We have come to understand the world through figures; people who shaped history, the ratio of gasses in our atmosphere, the numbers we have attributed to time and space, compositions of sound we call music, signs we read as language and forms created as representation of what was seen and thought that later turned into art.

Over the past months, we have been thinking about figures in the world to come. In terms of art, speaking of the figurative usually refers to those works in which recognizable shapes are present. For this show, Figuration, we consider figurative work, broadly understood as a way to move away from abstraction, a way to share narratives and express identity, or a as a way to converse and critique with realistic representation. While the figure is obviously present and even posing in Simphiwe Ndzube’s work, can the shapes one discerns in Ron Cooper’s work still be considered a figure? What about those figures only present in a moving, digital realm such as Holly Harrell’s character and products in her Instagram Live Performances?

For Figuration we have incorporated prints and unique works from our archives as well as contemporary work for our Instagram account and website. The exhibition, is not an exhibition: it intends to move beyond the gallery and the OVR spaces. It is a project that morphs into different forms, outlets and engagements that are not restrained to a static form or time limitations; it may last a long time but changes as it goes.