Kepi in Bree Street

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Since its solo founding in 1997 by South African artist Sue Williamson, ArtThrob has expanded in size and has served as an important online resource on contemporary visual arts, with a particular focus on exhibitions and publications that document the involvement of South African artists in the international art world. Listed multiple times as a finalist for South Africa’s Arts & Cultures Trust Awards, ArtThrob also secured a nomination by the United Nations as best cultural website (1999). The site itself was featured as an “art piece” in the 2000 exhibition “Woven Maze” organized for the University of Hanover by curator Pat Binder (ArtThrob website, http://www.artthrob.co.za). ArtThrob produces limited edition works on paper that are sold as individual works of art in an edition of 60 or are organized as special collector portfolios in an edition of 10.

ArtThrob special edition portfolios present high-quality works on paper by some of South Africa’s most exciting artists--both well-established and emerging.

Nontsikelelo “Lolo” Veleko’s series entitled Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder (2005-ongoing) presents compelling photographic portraits that document the innovative street fashion scene among South Africa’s young urban-dwellers. The creative, individual styles sported by her subjects demonstrate a confident sense of beauty and optimism that counters perceptions within and outside of South Africa of urban neighborhoods as solely beset by crime and poverty. Through Veleko’s lens, we see “sartorial success” stories about stylish young people “following their own creativity and casting aside all the rules”.

Williamson, Sue. 2009. South African Art Now. New York: Collins Design, p. 300.

In this color photograph, a young man stands on an empty, city street. He is stylishly attired in bright orange-red pants, a light blue short-sleeved shirt, striped tie, hat, sunglasses and black-and-white shoes.

Heroes: Principles of African Greatness, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., November 16, 2019–October 3, 2021

Conversations: African and African American Artworks in Dialogue - From the Collections of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art and Camille O. and William H. Cosby, Jr., National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, November 7, 2014-January 24, 2016

Kreamer, Christine Mullen and Adrienne L. Childs (eds). 2014. Conversations: African and African American Artworks in Dialogue from the Collections of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art and Camille O. and William H. Cosby, Jr. Washington, D.C.: National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, pp. 68, 83, no. 53, pl. 23.

As part of our commitment to accessibility and transparency, the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art is placing its collection records online. Please note that some records are incomplete (missing image or content descriptions) and others reflect out-of-date language or systems of thought regarding how to engage with and discuss cultural heritage and the specifics of individual artworks. If you see content requiring immediate action, we will do our best to address it in a timely manner. Please email nmafacuratorial@si.edu if you have any questions.

High resolution digital images are not available for some objects. For publication quality photography and permissions, please contact the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives at https://africa.si.edu/research/eliot-elisofon-photographic-archives/