WE(e) Spaza
Local Businesses in the World Economy
Exhibition February 4th- March 3rd 2012 in Alexandra, Johannesburg
curated by Katharina Rohde
Featuring works by artists including:
Buhlebezwe Siwani
Keabetswe Mokwena & Reatile Mokwena
Claire Rousell & others
The exhibition WE(e) Spaza aims to bring focus on local small scale businesses in Johannesburg, South Africa and their challenges within the global economy. The exhibition will be presented in five or more Spaza shops in the township of Alexandra in Johannesburg. WE(e) Spaza will be on view for one month, and will feature small events to discuss, reflect, and imagine future possibilities for local economies. The exhibition aims to bring about an awareness of the challenges as well as potential in the so called informal economy—with a focus on Spaza shops—and seeks to point out the various social, spatial, and economic scales of small sized businesses.
WE(e) Spaza will exhibit works of art that deal with the phenomena of local small scale enterprises like Spaza shops, highlighting the challenges, struggles and opportunities that come with informal entrepreneurship. The works will reflect on the relationship of local business and strategies of survival within the context of the global economy.
Featured works will include photographs of Spaza shops, products or owners; sculptures made of Spaza products; videos documenting a day in the life of a Spaza family; performance and dance pieces; site-specific installations; a proposal for a future Spaza; and the re-design of an existing shop challenging its position in competitive economies.
Tags: Alexandra township, apexart, Buhlebezwe Siwani, Claire Rousell, Johannesburg, jozi art lab, Keabetswe Mokwena, Market Theatre Photo Lab
english