Installation view showing Ernesto Neto, Um dia todos fomos peixes (One day we were all fish), 2017
Installation view showing Ernesto Neto, Um dia todos fomos peixes (One day we were all fish), 2017
Image: Graham De Lacy

Exhibitions are inherently spaces of learning, however, the Joburg Contemporary Art Foundation’s (JCAF) current exhibition, “Ecospheres”, poses an expansive view. Greeted by a commissioned mural by illustrator Rebecca Potterton, one is immediately reintroduced to their own existence in relation to the world, below and above them, summing up the overall conceptual framework of the exhibition.

Specially curated to increase awareness on climate change, the ecological crisis and extractive, human activities affecting the natural environment and its direct communities without looking or sounding preachy, the atmosphere “rooms” dedicated to air, water and earth give fresh insights. 

While walking through the JCAF’s first of three exhibitions dealing with the overall theme of “Worldmaking”, it’s evident that Potterton’s mural titled, “The Other Side Of Dreaming” is central to the entire creative process and undertaking. 

The mural threads together the environmental and ecological topics depicted in all the artists’ work. Zina Saro-Wiwa, Zizipho Poswa, Ernesto Neto, Russell Scott, Michael Tsegaye, Zayaan Khan, Colia-Leah Enderstein, Mater (a collective), Jonah Sack, Wolff Architects, Ximeno Garrido-Lecca, Rithika Merchant, Bronwyn Katz and Sutapa Biswas encompass a generative space of  various practices across generational histories, landscapes, spaces, stories and diverse, material documentation in the global south. 

The executive director of JCAF and curator of “Ecospheres”, Clive Kellner, was involved in the research phase of the exhibition. He highlighted the significance of the three year strategic vision of the art institution to bring about a change in knowledge production and development by introducing the Reading Room, designed by the architectural design company, Wolff Architects. The reading room is a place of reference for harder topics visually represented in the exhibition space. It also creates a discursive access point for viewers to reflect on the sub-themes presented in the three atmosphere “rooms”. 

Ecospheres are meant to denote the areas of earth where living organisms are present. This includes water, air and land. The term “biosphere” can also conjure up a similar natural affiliation.

Installation view of exhibition entrance, showing Rebecca Potterton, The Other Side of Dreaming (2024) left; and Wolff Architects Reading Room (2024) right
Installation view of exhibition entrance, showing Rebecca Potterton, The Other Side of Dreaming (2024) left; and Wolff Architects Reading Room (2024) right
Image: Graham De Lacy

“We wanted to bring something else that is of a different perspective,” said Kellner, who reiterated the importance of the exhibition’s intrinsic research proposition that stems from the concept of the “symbiocene”. It’s a term coined by Glen Albrecht, which proposes the notion of humans living harmoniously with all living creatures. Underpinning the research, the artworks in “Ecospheres” resonate inextricably with each other, even though they were created at different moments in time and pose different questions. 

Presenting a temporal and poetic reverberation throughout the exhibition floor, the art symbolically sparks conversations in a cerebral manner. “It is poetic and reflective,” says Kellner, who had clear intentions of co-creating a place of learning and reflection, as opposed to being antagonistic or advocative of a spectrum of issues. 

Installation view showing Wolff Architects, Reading Room (2024)
Installation view showing Wolff Architects, Reading Room (2024)
Image: Graham De Lacy

The “Ecospheres” reader, included in the reading room installation, is divided into three concentrated areas of focus, forming a narrative approach to observing the work. It is written as a supplement to enable viewers to “read” the work, armed with information and knowledge to navigate through the exhibition, unbound by what they already know about the world’s biodiversity. 

Storytelling takes centre stage with a sound installation in the Earth “room”, detailing a seed’s biography through Morocco. Titled “Seeds from the Streets to the Seas”, it is a collaborative effort by Enderstein and Khan. The convivial element of the exhibition shines through in this installation as it tells us something pure about the earth and humanity’s journey with it. 

Tracing fauna and flora, photographer Russell Scott showcases a body of work, comprising more than 250 images, documenting plants that are indigenous to the southern tip of Africa. An experimental project spanning nine years, it is an incredible feature in the exhibition that encapsulates the beauty of each plant’s roots, body and tapestries. Aptly titled “Botanical Portraits Unearthed”, the studio captured specimens shine in an exquisite environment. 

Installation view showing Russell Scott, Botanical Portraits Unearthed (2008–17)
Installation view showing Russell Scott, Botanical Portraits Unearthed (2008–17)
Image: Graham De Lacy

Mimicking the ocean’s vastness and its otherworldly nature, Brazilian artist Ernesto Neto’s fabric installation is a work of magical exuberance in the Water segment of the show. Another one of the breathtaking works in the exhibition is by Sutapa Biswas who presents works on paper grappling with themes of migration and familial connections in the Air “room”. 

From 2024 till 2026, JCAF has committed to three separate exhibitions focusing on the relationship humans have with their immediate environment (Ecospheres, 2024); the built environment (Structures, 2025) and the future as it is thought of now and beyond (Futures, 2026).

The sub-themes are well-researched and enhance the discourse on the Anthropocene, while encouraging humans to return to their essence of being “custodians” of the earth and develop a deepened understanding of all the “atmospheres”, metaphorically and literally. 

“Ecospheres” is on at the Joburg Contemporary Art Foundation until December 7. Visiting JCAF exhibitions is by appointment only. Bookings are essential and can be made at jcaf.org.za.

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