Kim Schmahmann (born 1955 in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

) is an artist who currently resides in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...

. His studio is located in the Brickbottom Artists Building in

Somerville, Massachusetts Somerville ( ) is a city located directly to the northwest of Boston, and north of Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge, in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the city had a total population of 81, ...

Art Style

His art combines conceptual art with fine art, utilizing the tension that exists between the idea and the craft to express the tension that arises between individuals and society. Many of his pieces comment on the institutionalized control and discrimination that he witnessed growing up in South Africa, a country dominated by systems of oppression from its colonial past through the apartheid regime.

Works

His iconic piece, the "Bureau of Bureaucracy," is permanently on display at the Smithsonian

Renwick Gallery The Renwick Gallery is a branch of the Smithsonian American Art Museum located in Washington, D.C. that displays American craft and decorative arts from the 19th to 21st century. The gallery is housed in a National Historic Landmark building that ...

Washington, DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

. This piece took six years (from 1993 to 1999) to create at the

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

Hobby Shop A hobby shop (or hobby store) sells recreational items for hobbyists. Types Modelling Classical hobby stores specialize in modelling and craft supplies and specialty magazines for model airplanes (military craft, private airplanes and airliners ...

in Cambridge. In October 2019, the Bureau of Bureaucracy was named one of the "Five Pieces at Smithsonian Museums and Galleries You Shouldn't Miss" by the Association of Registrars and Collection Specialists (ARCS). His piece entitled "Apart-Hate: A People Divider," was acquired by the Museum of Arts & Design in New York City. The piece has appeared in MAD's Re: Collection exhibition curated by David Revere McFadden, as well as the Global Africa Project exhibition curated by

Lowery Stokes Sims Lowery Stokes Sims (born 1949) is an American art historian and curator of modern and contemporary art. She is known for her expertise in the work of African, African American, Latinx, Native and Asian American artists such as Wifredo Lam, Fritz ...

and Leslie King-Hammond. The Apart-Hate piece reflects on how societies create systems that divide people with hate. Judith Dobrzynski, writing for ''The New York Times'', described the work as a "meditation on discrimination." A recent piece, entitled "Belabeled" and acquired by the

Peabody Essex Museum The Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) in Salem, Massachusetts, US, is a successor to the East India Marine Society, established in 1799. It combines the collections of the former Peabody Museum of Salem (which acquired the Society's collection) and th ...

(PEM) in Salem MA, is about the power of labels to shape identity. These labels—those that people put on themselves and those others give them—frame expectations and limit possibilities. In exploring how labels matter, this piece invites viewers to challenge and reflect on their preconceived judgments.

References

External links

Official Site

Brickbottom Artists Building

MAD Global Africa Project

Video from MAD Global Africa Project

Article about Re: Collection Exhibition
South African artists 1955 births Living people {{SouthAfrica-artist-stub