East London artist Wade Louw is showcasing his latest collection of art pieces titled ‘Threaded’ at the Ann Bryant Art Gallery until January 25.
The collection explores the objectification of women in support of the 16 Days of Activism campaign against gender-based violence.
“I specifically chose to show these pieces now to coincide with the 16 Days of Activism against gender-based violence campaign.
“By sharing these images I hope to support gender equality and women’s rights,” said Louw.
“Gender equality is a human right. And I would like people to keep this in the back of their minds when viewing my work, and hopefully my work can raise some awareness about gender equality.”
Louw, an attorney by profession, credits his primary school art teacher Anthony Noble as having been his mentor.
Noble, a Buffalo Flats Primary School teacher, took him and his class to his first art exhibition at the Ann Bryant Art Gallery.
“He would take us on excursions to the Anne Bryant Art Gallery to see the exhibitions. I found a picture from the Daily Dispatch newspaper where I’m about 12 years old and submitted this paper sculpture head as part of an exhibition for the Ann Bryant Art in the Park market.
“So now it feels like a full circle moment coming back to exhibit as an adult at the same gallery where my love of art began,” he said.
“I studied theatre in my undergrad years at Rhodes University and was always involved in fine art and theatre in some way.
“But I’m thankful for the seed planted by my primary school teacher.“ His collection features six hand-stitched creations, which took him about eight months to finish, working for an hour or so a day.
“The individual pieces take about a month to complete.
“This collection was based on an inversion of the male gaze. The males are faceless, to represent their anonymity or lack of identity. They are reduced to their body parts.
“Women are objectified in popular media to a greater extent than men. The objectification of the female body never focuses on a face, it strips the subject of its humanity.
“Though there are four nude males, only the female has a face, because she represents the lens for the viewer to identify her as the protagonist gazing at the male form.”
