USHA SEEJARIM

The artwork is a pair of wings made from domestic iron bases. The sculpture is purposefully made to capture an angelic form with shoulders up high and a long drop of wings. The work alludes to the role of women as perceptions of celestial carriers and barriers of pain. She is often the one who protects her loved ones from pain, bearing its load on herself. So whilst the sculpture is interactive and embodies a sense of freedom, it is simultaneously physically heavy communicating the burden carried by many women.

The word impeccable embodies a sense of perfection Theologically, it is also about being without sin. Thus impeccable Freedom is the idea of a sinless emancipation, setting up a kind of impossible virtue.

The temporary installation is made site specifically for the Atherstone Gallery. It uses the unique dimensions of the space to inform the nature of the installation. The work comprises two materials and one element. The materials are thread and irons/iron bases and the element of line is explored in its ability to create form and occupy space.

As the thread of the narrative, the storyline as tethered is restricted and controlled and tamed, and yearns for the freedom that it pretends to have.

CREDITS

Artist: Usha Seejarim

Assistants: Busani Msimanga and Zanele Ravhutulu

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Usha Seejarim (b. South Africa) is a conceptual and socially engaged artist who uses found objects to communicate complex and simple ideas around the domestic position of women. Seejarim holds a Master’s Degree in Fine Art from the University of The Witwatersrand. A Sculptor who has built an impressive record, Usha is best known for her reinterpretation of ordinary and domestic objects by making use of common materials such as safety pins, wooden pegs, irons and brooms. Her work has a distinctly Dadaist influence. She created the great slate figures representing the South African Freedom Charter, The wings outside the Radisson Red Hotel in Rosebank and is probably best known as the artist who produced the 2m high beaded portrait of Nelson Mandela, which formed the backdrop to his funeral in 2013.