Based in Cape Town, South Africa, Martine Jackson draws inspiration from her immediate environment.="The sea with its many moods, rhythms and shifting hues has always fascinated me. So too the earth with its myriad colours, textures, mountain contours and organic patterns, regular or irregular. The elegant lines of plants and flowers are unequalled for their attractiveness."

Distinctive organic shapes adorned with repetitive patterns are the hallmark of Jackson's unique, hand-built ceramic pieces. Though there is a dynamic tension between the structure of each piece and the surface decoration; between rhythmic symmetry and asymmetrical nuances of form and colour, the lasting impression is one of harmony and balance.

It all started with an Australian mans dream of a gold bowl. Although wirework has been described as a ' quintessentially Central and South African craft ' practiced by different tribal people over hundreds of years, there is no evidence of gold wire baskets or bowls in Africa's archeological record. Threads of Africa was born and soon developed into a unique style. During the nineteenth century wirework extended from jewelry onto weapons and as the nineteenth century gave way to the twentieth new wire became available. To the industrially produced iron, copper and brass wire of the earlier period was now added aluminium. The Zulu people continued to use these materials until recently to produce a wide range of jewelry and other decorative items.

ARTIST PROFILE 

Katherine Glenday's vessels are masterful symbols and metaphors that capture light, movement, sound and silence. Breathless in their translucency and luminosity, the porcelain vessel has been Katherine's central voice for more than twenty years. Technical virtuosity governs her ability to create a sublime balance between control and surrender. Clay is the translucent and transparent skin between the material and the immaterial.

Katherine continues to be inspired by gestures from nature. Her collection of porcelain vessels with strong cobalt and bronze oxide strokes and splashes, represent a distilled human mark. These are meditative pieces that have grace. Focusing on the moment remains core to her expression. Each form springs out of spontaneity and chance; offering the viewer a respite from a world filled with a cacophony of visual stimulation. A place where the eye can rest and one can experience serenity.

This body of work represents a new dialogue in which Katherine has disciplined and isolated her ideas into a cohesive creative language that identifies the need for stillness and tranquility. Her exploration in experimentation with clay and minerals allows her to push the boundaries of her medium.

ARTIST PROFILE 

Aboubakar Fofana was born in Bamako, Mali and has lived in France for over thirty years. He is a calligrapher, artist and textile designer now based in Bamako.

He uses ancient African weaving and dying techniques to create a solidly contemporary body of work. Using organic fibers and natural dyes, he is committed to preserving and revitalizing Mali's nearly lost tradition of natural indigo and vegetable dying. Profoundly concerned with maintaining Mali's cultural heritage, he has sought out the remaining masters of old weaving and dying, learning from them their 'savoir-faire'.

Time and the changing nature of matter are underlying, recurrent themes in his artistic work. Of course vegetable and mud dyeing address this theme intrinsically as a medium. He weaves, dyes and assembles primarily locally grown organic cotton but also employs hemp, jute, linen, silk and other un-treated fibers that are perfectly suited to natural dyes.

Aboubakar Fofana has significant experience living and working in Japan. His unique collaboration with Japan's Masakazu Akiyama taught him the art of silk raising, weaving and dying; marking his evolution as an artist. He regularly participates in conferences organized internationally on textile art in general but also on more technical subjects of natural dying techniques. His work has been exhibited on numerous occasions in Japan, France, America and Africa.