Zeitz Mocaa joins global art initiative, Unfinished Camp

Unfinished Camp aims to provide a global platform for the voices of young artists and to kick off the initiative, each institution has invited three young artists to produce a short video artwork exploring the question, “What is the future of art in a decentralized world?”

We are extremely pleased to be part of this global initiative, which is driven by a conviction that the next generation of artists should have a seat at the table,” says Koyo Kouoh, Executive Director and Chief Curator at Zeitz Mocaa.

“More importantly, Unfinished Camp provides yet another opportunity for Zeitz Mocaa to continue our work within the civic space as an active agent that caters to and nurtures society. Working with the global partners and extraordinary group of artists that constitute Unfinished Camp underscores Zeitz Mocaa’s core values of collaboration and active participation in change-making. Supporting emerging artists and their contributions to the questions of our time is an essential part of the work we do. The selected artists’ poignant responses draw from within to connect to the relations and conditions that surround them in ways that also challenge and question the status quo and propose new ways of seeing and being.” concludes Kouoh.

Zeitz Mocaa ‘s participant artists include:

Naomi Lulendo whose works are materialisations of an interest in misappropriation – of words, meaning, objects and identity. Her work includes painting, sculpture, photography, installation and performance. Lulendo uses the concept of “play” as a tool to shape and create hybrid objects, images and texts as she observes the individual and collective, social and political implications of human mobility and cultural encounters in her work.

Helena Uambembe Bhulungu was born to Angolan parents and her work is dominated by themes of the 32 Battalion (of which her father was a soldier), Pomfret and her Angolan heritage. In it, she explores narratives surrounding history and place, interweaving connected symbols and archival material.

The Botswana Pavilion is an art collective comprising Kim Karabo Makin, Thebe Phetogo, Thero Makepe, Legakwana Leo Makgekgenene and Sade Shoalane. Through their work, the artists attempt to support and validate young creatives from Botswana by creating a platform for international visibility and art exchange and inspiring a local sustainable creative industry.

Unfinished Camp spans five continents and currently includes 27 young artists from Botswana to Brazil. Zeitz Mocaa’s participating artists’ films will debut alongside films by the 24 other artists at the House of Electronic Arts in Basel, Switzerland on Thursday, 23 September and at The Shed in New York City, United States on Friday, 24 September during Unfinished Live, a two-day virtual and live event.

Zeitz Mocaa will continue to screen the films by its participating artists through 31 October in the museum’s Scheryn Arena, as well as host a panel discussion with the artists on Thursday, 23 September. The panel will be moderated by Thulile Gamedze, a Johannesburg-based reader-writer-drawer whose work is vested in flexible, historical moving matter such as dreams, Queerness, Black Consciousness and water.

“Adding the voices of artists to important conversations about creating more ethical technology has never been more urgent,” adds artistic director of Serpentine Galleries Hans Ulrich Obrist and author and cultural strategy advisor András Szántó, who spearheaded Unfinished along with civic entrepreneur Frank McCourt. "We see this alliance as an opportunity to demonstrate new ways of working in the arts, with arts organisations collaborating across borders and professional boundaries to promulgate new ideas and action.”

For more information and Zeitz Mocaa’s programming schedule for Unfinished Camp, follow the museum on Facebook, Instagram (@zeitzmocaa) and Twitter (@ZeitzMOCAA).