fonds | vonds (14 April 2022 – 5 July 2022)

Respect des fonds is a French term derived from archival theory. This principle requires that records be grouped according to their origin; collections are organized around a central ‘fond’ (French), which links them to an origin. The ‘reading room’ as a space offers such an origin. Here, collections do not originate on account of overarching themes, but rather out of personal preference. It is in particular a place where text and image interact spontaneously. Divergent voices enter into conversation in unpredictable ways in a reading room.

As a point of departure for this exhibition, miscellaneous content from Jannie Mouton’s personal reading room has been carefully excavated, traced and archived. Jannie’s Reading Room includes an almost complete list of Hertzog Prize-winning works, as well as a large number of works by authors from The ‘Sestigers’ movement. Contemporary artworks have been carefully selected to corroborate literary themes from the collection, or to debate them. The exhibition of visual art, archival material and literary extracts that emanate from this process thus encourages discussion about South Africa’s rich, diverse and complex heritage; a conversation between text and image, between viewer and subject, and among visitors to the gallery.

The fonds | vonds exhibition pays tribute to Jannie Mouton as driving force behind the Oude Leeskamer initiative, as well as a benefactor who promotes art and literature in South Africa.

* In Afrikaans the term ‘fonds’ references a fund set aside for a particular objective. Its homophone ‘vonds’ refers to discoveries made through searching.

Works by the following artists and writers form part of the fonds | vonds exhibition:

Visual Artists: Willie Bester, Willem Boshoff, Wim Botha, Andries Gouws, Dan Halter, Duduzile More (Dudubloom), Andrew Ntshabele, Irma Stern, Sitaara Stodel, Marjorie Wallace, Susqya Williams.

Writers: André P. Brink, Antjie Krog, Adam Small, Nathan Trantaal, Ingrid Winterbach.