S’khothane: Representation in, and influence on,
contemporary visual arts practices
For several years now, S’khothane youth culture has been viewed as a
social ill. This view started after it received massive broadcast and print
media coverage during the course of 2012. Crews claiming adherence to
S’khothane were interviewed by investigative journalism programmes on
two of South Africa’s most watched television channels, eTV and SABC1.
While some townships1 in Gauteng claim to have been the birthplace of
S’khothane, this subculture appears to be based on various other
subcultures that preceded it. Cultures such as Swenkas (Umswenko),
Sapeurs (La Sape) and Pantsula influenced various aspects of the
S’khothane culture, from dance and poses, to dress style and
performances.
References made to S’khothane in studies by Mkhwanazi (2011) and
Jones (2013a) as well as mass media coverage on programmes such as
3rd Degree (2015) and Cutting Edge, have generally been negative. Jones
(2013a:210) describes S’khothane as a disruptive manifestation of
consumption, which involves publicly destroying expensive designer
clothes, shoes and accessories to show that these symbols of wealth are
meaningless and easily replaceable.
This study explores the representation of S’khothane in selected
contemporary visual artworks and assesses any influence it might have on
these artworks. The study also investigates public perceptions about the
S’khothane youth culture and evaluates these against realities
documented during data collection to determine whether the perceptions
were premised on misconceptions. A group of participants was randomly
selected from S’khothane events that took place in Fountains Valley
(Pretoria), Soshanguve, Tembisa and other S’khothane gatherings held in
places such as recreational parks and taverns. The participants were
interviewed to gain insight into their perspective of the S’khothane culture,
to establish the culture’s origin, its practises and elements.
S’khothane is widely integrated and visually appropriated in the visual
language of selected contemporary South African art practices. To this
end, this research extends into a focused analysis of selected artworks in
order to demonstrate how S’khothane influences selected contemporary
visual arts practice in Gauteng. Through this approach, it becomes clear
that these modes of representation embody no explicit moral judgement
as one might find in investigative journalism programmes. There is a
subtlety in the way S’khothane is represented by selected artists. In the
Jamalaun Nxedlana artworks discussed, there is an element of realism
depicted in the absence of manipulation through the documentation. On
the other hand, Kudzanai Chiurai’s form of representation involves
manipulation because he produced his visual artworks in a studio where
he used props and had the ability to control the composition of the artwork.
Nontsikelelo Veleko made a representation of various S’khothane
elements including colourful clothes and accessories such as sunglasses.
The study also investigates how S’khothane lifestyles, dance, poses,
clothing and performances are trends shaped influenced by other
subcultural historic groups such as Swenkas (Umswenko), Sapeurs (La
Sape) and Pantsula; giving them fad status, whether it be morally correct
or not. / Art History, Visual Arts and Musicology / M.A. (Visual Arts)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:unisa/oai:uir.unisa.ac.za:10500/23181 |
| Date | January 2016 |
| Creators | Ngcobo, Nkosikhona Bongamahlubi |
| Contributors | Cooper, Paul |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Dissertation |
| Format | 1 online resource (ix, 122 leaves ) : portraits |
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