September 26, 2024 / 6:00pm - 8:00pm

Casspir + Cocktails

With Ralph Ziman

Special Event
Opening

Join us for the arrival of the Casspir Project with artist Ralph Ziman. Visitors are invited to view this wonderful piece throughout the evening while stopping by the outdoor bar or visiting the galleries inside.

About The Casspir Project

The Casspir Project charts the locus of the South African military vehicle’s legacy of institutional oppression — a legacy with which we are still reckoning. The central element of the project is one of reclamation.

The central element of the project is one of reclamation. The restored and refitted Casspir vehicle, its surfaces fully covered in elaborate, brightly-colored panels of glass beadwork, arrayed in traditional patterns was completed by artisans from Zimbabwe and the Mpumalanga province of South Africa, including women of the Ndebele tribe, known for their craftsmanship.

Since it’s debut SPOEK 1 has travelled throughout South Africa, stopping at The Turbine Art Fair, Johannesburg (July 2017); Everard Read Gallery — Keys Art Mile, Johannesburg (July 2017); and The Melrose Gallery, Johannesburg (September 2017). The vehicle arrived in the United States in May this year and was part of Special Projects at the fourth edition of 1-54 New York and, most recently, was on view at Pioneer Works, New York through the summer.

I remember columns of Casspirs, ten or fifteen, heading for the East Rand Townships of Daveyton and Katlehong,” Ziman says. “Heavily armed paramilitary police sitting casually on the roofs brandishing automatic weapons. I remember Casspirs flying at high speeds down the narrow, potholed streets of Soweto. I remember how the South African police would park two Casspirs in the road to form a blockade, forcing drivers to slow into an S-shaped route for tense inspection.

Bios

Ralph Ziman

Ralph Ziman’s practice is motivated by a sense of social responsibility toward global politics. Using imagery that is at once vivid and dark, he comments on serious issues such as life under apartheid, the arms trade and trophy hunting. His work extends across a variety of media, including film, photography, public intervention, sculpture, and installation.

Contact Ralph Ziman

Website: https://ralphziman.com/


Upcoming Program Events

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January 16 / 6:00pm Special Event

Queer Grief Ritual Gathering

led by Tatiana Bell (WE KEEP US SAFE) and Maya Wiseman

Register

We invite you to experience WE KEEP US SAFE and contribute to this growing archive of love, resilience, and justice. Together, we are greater than ourselves.

January 22 / 6:30pm Contemporary Talks

Across Generations and Geographies: A Conversation Between Hew Locke and Grace Aneiza Ali

Event offsite at Emory University’s Michael C. Carlos Museum

Register

Event Offsite at Emory University’s Michael C. Carlos Museum Join us at Emory University’s Michael C. Carlos Museum for a conversation between renowned Guyanese-British artist Hew Locke, whose work explores empire and power, and Guyanese-American curator Grace Aneiza Ali. The landmark exhibition, Donald Locke: Nexus, curated by Ali and on view here at Atlanta Contemporary, honors the life and legacy of Guyanese-born artist Donald Locke (1930–2010), one of Atlanta’s most influential artists. It focuses on how the concept of “nexus” permeates his artistic and intellectual journey and his engagement with themes of migration, cultural hybridity, and the histories of colonialism.

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