ASAI | About

About

The Africa South Art Initiative (ASAI) promotes and supports the development of a critical discourse on the visual arts in Africa.

Registered as a nonprofit organisation since 2008, ASAI first went online in November 2005.

Click here to read ASAI's founding statement

Vision, Mission & Values

Vision

To be a leading research based visual arts organisation, globally recognised for developing an effective website and for innovative projects.

Mission

To generate quality resources on art in Africa for educational and professional contexts
To provide a platform for current debate and polemics in the fields of art and art history in Africa
To serve as a point of contact between scholars and art practitioners across the African continent and abroad.

Values

Accessibility & inclusivity: ensuring that our projects are accessible to all constituents & create opportunities for meaningful participation.
Relevance: ensuring that our work is relevant for African and developing contexts.
Innovation: promoting a culture of creativity, imagination, initiative, resourcefulness & collaboration in recognition of the necessity to share resources & develop innovative solutions.
Inclusive africanism: promoting critical engagement with what it means to be African in the contemporary, postcolonial, globalised context.

Honorary Patrons

The following distinguished individuals accepted invitations from ASAI to become honorary patrons. Patrons contribute directly to ASAI mostly in advising future projects and supporting ongoing fundraising efforts.

Dr. Rasheed Araeen

Artist and Founding Editor for Third Text, London, UK. Publications include Making Myself Visible (1984). Curated The Other Story: Afro-Asian Artists in Post-War Britain at the Hayward Gallery, London (1989).

Chabani Manganyi

Retired clinical psychologist and former Director General of Education, RSA (1994-1999). Publications include biographies of Es'kia Mphahlele (1983) and Gerard Sekoto (1996, 2004).

Barbara Murray

Independent curator and critic. Former editor of Gallery magazine, Zimbabwe. Curated Transitions: Botswana, Namibia, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe 1960-2004 for the Africa Centre, London (2005); and co-curated Dak’Art, Senegal (2006).

Nkiru Nzegwu

Chair of Africana Studies and Professor of the graduate program of Philosophy, Interpretation and Culture at the University of New York, Binghamton, USA. Founded www.africaresource.com and www.ijele.com . Publications include Contemporary Textures: Multi-dimensionality in Nigerian Art (1999).

Sylvester Ogbechie

Associate Professor, Department of History of Arts and Architecture, University of California, Santa Barbara, USA. Founder and editorial director of Critical Interventions: Journal of African Art History and Visual Culture.

Uche Okeke

Artist and Director, Asele Institute, Nimo, Nigeria. Co-founded Zaria Art Society (1958) for which he articulated notion of ‘Natural Synthesis’ (1960). In the 1970s he developed an international art history curriculum at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

Steven Sack

Director, Arts, Culture and Heritage Services, City of Johannesburg, RSA. Former Director of Cultural Industries, Department of Arts & Culture, South Africa. Curated The Neglected Tradition: Towards a New History of South African Art at the Johannesburg Art Gallery (1988).

Board of Directors

ASAI is governed by a board of directors:

Farzanah Badsha Visual Arts Consultant

Siona O'Connell Elected at the 2012 AGM. Official registration of new directors is still in progress

Mario Pissarra [Managing Director, ASAI] Artist and PhD student at the University of Cape Town

Donald Parenzee Elected at the 2012 AGM. Official registration of new directors is still in progress

Donovan Ward Artist

Members

Apart from the Board of Directors, ASAI's membership also includes:

Farzanah Badsha Visual Arts Consultant

Siona O'Connell Elected at the 2012 AGM. Official registration of new directors is still in progress

Mario Pissarra [Managing Director, ASAI] Artist and PhD student at the University of Cape Town

Donald Parenzee Elected at the 2012 AGM. Official registration of new directors is still in progress

Donovan Ward Artist

Glen Arendse Student enrolment manager- University of the Western Cape,Performer with Khoi Khonnexion

Andre Barnard Independent arts administrator, and financial administrator for ASAI

Gill Cowan Independent arts educator and consultant

Garth Erasmus Artist and Trustee, Greatmore Artists Studios. Member of the Khoi Khonnexion

Liesl Hartman Principal at Frank Joubert Art Centre

Randolph Hartzenberg Artist & lecturer, School of Design, Cape University of Technology

David Hlongwane Artist and curator, Mayibuye Centre, University of the Western Cape

Michael Godby Professor Emeritus of Art History, Department of Historical Studies, University of Cape Town

Jill Joubert Member, Ibhabathane teacher training project, and post-graduate student, University of Cape Town

Anthony Mhayi Artist

Dathini Mzayiya Artist. Founding member of City Skin and Gugulective

Ayesha Price Artist and Principal, Children's Art Centre, Zonnebloem, Cape Town

Lize van Robbroeck Associate Professor, Department of Visual Arts, University of Stellenbosch

Athena Sotomi Independent fund-raiser

Tracey Saunders Operations & Finance Manager at PDG Cape Town

Ernestine White Artist Project Coordinator, Freedom to Create

Jill Williams Cultural activist.

Members can make specific contributions that draw on their individual expertise and interests that are aligned to particular projects.

Staff

Mario Pissarra

Maganing Director

Andre Barnard

Finance administrator, part-time

Jarrett Erasmus

Researcher and Digital Archivist

Artist and founding member of the Burning Museum

Loyiso Qanya

Researcher and Digital Archivist

Artist and Curator

Natasha Himmelman

Senior Researcher and Editor

Vanessa Anaya

Researcher and cultural manager

Founding member of Wiriko

Funding

ASAI relies on donors for their support for its ongoing projects. Special thanks extend to the following organisations for their commitment to the Africa South Art Initiative :