Janet Botes >> South African artist | creative activist | writer | facilitator

I am a proudly South African artist - born in 1984 and home-grown in Vanderbijlpark, Gauteng. After studying Graphic Design at the Vaal University of Technology and attaining my B Tech with Cum Laude, I worked and lived in Johannesburg and then Pretoria (or Tshwane), before settling in Cape Town with my partner, where I now work as artist in my studio at home, on site armed with my camera, or collaborating on projects with other artists and organisations.

I have a deep love and affinity for nature and animals, which inspires and guides most of my creative work. Other influences, interests and inspiration for my work includes people, other artists, magazines, film, performance art, spirituality, culture, heritage, communication theory, subversive culture and the concept of change. This results in a varied set of influences on my art and creative work - which ranges widely between digital illustration, mixed media painting, drawing, assemblage, sculpture and installation.

I have followed many twists and turns in my path towards becoming the artist I am now. Each new twist and turn which led away from Fine Art promised success, happiness or fulfillment. But each of them proved insufficient on delivering on the promise. Fortunately the twist and turns into alternative options to a fine art career has given me a wider range of skills and experience than I ever would have had if I walked a straight, unhindered path. The path has by no means become easier as I try to find my feet in the contemporary art world while rediscovering my artistic voice, but the path has become clearer and more enjoyable.

I have experienced a lot of personal growth and self discovery in the last 2 years, and also exposed myself to a wider variety of cultures, ideologies and perspectives than ever – shattering some conventions, convictions and ideas that I grew up with. Personal experiences, religion, heritage and family are some of the themes that currently inform my creative work. My work is also largely influenced by my love for nature and my dedication towards environmental activism, resulting in an inherent focus on landscapes.

One of the foremost reasons that I did not find fulfillment in Graphic Design, which is after-all a creative discipline, is the lack of freedom to self express. I find peace in drawing, and a deep satisfaction when experimenting and combining different mediums and methods. Mixed media is therefore an apt description for most of my artworks. I often create abstract forms and surfaces that represent less representational ideas or things, especially natural or organic shapes, textures and colours. I also use waste materials such as newsprint, milk cartons, empty toilet rolls and plastic bags as base for artworks, and utilize found objects with meaning or assigned meaning in installations.

Transient art forms also have a strong appeal, and I push self expression into Land Art pieces, performance art and video installation. I have an affinity for dance and movement that I have not yet fully fulfilled, and now find performance art the perfect medium to express myself through movement, art techniques and the skills in digital media that I attained in my professional career as graphic designer. I have a love for photography that comes in handy with documenting my Land Art or personal performance pieces, and thus makes it easy to create something lasting from the happening that only exists for mere moments in time.

To summarize the above - very varied – interests and artistic techniques, I love creating new images and items while giving life to emotion, internal struggles, or ideas. And sometimes just to answer an urge for self expression...

Selected Exhibitions

State of Mind | Group Exhibition, VANSA Spin Space, Cape Town.
30 November - 11 December 2009.

Sangisa Sangisa | Group Exhibition, VANSA Spin Space, Cape Town.
21 September - 2 October 2009.

AVA members Exhibition | Group Exhibition, Association of Visual Arts, Cape Town.
27 July – 15 August 2009.

MOLO LOMO | Group Lomography Exhibition, Thupelo Greatmore Studios.
23 April - 6 May 2009.

Unified: Unpretty, Unclean, Underneath, Unnatural | Quartet Group exhibition, Eat Your Words Artspace, Vereeniging. 2 – 19 December 2008.
BoereChinese | Group Exhibition, Gallery at Duncan Yard, Hatfield, Pta.
7 November– 22 December 2008.

Dabbling in Digital Dichotomies | Group Exhibition, Magpie Gallery, Irene, Pta.
6 - 23 September 2008.

Between the lines | Quartet Group exhibition, Gallery at Duncan Yard, Hatfield, Pta.
11 - 28 October 2008.

Workshops, Involvement & Activities

2009 - current | Facilitation of workshops at White Rabbit Studios, Gardens, Cape Town.

2007 - current | Personal Land Art Projects around Gauteng, the Northern Cape and Western Cape.

2007 – current | Design of eco-aware messages printed unto t-shirts, creation and documentation of Land Art, and illustration/design services to NGOs; under the “brand” ecojunki.

2009 – current | Freelance/voluntary writer for Cape Town Live.

2009 | Member of an arts collective called Sangisa Sangisa, focusing on contemporary art and creative expression, installation and performance art .

August 2009 | Participated in the Performance Art workshop presented by Spier Contemporary and the African Centre, facilitated by Jay Pather.

April 2009 | Participated in Lomography Workshop with Fernando Badiali from Exposure Gallery at Greatmore Studios, Woodstock, Cape Town.

2006 | Completed the S.I. Tutor Training Programme at The Vaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark.

Formal Education

2006 | B TECH: Graphic Design (Cum Laude). The Vaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark.

2005 | N.Dip: Graphic Design. The Vaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark.

2002 | Senior Certificate with Merit. Transvalia High School, Vanderbijlpark.

2000 | Certificate in Entrepreneurship. Potchefstroom University, Vanderbijlpark.

Recognition|Awards

2006 | Granted NRF Student Assistmentship by the National Research Foundation (NRF)

2005 | Merit Award | Best illustration on exhibition at the Vaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark.

2005 | Design Finalist for Student Goldpack Competition hosted by The Institute of Packaging (SA) & Sappi

2005 | Granted ISTD Membership by meeting standards in student project. the International Society of Typographic Designers (ISTD), U.K.

2004 & 2003 | Awarded as best academic Graphic Design student in year group at the Vaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark.

Employment History

July 2007 – present
Practicing fine artist. Associated with Sangisa Sangisa art collective, The Gallery at Duncan Yard (Pretoria), the AVA (Association of Visual Arts, Cape Town), Greatmore Studios (Cape Town), White Rabbit Studios (Cape Town), Wessel Snyman Creative and several online art communities.

Jan 2004 – present
Freelance illustrator & graphic designer. Clients include: Optima Training, Ace Marketing, Fibreway, Abasunguli Training Specialists, The Ad Factory, The Gallery at Duncan Yard, and Intersport.

Jan 2007 – June 2009
Graphic designer at:
Media Hunter, Cape Town (2009); “it’s called advertising”, Pretoria (2007-2008); Profitcreative, Pretoria (2007); The Adfactory, Johannesburg (2007)

Jan – Oct 2006
Graphic Design Student Tutor. The Vaal University of Technology.

Dec 2005
Graphic designer and layout artist. Corals Publishers, Vanderbijlpark.