4000 Crosses and White Poster

The idea with the project is to inform people of the conditions of war and allow them to, upon closer inspection of the facts, make up their own minds as to the value, if any, of war when considering the effect on the innocents.

The focus of my project is on the lives of the Boer individuals who went on commando and those who inhabited the concentration camps specifically but also on the propaganda used before and during the war to ensure that the British public would understand the treatment of these people as less harsh than it was.

I have chosen to title this piece 4000 Crosses. It consists of two parts, focused on the men from the Republics who died in battle during the South African war. The pieces have been photographed at an angle to make it easier for you all to see what is happening on them but in person, from right in front of the work, it is more difficult to see the content.

The first of the two is done with white pencil on white paper and white cross-stitching. The second part consists of more cross-stitching and small holes, which form the emblem of Queen Victoria, which featured on all official proclamations throughout the war. Between the two pieces there are four thousand crosses, sewn by hand, each dedicated to an Afrikaner man who died during the war.

The white crosses are also reminiscent of the witwerk technique used by burgher women in embroidery and is reflected in the goats head I posted about earlier.

The emblem of Queen Victoria has been placed on the piece as if the image and the rest of the project where approved by the office of the Queen. In order to form a comprehensive emblem, the holes had to be placed in a relatively exact format. This reminds me of the rigid battle formations employed by the British but with slight errors as the fringes of the British defense was eroded by the small, loose, democratic units of the commandos.

The 400 white crosses sewn in a square at the top of the format are representative of the small amount of burghers on commando in contrast with the vast scale of the Imperial army as represented by the emblem. In contrast with the amount of crosses on the second piece, this small group represents the Bittereinders who were willing to fight to the end even with the odds stacked against them, relying on faith rather than rational thinking.

On the second piece the identity of the man is obscured as no indication is given as to his identity. The idea is that he has been stripped of his identity, through the years of recollection, his identity, his personal story, along with that of so many others has been absorbed into the myth that the South African war has become. There are many contrasting recollections and therefore it is unlikely that his true story will ever be revealed.

The use of white pencil on the white paper was initially meant to be revealed only upon closer inspection and so from one angle, only when looking at the work from close up, the image of the man is revealed, revealing with it some truth about history that is absorbed by time and only revealed, in small measures, upon close inspection. When viewing the image from the other side however, it appears that the paper is darker than the image, which casts the man in a ghostly light. This leaves me with an odd sensation as if, only with a sort of visual of the ghosts of those who died in battle, I understand the numbing affect that an old photo lends to the image of a dead man.

The second, White Poster, is a the result of the linoleum sheets I showed earlier in the year. White’ from the title is indicative of the white on white conflict. I decided to make posters, and therefore name the piece accordingly, as posters along with other printed media such as photography and newspaper articles were use before and during the war in an attempt to habituate people into accepting the way in which innocents were treated throughout the war. Somehow acts of aggression are often less condemnable if they are enacted against those who are perceived as brutal, backward and deserving of what they got.

None of the posters indicate which individual said which quote but the first poster with the quote, “We are good friends now” is said to be by Kitchener and was said to the burghers at the end of the war. I believe it is ironic that anyone could expect friendship after a war. Similarly, the “We feed and pamper people…” statement seems laughable when considering the conditions of the concentration camps. The “…thin white veneer” quote references the inherent racism which implies that the Boer burghers are like the black/coloured population. As I said earlier, demoralising a group of people and describing them as an civilised, barbaric, and brutal somehow makes it easier to perform inhumane acts against such a group if it is perceived that they were deserving of what they got.

Update

So yes, no argument here, I am very likely the worst blogger ever. Remind me not to put that on my CV. At least I am consistent however, that’s good, right?

Since my last post I have done a lot of work and so at least I’ve got something to show for my absence. When I wrote last I was still busy making the ‘trophies’ for my Boer family trophies and some, if I may, rather ugly wallpaper. Since then I’ve taken a sharp left and gone down another road. I’m still going to use the trophies (I’m way too lazy to just throw away time consuming work) as part of a larger project.

As I’ve mentioned, and as you will know if you cared to Wikipedia it, the South African war (also known as the Anglo-Boer war) saw individuals from a number of races, cultures, and even countries fighting on British and Republic sides respectively. I have begun to refer to the Boer/Afrikaner as a burgher of either Republic (Orange Free State & Zuid Afrikaansche Republiek) as burghers of the two Republics mostly chose to stand together against the mostly British Cape Colony, during the war to fight for their (the Republics’) independence.

The focus of my project has, from the beginning, been on the lives of those involved in the war, specifically the suffering of the innocents in the concentration camps. I am by no means denying that the war was felt incredibly harshly by all groups of people who were involved, but my focus s specifically on the burghers – the men who went on commando and the women, children, and elderly who were sent to what were initially meant to be concentration camps.

As my focus is on the conflict and consequences thereof, between the Republics and the British forces, two white groups, at some stage a couple months ago I decided to focus on the concept of white on white and have consequently decided to approach my executions from this perspective. The concept of white on white was also influenced by a technique used by burgher women, called witwerk, which essentially entailed white embroidery on white material.

In the following couple of days, I will address the process both of conceptualization and execution of each piece that forms a part of the whole of the project as well as how the pieces have been adapted to conform to my white on white concept. Later pieces have been conceptualized with the white on white idea in mind and I will then just explain my thinking and the process of each.

I’m sorry to take so long to start writing again but here we go, hope you find at least some of these pieces interesting.

Project Update – Trophies

So, it’s been a couple weeks since the first post but at least I’ve got something to show for it?

As briefly explained before, I am currently busy with a year long project on the Anglo Boer War. In completing this project I will be working with a number of different mediums. The past couple of weeks, since the lino cutting, have seen me working with metal, wire, and clay as well as some digital work in preparation for printing wallpaper.

Through this project I make use of quotes by people who took part in the war, in order to allow contemporary society to form their own opinions on the propaganda used in the media at the time.

So, first things first, the basic idea is that I’m making three trophies as representatives of a Boer family. The trophies will each represent the Boer, his wife, and child respectively. These will then be mounted onto boards printed with the wallpaper I’ve designed.

The trophies are not complete but currently look as follows:

The bull represents the Boer and is inspired by photos of the fighting, the injured, the scorched earth policy and the bravery of the Boers in defending their land and their family.

The goat is representative of the Boer women and is inspired by their volkskuns and their tenacity. The two images above were part of my inspiration and the two underneath are of the trophy I created.

The Boer children are represented by a lamb, which is inspired by the klei-osse built by the children. The lamb was chosen for its innocence and defenselessness as well as its promise. The image on the left is of a klei-os and the one on the right is of the lamb that I crafted from clay.

Please know that this is the very first time I’ve worked with many of these materials and so would not have been able to do this without some collaboration. I’d like to thank all those who have lent a hand. Much appreciated!

Hoping to blog about some completed work soon.

Project Process Report_Lino

So, as some of you may know, this craft community was created as part of a larger project I am currently busy with. The project makes use of a number of traditional craft and print making techniques and is concerned with an exploration of the use of media in the South African War (1899-1902), also known as the Anglo-Boer War.

For those of you who are unsure as to the specific context surrounding this war, there is much literature available, both printed and digital. Otherwise, feel free to ask me about anything you are unsure of and I will answer according to my knowledge, or provide you with sources for further information. As part of my project I am making use of quotes by those involved, in addressing the issue of propaganda, especially as used in the media.

 

 

What I am posting here today are the beginnings of what will be my lino prints. The quotes that have formed the subject of the lino prints, as posted with this entry, are from British individuals. Designed with the typography used specifically in the period of the Anglo Boer War, as well as a hand generated print technique that reminds me of the handmade artifacts made by the Boers for their family members housed in concentration camps. These pieces will later be used alongside another piece, which will reflect quotes by the Boers.

The printmaking technique I am using is a variant of woodcut. My design is cut into the linoleum, with the green areas representing the reversal of the parts to be printed – it is for this reason that all the type on my sheets is inverted. The sheet is then inked using a roller and printed onto paper or fabric by hand or using a press.