PRESS RELEASE
JAN TSHIKHUTHULA | MAVU A VHO MAKHULU WASHU (LAND OF OUR FOREFATHERS)
Sep 25 – Oct 17, 2021
Everard Read Franschhoek is delighted to invite you to the opening of
JAN TSHIKHUTHULA
MAVU A VHO MAKHULU WASHU
(Land of our Forefathers)
25 September 2021| 11h00 | 20 Huguenot Road, Franschhoek
Jan Maanda Tshikhuthula was born in the town of Tzaneen in Limpopo Province in 1983.
North of Tzaneen which was the busy regional capital lies the village of Matshila in the country of the VhaVenda. Situated on top of a hill in the lush subtropical countryside a school was built in the 1930’s. Children would travel from far and wide to attend Matshila School as formal educational establishments were rare in the area at the time.
This beautiful and idyllic place is where Tshikhuthula spent much of his childhood and is the source today of much of his work.
He and his cousin herded goats, used birdlime to snare birds, explored the countryside and behaved like generations of small boys have done since time immemorial.
The land where the school was built was acquired by the artist and a friend in 2012 - the heritage and history of the place is now preserved. It is a place where the ancestors of his people are buried and where it is believed that their spirits still abide.
The Matshila lands are used to pay homage to the past but also, through creating opportunities for the living will ensure a future for the generations still to come.
The land of Matshila is alive and speaks to us through the art of Jan Tshikhuthula.
Exhibition concludes 17th October 2021
For more information please contact:
tayla@everard.co.za
lulu@everard.co.za
Everard Read Franschhoek
20 Huguenot Road
T: 021 867 2446
www.everard-read-franschhoek.co.za
fgallery@everard.co.za
