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Keiskamma Art Project in review: Reflections on four years since Covid
At the time of starting this newsletter, on 27 March 2024, we marked four years to the day since the start of lockdown in South Africa owing to Covid-19. Upon reflection, the pandemic brought uncertainty, but for the artists of Keiskamma Art Project (KAP), also an opportunity for the making of a special tapestry. We completed the Covid Resilience Tapestry in 2021 with independently raised funds, which we celebrate today with its sale and delivery to Australian philanthropist, businesswoman and art collector, Judith Nielson.
South African author, collaborator and friend, Marguerite Poland, wrote a beautiful prose piece for KAP at the time of the making of the Covid Resilience Tapestry. The artwork was made in response to having no income, nor knowledge of how long the pandemic would last, nor of its long-term impact. Marguerite’s writing is testament to her genius […]
A response to the Keiskamma Covid Resilience Tapestry
by Marguerite Poland, 2020
The pasture was rich between thickets of bush, cattle thrived: the land of the Ndlambe Xhosa.
If the winters were cold and dry, the spring was heralded by the arrival of the red-chested cuckoo calling, ‘Phezukomkhono’ – ‘hoe to the shoulder’ – the time for planting. In early summer when rain was frequent, the inkanku-bird predicted abundant milk and umvemve, the wagtail, guarded the new-born calves. The rains and sunshine ensured a yield of maize, pumpkins and sorghum and people eagerly awaited ukuShwama, to celebrate the First […]
