacing in all I do is an investigation into bodyness and transmutation. Using earth and fire ‘Earth Skin’ speaks of our own bodies, psychologies and abilities to adapt. Over two years the piece has been exposed to electric, gas and pit firings resulting in chance, ‘error’ and insight into the nature of matter.” Belinda Blignaut”