Southern Guild and WHATIFTHEWORLD open new gallery in Johannesburg

Lakin Ogunbanwo - Let it Be

Art dealers Justin Rhodes and Ashleigh McLean and design gallerists Trevyn and Julian McGowan have devised an innovative programme for their expansive new space, which can be divided for focused presentations and interdisciplinary experimentations.

With both galleries strongly focused on representing artists and designers from around Africa, this collaboration is expected to be a groundbreaking year-round showcase of the best work from the continent.

“Johannesburg is an influential business and cultural hub, and its geographic location and reputation for creativity make it the perfect location for this exhibition space that will be a reflection of what’s happening art- and design-wise in Africa,” says Rhodes, adding that artists represented will hail from as far as Senegal, Ghana, Burkina Faso, Nigeria and Mali. “What we’re excited to show is a continental perspective.”

Says McGowan, “We each have strong, unique viewpoints, a desire to change the status quo and, as our galleries and our artists have matured, we have found we share an approach and more frequently, an audience and client base. This opportunity to combine our voices, to explore the intersection of art and design, promises results greater than the sum of our parts.”

Both have significant international programmes, collaborating with leading museums and institutions around the world and exhibiting at respected international art and design fairs. With almost 50 artists between them, a rich and varied body of work will provide a very stimulating resource from which to draw.

The first show opens in August and will present work by Nigerian photographer Lakin Ogunbanwo, Zimbabwean sculptor Moffat Takadiwa and visual artist Athi-Patra Ruga, alongside limited edition furniture by leading African designers such as Cheick Diallo, Hamed Ouattara and the late Babacar Niang as well as South African heroes Gregor Jenkin, Porky Hefer and Dokter and Misses.

There will be an independent calendar of programming, but for their inaugural show the two galleries have purposefully curated a synergetic collection of work, a journey through tableaus that relate and reflect and that present a strong narrative of their shared methodology – a collection that could not exist anywhere else.

“We’re prepared to be non-conformist and in forging this new partnership, we’re creating an original forum and delivering a one-of-a-kind gallery experience,” concludes Rhodes.