Ukucwebezela: To Shine:
Contemporary Zulu Ceramics

The Ukucwebezela: To Shine exhibition, catalog, and documentary illustrate how Zulu ceramics continue to be produced as used objects and have emerged as a nationally prized artistic medium in the South African post-Apartheid era. Historically made by women to serve beer at gatherings and spiritual ceremonies honoring ancestors, these vessels highlight Zulu artists’ mastery of ceramic burnishing and low-temperature firing.

The exhibition was organized and curated by Elizabeth Perrill, Ph.D., Asst. Professor of African Art History. Dept. of Art, University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

The exhibition has been shown at:

The African Art Center, Durban, South Africa, Mar.-Apr. 2007

Faulconer Gallery, Grinnell College, Iowa, Nov-Dec. 2008

Indiana University Art Museum, Bloomington, Indiana, Feb.-May 2009

Gatewood Art Gallery, University of North Carolina, Greensboro, Sep.-Oct. 2009

The exhibition features superlative examples of beer vessels created in a traditional style. Additionally, audiences will have the opportunity to see how young artists, including men and women, are finding new ways to express Zulu identity through clay. Artists in the exhibition have participated in the Smithsonian Folklife festival and the Aberystwyth Ceramics Triennial; been featured in publications such as African the Art of a Continent, Women Potters, and Coiled Pottery; and won both national and international ceramic awards.

The current selection of 37 objects is, at present, in secure storage. Packing specifications were overseen by IUAM staff. The objects are contained in 4 crates built to art-handling specifications: wood construction, foam lined, tyvek lined, with skids, bars for lifting, and bolt closures. Each crate contains 2-8 cardboard boxes and objects are wrapped in acid-free tissue, bubble-wrap, and padded with newsprint. Each institution to exhibit works has used their own pedestals.

An 80 page color exhibition catalog is available. Dr. Perill is available to lecture.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Exhibition Description

Historically, women in Zulu communities have designed and created ceramic vessels for drinking, transporting, storing, and brewing utshwala, Zulu beer. This nutritional beverage, served to guests and ancestors alike, ties the ceramics to the spiritual life of the Zulu people. Passed from mother to daughter or mother-in-law to daughter-in-law, this rich tradition continues today. Young ceramists are taking up the ceramic medium in homes, at universities, and at art centers. Non-Zulu South Africans are studying and drawing inspiration from Zulu ceramic genres. Men are exploring their place in this historically women's tradition. Zulu ceramics represent an expanding and developing tradition.

Ukucwebezela literally translates in English as "to shine" and is a metaphor. This title refers to the burnished ceramic surface prized by Zulu artists and collectors; simultaneously, it acknowledges that this exhibition, which first opened in South Africa, creates a moment for artists to shine. This exhibition presents the work of twenty ceramic artists created between 2004 and 2008, a snapshot of South Africa's diverse artistic production.

Museums and educational institutions with a mission to promote or feature African art, ceramic arts, the importance of gender in artistic expression, or the transformation of traditional art forms will find audiences respond to the human scale of vessels in Ukucwebezela: To Shine. Diverse audiences appreciate the narratives expressed through the exhibition's accompanying educational materials. The companion catalog, written by Dr. Elizabeth Perrill of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and edited by Dr. Diane Pelrine of the Indiana University Art Museum, describes the historical use of and contemporary changes in this art form. The documentary available was proposed and co-directed by 12 am Productions, a South African company inspired by the economic struggles and success of ceramic artists working between this vibrant nation's rural and urban spaces.