Gabisile Nkosi’s legacy lives through her art

ROBYN SASSEN

Today, a graphic design and animation student in KwaZulu-Natal, Sandile was 13 when his mother was murdered by her boyfriend in 2008.

“He is absolutely wonderful,” said Berkowitz of Sandile. He described how he had only met Sandile as a child and did not know what to expect, when he began seeking him out, as a guest for this launch.

“My mum liked seeing people happy,” Sandile remembered. “She used to say to me ‘Why do you want to be an apple when you know you’re a pumpkin?’ It was about embracing who I am. She also always remained humble through good and bad times. And she always did what she loved.

“Another thing she often said was: ‘To know and not to do is not to know’. She taught me how to listen. When she was gone, those were the values that kept echoing in my life.”

Associated with ORT for 26 years, and a member of the National Executive Committee of the SA Jewish Board of Deputies, Berkowitz is an accountant by profession. He met Nkosi by chance while on holiday in the Natal Midlands in 2005.

“There was something immediate about her,” he told the SA Jewish Report. “I’ve never met anybody as pure. Her use of metaphor was fresh, alive and sophisticated. Gabisile’s death was a major loss to more than the artworld. It was a loss to humanity,” he added, visibly moved.

“These works are so much a part of me. It was a difficult decision to donate them, but that has been a gift to me as well – the ability to share these works with others.“

It was the self-portrait with a bird on her head that first grabbed Berkowitz’s attention. “I had never seen anything like it,” he said. “I was mesmerised. My love affair with Gabi’s art started. I bought it. It was the first.”

As a printmaker, Nkosi was greatly respected in the artworld. Though her life ended prematurely, the mark she left was significant. Not only an accomplished printmaker, Nkosi was also trained as a master printer at the Caversham Press under Malcolm Christian, where she worked alongside artists such as William Kentridge, Robert Hodgins and Deborah Bell, among others.

In addition, she took part in artists’ advocacy portfolios during the 1990s and 2000s, engaging with issues such as human rights, HIV/Aids awareness, and issues surrounding abuse. Indeed, abuse and violence, are like motifs running through the stories behind the prints.

In one image, the artist defends herself with a chair. There are images that deal with the traditional values of cattle and others which introduce text and rhythm into the line work. Playful and violent, documenting horrors with beautiful linework, it’s an extraordinary collection.

These 31 pieces bear testament to Nkosi’s skill. Each piece is premised on a story, but each piece also features a diversity of printmaking techniques, from blind embossing and silkscreening to dexterous linocuts on shaped plates.

Said ORT’s chief executive officer, Ariellah Rosenberg: “Most of our projects revolve around ‘STEM’: science, technology, engineering and maths. Thanks to Alan, we are now turning it into ‘STEAM’: science, technology, engineering, art and maths.”

The event featured music by a young band called Black Yoghurt. The collection is on permanent display on the ORT campus in Houghton.