Stanley Fereday Pinker (South African, 1924-2012) Naturmensch (framed)
Herkunft : Provenance Gifted by the artist, 2002; A private collection. Exhibited Cape Town, South African National Gallery, Stanley Pinker, (July, 1983), no. 13. Often conflating imagery of officials with wild animals, Naturmensch undoubtedly presents us a political observation that has defined Pinker's oeuvre. In many ways menacing, the death imagery of Naturmensch (from the crow, to hyena, to skull) shrouds the work in an intimidating guise. The coolness of the palette also points towards the concept of death that pervasively looms over the work. The eyes of the hyena also showcase another layer of the artist's talent. Translated, the title of the work relates to a person considered unsophisticated by western colonial standards, or in other words 'a man of nature'. Within the context of his wider body of work, it could be concluded that the title, in incorporation with the content of the painting, refers to the attitudes of the colonisers towards the people of South Africa during the apartheid. While this may likely be a conscious link by the artist, Pinker himself claimed that the political content was not always the primary component of his image making; stating that the commentary was also a vessel for humour to be incorporated thematically in his work. He states this in an interview with Michael Stevenson: 'The issues are there but are usually covered up with humour of a very cynical nature.' (Michael Stevenson, Stanley Pinker, (Cape Town: Michael Stevenson, 2004), p. 20). Indeed, Pinker maintained that a political observation was an integral part to his creative process, resisting in defining himself as a purely abstract artist in order to maintain a level of narrative direction, not to leave his work up to pure emotive interpretation. He stated in the same interview with Stevenson, 'I could never be an abstract artist - the content and information that surrounded us in South Africa are too important for me.' (Michael Stevenson, Stanley Pinker, (Cape Town: Michael Stevenson, 2004), p.18.) As a selected work for the artist's solo exhibition in 1983 held by the South African National Gallery, it can be concluded that Naturmensch should be considered as a work of cultural significance. Furthermore, we get a sense of the work's importance given that it was on loan from the artist's personal collection at the time, given the gallery label on the reverse of the work. The exclusivity of the present work must therefore not be overlooked and therefore its gravitas in the artist's oeuvre must be emphasised. Bibliography Michael Stevenson, Stanley Pinker, (Cape Town: Michael Stevenson, 2004)
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Anmerkung : This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: * AR
Condition_report : The work is in overall very good condition. There is one fine arched scratch, thought to be exerted during the creation of the work, to the centre of the work measuring approximately 7cm in length. To the reverse of the work, there is a circular patch of canvas applied to the lower centre of the work, implying an act of restoration. This measures, 3.5 x 3.5cm. This does not however effect the appearance of the front of the work. Under Ultra-Violet light, a few points of touching up or areas affected by dirt fluoresce (all pictured). Namely to the upper and lower left quadrants. Very light surface dust with two very fine imbedded hairs in the work (pictured) to the end of the bird's tail feathers. lease note, this work has not been examined out of its frame.
