Dineo Seshee Bopape

Ge ekabe Women / Ge ekabe Men

This dyptich installation is coming from a research/ installation Sa koša ke lerole (2016 – ongoing) started during the Montreal biennale (curated by Philippe Pirotte), then recently exhibited at Grahamstown National Arts Festival. The Polokwane Chorale Society, which was previously called Seshego Chorale Society, is based in Polokwane, Limpopo Province, South Africa. It has been in existence since 1978 – the first and longest livingadult choir in the Limpopo region. In the past 40 years, the choir has been able to establish itself as a major choral group locally and a force to be reckoned with nationally. The choir is an honouredfeature at social events such as funerals, weddings, graduations, private functions and larger public interventions, such as Walter Sisulu’s and Peter Mokaba’s funerals. Having now downsized to 20 members, the choir no longer competes, but have left a legacy of having excelled in choir festivals nationally and internationally. Ge Nkabe is a song about men and women negotiating/arguing about their roles in society (some of the lyrics translated into English would be: if it wasn’t for us- who would milk the cows? If it wasn’t for us who would grind the sorghum etc.). This work is a travelling museum that celebrates the contribution of chorale music to the rich cultural history of South Africa. Having grown up with chorale music in both ears, as my father was in the choir and my mother a conductor and director for many years, it evokes my first ideas of positive representation while acting as a nostalgic memory of community held within the music. It consists of a series of memorabilia, reflections, music video’s, collage as well as a timeline featuring extensive research into chorale and political history in Southern Africa. Dineo Seshee Bopape (b. Polokwane, South Africa, 1981) is known for her playful and experimental video works and installations of found objects. Through weaving together a variety of media, from video and installation to drawing, painting and performance Bopape’s practice focuses on the performative aspects of culture. Bopape engages the viewer with the explicit questioning of political and social positioning’s of the self and other. Taken from her own experience, Bopape traverses themes of sex, gender, race in her dense and chaotic installations of brightly colored objects, often accompanied by plastic bags. Bopape’s installations refuse and calls attention to consumerist culture and waste to provoke an ethical response by the audience in positioning themselves within this challenged environmental landscape.