Tshepo Mosopa’s Artist Critique

Tshepo Mosopa’s philosophy veers him into the position of becoming a social artistic commentator. His creative fine art renders a vivid understanding into the contemporary lives of the Tswana nation, maps the cultural transformation and traces back to the beauty of this particular tribe in the democratic, South Africa. He uses the nation’s mythologies to communicate his ideas. There is a sense of mystery which lies beyond the visible in his canvases. His creative eye, does not deny him the freedom to tell stories from the lost and wounded African mythologies through the encompassment of social and political hierarchy. 

  

Kgala, Ink on a Stretched Canvas.

“The content of my work focuses on sociology (the study and classification of human society) where the placement of the human form is composed from real social observations and used to record and communicate society’s psychological response to modern challenges in South Africa” says Mosopa.  His artwork becomes a platform for a dialogue between the artist, the subject and the viewer, where the viewer becomes part of the artwork as an installation, an extension of the artwork, based on the social hierarchy, in relation to the viewer’s background, socially.

In the work titled ‘Kgala’ which loosely translates; Shyness for Tswana language, he depicts a very stylized figure seated on a chair with his back conveyed in elongated aspect and the head, mostly obscured. Beneath Mosopa’s unconscious simplicity of stylized figures there is an insistent visual frustration beyond that of mythological successes. It registers a failure of vision. The man’s depiction renders not only his introvert side of character but also the poverty narratives of his social status.

Speaking of Mosopa’s art, affirms that he doesn’t contemplate any figure from which to take the likeness, but considers in his mind a form of traditional and mythological beauty on which he concentrates, and to the likeness of which he directs his mind and hand into the narratives he wishes to reveal to his audience.

Dithini, Ink on Stretched Canvas

‘The way I work is completely unique from other artists; in that the medium I’m using is accessible to me and that this enables me to communicate freely with my figures on canvas on a large scale. I enjoy preparing my canvas and coating it with white paint before I can start inventing a story onto it’ says Mosopa.  His figurative scenes are activities which categorize the subject’s social ranking through themes such as; unemployment, crime, religion (beliefs and mythology), politics (tyranny and power), stereotyping ethnicity (race, culture, gender), etc.

In the entitled work ‘Dithini’ – Tins for Tswana language, he simply interrogates the unemployment issues confronting South Africa youths. He uses object, tin, as a metaphor to signify that the alternative options are to create jobs; Such as, collecting recyclable items for a living, which_is a difficult task for many young men and women these days. He offers a solution to this ongoing burden to both government and the public. His creative narrative eye is simply a window _ into seeing opportunities, not only the challenges of our everyday life.

Text by: Khehla Chepape Makgato

Date: November 2011, Bag Factory Artists Studios, Johannesburg.