NOWETO (NorthWestTownship) text from exhibition Bag Factory, Johannesburg, S.A.

I have spent most of my artistic life struggling to erase any trace of allegory in my work, (chasing the elusive rainbow of unmediated reality).

But how is it to be avoided in country where the Struggle is famously Life itself?

Where the northern suburbs stretch themselves almost beyond satire and conspicuous consumption means conspicuous protection. (And the paradox entails that walls must be built higher if you don’t want bars on your windows, blocking the view).

Where the Emerald City of Sandton is literally invisible, hides itself even from the highest hill in Johannesburg; mirroring the previous statistical non-existance of Soweto and the townships.

Where everything is denied and everything permitted.
In a city built upon the ultimate of allegorical elements gold.
A city where the Mandela bridge crosses a rift valley where the economic faultline is widening.

As a means of explaining despair and holding out a promise of
hope, allegory is inevitable, and in South Africa I have discovered what was probably under my nose all the time – that there is truth in telling stories.

And I am reminded that the greatest allegories come out of prison.