2024

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2023

Joe Turpin: When the Dust Settles

17 July – 15 September, 2023.
NWU Botanical Gardens Gallery, North-West University, Potchefstroom

In February 2022, the foundation stone of the Rustenburg Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in South Africa’s Nort West province, was removed, as the building was finally being sold - there has not been an active worshipping congregation or Jewish Community in over twenty years. After removing the stone, a time capsule was found. Dated 1924, the Bottle contained documents serving to preserve the history of the community, and the opening of the Synagogue. The Synagogue and congregation was founded and built by Turpin’s Great Grandfather, Philip Wulfsohn, and his brothers, after they arrived in South Africa as refugees fleeing the anti-Semitic pogroms of Eastern Europe in the late Twentieth Century. They were originally from Zhager, in what is today Lithuania. It was not uncommon for Yiddish speaking Lithuanian Jews to then leave time capsules. At that time, their community was precarious, and they did not know what would happen to them or their temple in the future. The capsule was evidence of existence. The discovery of the bottle is the point of departure of this work, which addresses memory about the bottle; these places; its’ history. Turpin deals with identity and history, but also a strong theme of mourning. View here

 

STAIRWAYS AND RUINS

17 July – 15 September, 2023.
NWU Art Gallery, North-West University, Potchefstroom

The research entity ViNCO (Visual Narratives and Creative Outputs) at the North-West University’s Potchefstroom Campus presented his exhibition, which was curated by Andrew Lamprecht, curator of historical paintings and sculpture at Iziko South African National Gallery. Read more

 

Len Khumalo: THE DAMAGE STILL REMAINS

Curated by Nthabeleng Masudubele and co-curated by Nkululeko Khumalo
10th February – 31st March 2023

The Damage Still Remains reflects on, interrogates and challenges some of the scenes seen in the lifetime work of Len Khumalo, a photographer and photojournalist who practiced predominantly through the early 1970’s - 2000’s.  Bra Len, as he is fondly known, was able to redefine photography spaces as a black man in society and establish his role as an important forerunner in the industry.  He has provided us with a rich archive, depicting and preserving scenes from South African history.  
View here

 

Coral Fourie: ECHOES OF TIME

Curated by Babette Ludick
10th February – 17th March 2023

In Echoes of Time, Coral’s body of work is echoing and intertwining through three different timelines; the present, past and future. In the present time we are standing in echoes of the past, echoing into the future. The artworks showcased in this exhibition bring to life echoes of time, time as in the form of reminiscence/ representations of our African landscapes, the bush veld, mountain ranges, sands of the Kalahari and the peoples “footprints” echoing from ancient times on African soil. This body of work is rich with symbolism, colour, texture and space, all accumulated through different timelines. It is a representation of the mystery of time and the space it is placed in.
View here

 

THIS IS ME Group Exhibition
Curated by Amogelang Pila
27th   April – 7th June 2023

‘This Is Me’ is a visual arts commissioning and artist development programme that is designed for recent graduates and artists that have been practicing professionally for over 2 years, living and working in the Northwest. It is a 4-month programme that unfolds and extends the subject matters about identity, expression, independence and equality. This programme is an opportunity to define self, to create new works of art within the stated subject focus areas and the expansion of one’s portfolio, professional profile and experience through mentorship, business in the arts facilitations and a group exhibition.

This is Me Arts Commissioning and Artist Development Programme’ is designed and managed by female artist Amogelang Pila Ditlhale and administered by ArtbankSA and the National Museum and sponsored by the Department of Sports, Arts & Culture and the NAC under their Work-based Experience Programme PESP3.
View here

IYEZA
By BUHLUBEZWE SIWANI
27th   April –2nd July 2023

Potchefstroom, South Africa–– The NWU Main Gallery is proud to present iYeza, a solo exhibition of recent work by Buhlebezwe Siwani. First exhibited in Makhanda, as part of the National Arts Festival, the exhibition now moved to Johannesburg then Potchefstroom in celebration of a significant milestone – the artist’s selection as the Standard Bank Young Artist for Visual Art 2021.

As a multidisciplinary artist, Siwani demonstrates profound range. Working across embodied performance, installation, video, photography, works on paper and sculpture, she creates art that is a continued meditation on the intersections of spirituality, indigenous practices, culture, history and religion, through centring the black female body and lens.

Through a wide range of materials – including soap, wool, and her own body – Siwani’s oeuvre pulses with her belief in the performative possibilities of everything, and demonstrates a vocational practice, unconstrained by mode and medium. Her body of work interrogates the patriarchal framing of the black female body and black female experience within the South African context.

Negotiating our contemporary reality, iYeza draws on Siwani’s memories, journey and practice as an initiated traditional healer. Named for the isiXhosa word for (usually plant-derived) medicine, it is also a broader reference to “a substance that is meant to ward off dark spiritual energy” and call in the good.

As the artist explains, “These spiritual energies are intrinsic to my work and form the central ideas around the exhibition pieces, how our bodies and spirits are tied to the earth and waters on and in which we are born and raised. The land and water is healing on its own, it is medicine, it breeds medicine.”

With iYeza, Siwani interrogates the many forms and uses of plants in “traditional medicines, rituals and daily life”. With reverence, she considers the evolution of their meaning – understood, misunderstood, suppressed by colonial power and still enduring – and the ways in which they sustain us.

The life force of the exhibition, by leaning into this multiform and dynamic questioning, is the symbiotic relationship to and with plants, their meaning and our history. . Through video and sculpture, Siwani physically presents the flora of the show’s title – using wood, imphepho, eucalyptus tree stumps, grass, alongside imbola, umkhando and soil as part of the materials that create these works.

Thematically, she considers the intersection of the physical and spiritual, women’s labour, ecological warfare, and codified African spiritual practices in an expansive consideration of the power and potential of plants, all while gesturing towards healing. As Siwani states, the exhibition is “a way to reset thinking about ourselves as indigenous people and our plants which have been sought after for years. This is about healing our spirits, the spirits of our ancestors and recognising the power in what our land has gifted to us so that we can heal”.
The exhibition demonstrates the ways in which Siwani’s art is both a cultural politic and an emotional invocation, rooted in her belief in the importance of artists engaging with the socio-political environment.  
View here

2022

Mike Mzileni:  A Photographic Archival Journey
Curated by Nkululeko Khumalo
12th February – 21st March 2022

The photographer and Jazz lover Mike Mzileni is best known for his iconic portraits and landscape images from the early 1970s- 2000, which depicts South African history through photography. As we rediscover and celebrates the works of this pioneering Mike Mzile radical photographer of his times. Although the term "Photo Journalism" was just coined at the time, he was able to redefine photography spaces and place as a black man in society and establish his role as an important forerunner in the industry.
View the exhibition

Inganekwane
Curated by Tebogo Ralesai
12th February – 21st March 2022

A Group show by the Of Soul And Joy Photo Project. Inganekwane is a Nguni word that means storytelling, Fable or creation of history through a narrative performance. The exhibition title aims to explore Khumalo Street as a site of memory where the community collective knowledge can be shared, performed and archived. It's through this elaborative memory disposition by which the interconnection between narrative and history can be established.
View the exhibition

QUALITY/INEQUALITY
Curated by Oupa Sibeko
6th April – 31st May 2022

QUALITY/INEQUALITY, invites celebratory imaginations which seeks an artistic expression and response to counter singular utopic colonial visions, and socio-cultural sameness. How might artistic imaginaries stage the potential of multiple futures, thus rendering uncertain the confidence of the colonial past and the multinational present? Inspired by Dr David Koloane's words, "... one also finds artists who do not require the prerequisite of any form of training. Life itself appears to be their theatre of inspiration" (Postapartheid Expression and a New Voice, 1999).
View the exhibition

Unsettling the Single Society
Curated by Amohelang Mohajane, Boitumelo Makousu. Nokukhanya Khumalo and Tsepang Bereng
6 April - 31 May 2022

The exhibition is inspired by the 2022 African Critical Inquiry Workshop (ACIP) titled Unsettling the Single Society will open as a virtual exhibition on 6th April 2022. The exhibition explores the themes of belonging and unbelonging; symbolic and material labour; land and landscape; structural and direct violence; and contested knowledges, themes that structure the historical and ongoing composition of our settler colonial world.
View the exhibition

Kasi: Eye of The People/Leihlo la Sechaba
Curated by Mahlomola Maroba
1 July- 1 August 2022

Leihlo la Sechaba (Eye of The People) is an expressive group exhibition intended to showcase the talent that South African townships have in the form of artists/creatives. The participating artists are Andile Bhala, Sebastian Legoete and Rooney Saaed. The exhibition begins by understanding what the township entails and then goes further to understand the different expressions found in the townships. Leihlo la Sechaba further explores the shadows by showcasing how expression is found in sexuality – investigating how the themes mentioned above are rooted in binaries and how marginal communities within the space survive and find expression in a space that has no language to understand them.
View the exhibition

Mang, O Tswa Kae, O Ya Kae? My Cradle, My Story, My Heritage.
Curated by Boitumelo Makousu
July- 1 August 2022

This group exhibition features Khotso Mahloma, Lesego Moncho, and Ras Silas. The exhibition explores the willingness of expressing vulnerability of one’s experiences, memories and healing.  O mang? O tswa kae? O ya kae?,does not only invite you on to geometric patterns and other forms, mediums and materials but rather to a journey of understanding the story behind the diverse compositions each artist expresses and has significantly shaped who they are. Every individual encounter’s moment in their lives that shapes their being but concurrently challenges one’s strength and capabilities of withstanding what you believe in. This body of selected works interrogates the connection of which culture, identity, spirituality and the natural environments of where one comes from, where they are presently and where they intend to go. #BopheloKeArt
View the exhibition

Attached to the Soil.
Curated by Peter Glendinning
11th August 2022 - 16th September 2022

NWU Gallery in collaboration with Visual Narratives and Creative Outputs (ViNCO), the Fulbright Scholar Program and the Michigan State University presents Attached to the Soil exhibition. “To my compatriots. I have no hesitation in saying that each one of us is as intimately attached to the soil of this beautiful country as are the famous jacaranda trees of Pretoria and the mimosa trees of the Bushveld. Each time one of us touches the soil of this land, we feel a sense of personal renewal.” Nelson Mandela, 10 May 1994

In 2019, Professor Peter Glendinning, Fulbright Scholar and professor in Art, Art History, and Design, Michigan State University, USA, visited several South African universities where he collaborated with staff and students on the collaborative project, Attached to the Soil. The project’s title and genesis is the metaphor proposed by former president Nelson Mandela in his first words to the people of South Africa upon his inauguration in 1994.
View the exhibition

Feminism ya Mang, Feminism Yethu, Feminism Yani
Curated by Samantha Modisenyane and Masechaba Moloi
11th August 2022 - 2nd September 2022

NWU Gallery in collaboration with the Goethe-Institu tSouth Africa, presents Feminism Ya mang, Yethu, Yani. The artists featured are Jodi Bieber, Amy Ayanda, Teresa Firmino, Helena Uambembe, Jabu Nadia Newman, Kelly Johnson, Lulama ‘Wolf’ Mlambo, Saaiqa, Thato Ramaisa. Feminism ya Mang, Feminism Yethu, Feminism Yani is the visual exploration on how we define womanhood, sexuality, age and feminism; key themes that come with such an engagement; and the ways in which notions on gender and queerness can redefine our understandings.
View the exhibition

Decolonising the Book
07 October 2022 - 28th October 2022
The NWU Gallery in collaboration with Visual Narratives and Creative Outputs (ViNCO) and the Artists’ Book Club presents the exhibition “Decolonising the Book”. The exhibition will be available for viewing from the 6th to 28th of October 2022 at the NWU Main Gallery.

“Decolonising the Book” is a product of the “Decolonial Book Arts Project” that was initiated in 2018 by artist and former bookseller Chris Reinders (of The African Moon Press) and developed further over the next few years by the Johannesburg Chapter of the Artist’s Book Club. This arts project’s inception was the result of the prominent, and still ongoing, calls for decolonisation, particularly those which had been driven by students in South Africa’s higher education sector.

Inserted Bodies
07 October 2022 - 28th October 2022
The NWU Gallery in collaboration with The Blessing Ngobeni Art Prize presents the exhibition “Inserted Bodies”. The exhibition will be available for viewing from the 6th to 28th of October 2022 at the NWU Botanical Gardens Gallery.

Inserted bodies is a debut solo exhibition by Boitumelo Motau. Motau is the recipient award winner for The Blessing Ngobeni Art Prize which is aimed at assisting young and emerging visual artists to launch their careers. The Award provided Motau with a twelve-week studio residency at Ellis House in Johannesburg. Inserted bodies is looking and working closely with the living and inherited history of Johannesburg. “When I speak about history I am specifically speaking about the stories of the people that migrated to Johannesburg, looking all the way back to the gold rush to black men and women forced to leave their families to work in Johannesburg as miners and domestic workers and in recent years where a diverse group and Africans have migrated to Johannesburg seeking better opportunities” states Motau.  

Duende
An exhibition curated by the 3rd year Visual Arts for Education Students, 8 – 24 November 2022.

Duende can be translated as having a soul, a heightened state of emotion, expression, and heart. The term is traditionally used in flamenco music and other art forms and refers to the mystical or powerful force embodied by a performer to captivate and draw in the audience. The process of making art can be likened to being in a state of duende. Being affected by art - to be in awe, wondrous, captivated and inspired - is duende.
The artworks on display are made by the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd year Visual Arts for Education students as well as the 4th year LSIP (Visual Arts module) students and cover the artmaking methods and topics they researched and explored during the past post-lockdown year. These include making artist’s books that deeply explore the concept of journeys, searches into identity and self, as well as the delight of searching for the sublime.
As both curators of this exhibition and as art educators, we believe that Visual Art is a way to give hope and confidence and to inspire, empower, encourage, and live by. Making art allows you to explore the unthinkable and the impossible. We believe in promoting creativity and critical thinking through critical making as well as creating a safe space for all our learners to flourish. Making art is not only the act of drawing, painting and sculpting. Making art is integral to the development of an entrepreneurial mindset through the process of connection, problem-solving, ideation, creativity, innovation, originality and creating a product of value to share, enjoy and celebrate.

Soul & Society Studio
4th Year Exhibition
Soul
Amé refers to the seat of human personality – intellect, will and emotions. This exhibition captures the soul and professional identity of the ARTE 421 student-artists. In line with the Artist-Researcher-Teacher (ART) theory, each of the 3-D sculptures was designed to present our students’ identities metaphorically. The mediums used to express ourselves vary from recycled materials to moulded and carved materials. Values of passion, respect and care are embodied in the works. These professional identity ART icons are symbols of how we see ourselves in our art education careers. Positioning ourselves help us to recognise our amé side which we hope will touch those we teach one day.
Society

Fostering Futures
The transition from ART to PART is captured in the SEA (Socially Engaged Art) poster exhibition. We extended our practices outside the classroom to include service-learning pedagogies. We developed our teaching identities to actively engage with our local community by integrating our beliefs, values, and theories within the SEA posters. We, firstly, identified a need amongst the youth at the Abraham Kriel Children’s home - the need of children to dream about their future. Asset-based activities embodied in body mapping and collage works captured the strengths and dreams of the high school learners. Socially engaged art-based practices inspired learners to envision their dreams and a future for themselves. The posters display how we applied six action research cycles - orientation, relationship building, planning & vision building, skills application and celebration sessions during the creative processes. As PART (participatory, artists, researchers and teachers) educators, we have come the full circle. Our LOVE paradigm express how we love what we do, value others and the environment. The digital posters represent the sensitive nature of the artists-participants and capture the aesthetic and nurturing profession we proudly embrace as transformed PART teachers. A section of the exhibition includes the body mapping and collage artworks produced by the school learners from the Abraham Kriel children’s home. They shared their creativity, enthusiasm and engaged making processes with us.

 

2021

14 February 'Sethembiso Zulu - IKHAYA LIKAMOYA'. Ikhaya Lika Moya is Sethembiso Zulu début solo show, what we are showing on 14 February 2021 is a selection of his body of work. Zulu’s work is intriguing, especially with this work which is part of a trilogy. It forms part of a new body of work that he's developing in response to his journey as an artist and photographer and healer and trying to negotiate the modern world. Link to the virtual art exhibition.

11 March 'Nditsheni Managa - We Will Rise Again'. | The past year has been an unmatched one, triggering our survival instincts. We have all been affected by Covid-19 differently over the past year. Over the months we have adjusted our lifestyles to survive. The informal sector is about survival, hustling and strategizing to make ends meet. Informal traders are at most not seen, invisible but play a huge role when we need something spontaneously. The people behind these small businesses are strong-willed, patient and show great perseverance. What are their stories? What are their dreams? What is the vision? What is their anchor? As I travel the streets of Johannesburg they have become part of my consciousness of needing to understand their stories View the online show here.

10 April 'Lerato Lodi - MORAPEDI, ONE WHO PRAYS'. North-West University Gallery and Studio Nxumalo Contemporary are proud to present "Morapedi, One Who Prays", a solo exhibition by Lerato Lodi, curated by Amohelang Mohajane. In her first solo exhibition, Lodi takes us along the start of a journey that investigates her curiosity of the intricacies of dual spiritual practices prevalent in "Sebaka sa Badimo" (a shrine or a sacred ritual site that is fundamental in traditional African spiritual practice), and the church as a space of worship an important setting for Christianity. Link to the virtual exhibition.

10 April '#5WOMENARTISTS | The Art of Clay'. A group show featuring the works of Ivy Rihlampfu, Pholile Hlongwane, Boitumelo Machaba, Lerato Moleko and Prudence Magagula. #5WOMENARTISTS is an online campaign launched by the National Museum of Women in the Arts (NY) in 2016. The campaign calls attention to the fact that women have not been treated equally in the art world, and remain unrepresented and undervalued in museums, galleries, and auction houses. The NWU Gallery has been promoting this campaign over the past few years and 2021 is no different. We are proud to be hosting a group show for the selected #5WOMENARTISTS titled, ‘#5WOMENARTISTS | The Art of Clay’. These artists include; Ivy Rihlampfu, Pholile Hlongwane, Boitumelo Machaba, Lerato Moleko and Prudence Magagula. View the online exhibition here.

15 May 'Helena Uambembe | PIM PAM PUM'.

Pim Pam Pum reminds one of the fairgrounds shooting galleries where we blast away and see how many remain standing and we win a prize if we ensure none remain standing. There is much latent violence imbued in a seemingly childish song and playmaking. The lyrics:

each bullet kills one

up there on the pylon

there is a glass of poison

who drank and died?...

with luck, with luck who is free is you

is your father a player

how many goals has he scored?

are insidious and create an environment where the children learn to be ready and armed to defend themselves. The backdrop of this exhibition is the fragmented psyche brought on by life in the shadow of the border war and living with the terrible ones. The need to move on from an imperfect and lost childhood underpins Pim Pam Pum. View the solo exhibition of Helena's exhibition here.

15 May '4th Industrial Revolution | NWU Permanent Art Collection. An exhibition celebrating International Museum day featuring artworks from the NWU Permanent Art Collection. This exhibition is a response to an invitation from the International Council of Museums (ICOM) to commemorate International Museum Day which is celebrated on the 18th May 2021. The NWU Gallery is part of the International Committee for University museums and collections (UMAC). The COVID-19 crisis has swept the whole world abruptly, affecting every aspect of our lives, from the interactions with our loved ones to the way we perceive our homes and cities, to our work and its organisations. With the cultural sector being among the most affected the NWU Gallery saw this as an opportunity to showcase some works that explore the four chosen topics around the main theme. The theme for 2021 is "The Future of Museums: Recover and Reimagine", these topics are Digital transformation (focus: education), Social relevance and sustainability, Climate action, New Business Models.

23 June ' Once we were heroes' | attempts to respond to the lingering uncertainty brought about by the COVID 19 pandemic. What is known are the challenges that the whole world is currently grappling with. The loss of human life, loss of jobs, and - most importantly - the question, when will all this end? The art sector in South Africa is no different. Artists face an uncertain future. Online exhibitions have become a norm. This has changed the artistic practice as we know it. Historically, viewers needed to be intimate with the artwork to fully appreciate it. The artist’s skill, textures and materiality all created the viewer experience. Some of these elements are not easily experienced through the digital mode. With the advantages that online exhibitions bring, such as the ability to reach greater numbers of audiences owing to the internet, the nagging question remains: is the new normal a forever normal? View the exhibition at NWU Gallery and at Klerksdorp Museum.

23 June 'Agility is the new black' | is a collaborative multi-disciplinary exhibition featuring a mother and son-Thina Minya & Themba Minya View exhibition. The dynamic duo is having their first major institutional show at NWU Gallery. Each artist is reflecting on form, without bowing to societal nuances to define their practice. With this in mind, the exhibition presents and highlights a refreshing, unique take on abstract themes of race, sexuality, identity politics, social struggle, feminism and the self. With many of the new works created in isolation, they are brought together in this show as a visual conversation to represent the universal human experience. here

09 August 'NOT ANOTHER HAIR SHOW' | emerges as an exhibition derived from the dissertation titled: HAIR POLITICS: AN EXAMINATION OF THE AESTHETICS OF BLACK FEMALE HAIR IN THE WORK OF SELECT AFRICAN ARTISTS. Written by Tshegofatso Seoka, the dissertation highlights the politics of black hair and hairstyling practices and choices, interrogating the dynamics of beauty within various socio-specific communities in Africa and the diaspora. The dissertation further discusses aspects of the black African emancipatory discourse, which develops as grand representations of blackness and black aesthetics, aggressively promoting a reductive narrative of mimicry where the specific hairstyles of black women are actively critiqued. See exhibition here

09 August ' For Women’s Month, we examine the meaning of femininity in the modern South African context. The South African woman has historically shown her strength of character as well as creativity in finding solutions to the challenges of modern living. Women are able to fashion something beautiful out of any situation and this show pays homage to that, with the exhibition featuring five female artists who use nontraditional media to engage us in conversation.'

27 August ' The Enigmatic Pursuit' The Enigmatic Pursuit exhibition is a collaborative project involving stakeholders from NWU campuses to usher in a new dawn in the institution's story. The exhibition introduces the North-West University’s hidden gems in both visual artworks and sculptures collected from 1932 to the present. Included in the exhibition are inheritances from art collections of the former University of Bophuthatswana, along with the collected works by the current unified North-West University. The exhibition explores a vast socio-economic and political history that informs an envisioned path forward. The showcase represents the emergence of a renewed collectivist vision and truth, duly highlighting the institution's historical conception and trajectory. This plethora of artworks exhibited encompasses the temporal legacy of the NWU's artistic canon. This exhibition was launched in conjunction with the opening of the New Vaal Administrative Building.

29 September 'Language of my Forefathers' Malose Pete is an artist who uses painting and sculpture to bring across different societal perspectives with the hope of encouraging people to dig deeper than what can be considered normal. He has been creating since he was a young man in the village of Ga-Mahoai in Polokwane. He draws his inspiration from moments of solitude that allow him to observe the world in a way that offers a different outlook. Malose believes that finding your authentic self is key to creating art that truly represents something that people never knew they needed. see the exhibition here.

29 September ' UNTOLD STORIES Legacy of the UNIBO (university of Bophuthatswana) archive, Art of our Alumni exhibition | The North-West University Art Gallery is proud to present an exhibition of works by art students from the former University of Bophuthatswana (UNIBO). In 2019, more than 50 artworks were found in a storeroom on the Mahikeng campus, where the paintings and sculptures had been relegated for over three decades. The works date from the 1980s to the early 1990s, when the UNIBO (later renamed the University of the North-West), offered a degree in Fine Art. There is currently very little published information and no scholarship on art education at UNIBO and UNW during these turbulent years of struggle and transition from apartheid to democracy. While Bophuthatswana and UNIBO’s history is no doubt burdened, this archive of artworks testifies to the former university’s educational ideals at a time when black students had scarce opportunities for studying art in South Africa. Untold Stories, Legacy of the UNIBO (university of Bophuthatswana) archive, Art of our Alumni exhibition curated by Amohelang Mohajane is an attempt at opening critical discussion and research on the North-West University Collection archive. See exhibition here

12 November - 12 January 2022| Prof Dan Kgwadi, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the North-West University (NWU), cordially invites staff, current and former students of the NWU who have published non-academic books to celebrate their accomplishments with an honorary exhibition. NWU Archive of Greatness

2020

13 February 'Lesego Moncho - Decade of Expression & Creativity. A retrospective exhibition of NWU Artema Alumni.

13 February 'DECADES IN WAITING - The Art of Our Alumni UNIBO'. An exhibition of the UNIBO Alumni during their time as students in Mahikeng.

2 April 'Philiswa Lila - SKIN, BONE, FIRE: The Last Album'. The exhibition is supported by Absa, Alliance Français Potchefstroom and Johannesburg. Link to the virtual art exhibition.

2 April 'Phoka Nyokong - Dinoolwane, Matlotlo le Baloi | Folklores, Treasures and Witches'. Link to the virtual art exhibition.

7 July 'Sethembiso Zulu - Ikhaya Lilkamoya' curated by Senzeni Marasela. View the online catalogue here.

9 August 'New Chapter' - An online group show by Marna de Wet, Jean Lampen and Elna Venter. View the online catalogue here.

11 September 'RACONTEUR | Covid-19 the NWU Way' - An online group show featuring works from students, staff and alumni members of the NWU. View the online catalogue here.

13 October 'Clement Mohale | The creative adult is the one who survived' - Link to the virtual exhibition and the catalogue.

18 November 'Theophelus Rikhotso | Scattering resources, misrepresented relief' - An online exhibition, view the catalogue here.

18 November 'Batswana History And Heritage Preservation | Theme: United Communities | Tshepang Maelangwe & Motswana Molotlegi' - An online exhibition, view the catalogue here.

9 December 'Mpho Ya Badimo | Mamorena Senokwanyane & Kgalaletso Senokwanyane' - Link to the virtual exhibition.

2019

14 February 'Christo Coetzee IN ACTION' An exhibition of the NWU collection of Christo Coetzee's work celebrating his position in the South African art world.

14 February 'Art Young Presents' An online magazine exhibiting local artists' work.

8 April 'Facing Race' In association with the DVC for Facing Race week, an event that stretches across all 3 campuses of the NWU. Works on exhibition were chosen by students representing their campus (Mahikeng, Vaal and Potch) from the NWU's collection. The exhibition opened simultaneously on all three campuses.

1 July 'This LoVe' by Jonel Scholtz. Scholtz takes you through the different loves that she has experienced over the last two years. They are transmitted through her brush into the painting. For Jonel, love is a strong and sometimes fatal emotion.

1 July 'Harmonia: Sacred Geometry, the patroon of existence' by Gordon Froud. Well known for his geometrical star coned shaped artworks, Gordon extends his work into the shape of drawing, printmaking, embossing and digital imaging. His works reference to the landscape, cityscape, in the human form as well as the spirit.

1 August 'DOYOUKNOWTHESE #5WOMENARTISTS?'. A group exhibition by 5 young black female artists. Asemahle Ntlonti, Bulumko Mbete, Lebapalo Tsiki, Lebohang Motanung and Tebogo Maise. The exhibition was also opened with a performance by Thandeka Mfinyongo.

1 August 'When Dust Settles' by Igshaan Adams. The Standard Bank Young Artist 2018 (Visual Arts).

26 August 'Gender Awarenesss'. In association with the DVC for Gender Awareness week, an event that stretches across all 3 campuses of the NWU.

4 October 'Apostles of Entropy: Deconstructing Mortal Dichotomies' by Reece Swanepoel. The title refers to the one natural law we have been fighting against since the dawn of civilization itself: entropy. Even as the universe expands in all directions, so all heat steadily cools – including human life. Choosing the word "apostles" immediately suggests a religious undertone to the exhibition, but this does not suggest a dogmatic connection. It merely refers to an ongoing strive to answers said questions.

1 November 'Seeking Love - 2019' by Banele Khoza. The exhibition is supported by Absa, Alliance Français Potchefstroom and Johannesburg and BKhz. "Love is a desire we all share; however, a lot of people will not admit that they are seeking a loving relationship. I love the idea of love and do wish for romantic love. I guess honesty is what I am also putting forward for people to be in better relationships with themselves and others," he says.

1 November 'Echoes of the North wind' by Rinus van Niekerk. Using the same traditional studio practices from the sixteenth century, as taught by Nerdrum, van Niekerk's work involves stretching his own canvases by hand and preparing them with recipes found in old manuscripts from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

2018

3 August 'I AM...' a group exhibition curated by Christina Naurattel. Artists included in the NWU collection are Judith Mason, Maureen Quin, Christo Coetzee, Nomusa Makhubu, Lindeka Gloria Qampi, Louisemarie Combrink and Kevin du Plessis. Participating artists include: Yannis John Generalis, Gretchen Crots, Laurence Moorcroft and Lloyd van Schalkwyk.

3 August 'IN PERPETUUM' by Beth Diane Armstrong, Standard Bank Young Visual Art Artist 2017.

5 October 'THE SAFEST PLACE IS THE KNIFE'S EDGE: CHRISTO COETZEE (1929-2000)' at the Standard Bank gallery. The NWU gallery is proud to announce that 5 of Christo Coetzee's works on display at the Standard Bank Gallery is from the NWU collection.

2017

8 March 'CAN YOU NAME #5WOMENARTISTS?' - A women's month exhibition featuring artworks by women artists from the NWU Art Collection, in connection with the National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, D.C., United States of America

21 April 'NEGRO SUNSHINE' A solo exhibition by Katlego Tlabela

21 April 'SEEING OURSELVES/THEMSELVES' featuring comprehensive work by Lindeka Qampi and Nomusa Makhubu, a debut exhibition curated by Heidi Erdmann

8 May 'PUKKI TALENT FESTIVAL VISUAL ARTS CATEGORY' A NWU student exhibition and talent contest

19 June 'VISUALISING THE VOICES OF REDAN' A solo exhibition by Jo-Ann Chan

20 July 'LEFA LA NTATE' by Mohau Modisakeng, Standard Bank Young Visual Arts Artist 2016

24 August '[the liminal]' A group show by Beezy Bailey, François Pretorius and Arnoldus Kennedy

24 August 'DISAPPEARANCE' A group show featuring a large interactive multimedia installation work and visual works focussing on human trafficking and animal poaching. The exhibition was paired with talks and courses on these subjects. With François Pretorius, Jean Lampen, Héniel Fourie, Juan Steyn, Jo-Ann Chan and Ruan Mynhardt

7 September – 10 September The NWU Gallery and MTN Foundation presents its newly created online educational app, '#LEARNART – FOR KIDS!', and select works from the NWU Art Collection and MTN Art Collection at FNB JoburgArtFair 2017

2016

18 February 'ALBUS' by Justin Dingwall

18 February 'FOREIGN NATIONALS' by Aldo Brincat

14 April 'PERFORMING WO/MAN' curated by Derek Zietsman, a group show featuring South Africa's most prominent and upcoming artists

15 April 'WOMEN ON RACE AND SEX: A Discussion on Women's Rights'

14 April 'SIGSPRAAK' by Francois Pretorius

19 MAY 'TACIT' curated by Elani Willemse, a show featuring Dionysus Sculpture Works' artist, as headed by Angus Taylor

14 July 'HISTORY WILL BREAK YOUR HEART' by Kemang Wa Lehulere

23 July 'WINTER WINE SOIRÉE' as presented by the NWU Gallery, with Adele Nqeto, Urban Village and Georgetown and a number of vineyards

1 AUGUST 'EMPOWERING WOMEN' a discussion in the NWU Gallery for Women's Day

1 September – 16 October: 'FIGURATIVELY SPEAKING' - a selection of works from the NWU Art Collection and MTN Art Collection, sponsored by the MTN Foundation

Participating artists: Azaria Mbatha, Bettie Cilliers-Barnard, Cecil Skotnes, Charles Lapicque,
Christiaan Diedericks, Christine Dixie, Christo Coetzee, Christophe Miralles, Claudette
Schreuders, Daniel Tsietsi (Stompie) Selibe, Deborah Bell, Diane Victor, Dumisani Mabaso,
Durant Sihlali, Fabien Claude, George Boys, George Pemba, Giulio Tambellini, Gordon
Froud, Gordon Mbatha, Hanneke Benadé, Irma Stern, Jackson Hlungwani, Jean Pons,
Joachim Schönfeldt, Judith Mason, Justin Dingwall, Katala Fulai (Flai) Shipipa, Kay Hassan,
Kwesi Owusu-Ankomah, Maggie Laubser, Marjorie Wallace, Maureen Quin, Minette Vari,
Nomusa Makhubu, Noria Mabasa, Paul Boulitreau, Pippa Skotnes, Richardt Strydom,
Robert Hodgins, Sam Nhlengethwa, Sandile Goje, Sue Williamson, Tsietsi Matubako,
Vuminkosi Zulu, Vuyisani Mgijima, Willem Boshoff and William Kentridge.

1 September 'BENDING LIGHT' by Kleonicki Vanos and Lothar Böttcher

3 October – 9 October '#ARTKLOP' Aardklop National Arts Festival Visual Arts Programme, presented by the NWU Gallery

• 'THE MODERN CONDITION' by Jody Olën
• '#SITDITAF' curated by Heidi Erdmann - participating artists: Tim Hopwood, Manfred Zylla, Dathini Mzayiya, Lindeka Gloria Qampi,
  Rory Emmett, Aaron Samuel Mulenga, Bert Pauw, Niklas Zimmer, Debbie Loots, Agnes
  Heinz and Carla Erasmus
• 'URBAN IMPRESSIONS' curated by Elani Willemse - participating artists: Franco Prinsloo and Pieter Bezuidenhout (composers), Christo
  Niemandt (videographer) and the FOUND Collective.
• 'SAADJIES' with covener Pieter Mathews -

  Participating artists: Adelheid von Maltitz, Allen Laing, Anneke Bosch, Annette Pretorius,
  Anton Smit, Banele Khoza, Bontle Tau, Caitlin Greenberg, Cari Niehaus, Carla Crafford,
  Carli Bassin, Carlo Vignelli, Chris Soal, Danie Nell, Di Miller, Elbie Erasmus, Francois Visser,
  Franli Meintjies, Gordon Froud, Guy du Toit, Harrie Siertsema, Heidi Fourie, Ike Nkoana, Isa
  Steynberg, Izanne Wiid, Jaco Sieberhagen, Jan van der Merwe, Johan Nortjé, Johandi du
  Plessis, Juané Venter, Kay Potts, Keneilwe Makoena, Leanne Olivier, Liberty Battson, Liekie
  Fouché, Liesl Roos, Livhuwan Muthivithi, Loeritha Saayman, Lothar Botcher, Louis Kok, Luthando Phiri, Lwandiso Njara, Lynette ten Krooden, Magdel van Rooyen, Martyn
  Schickerling, Mbali Tshabalala, Micaela Balie, Mignon Mayhew, Mkhotu Teboho, Mpanza
  Ndukenhle, Nicci Olivier, Nyasha Ruvimbo Chikiwa, Odette Graskie, Rachel Ferriman,
  Renier le Roux, Retief van Wyk, Rina Stutzer, Rowland Daniel, Sanna Swart, Sarel Petrus,
  Sharleene Olivier, Shenaz Mahomed, Strijdom van der Merwe, Sunet Ferreira, Sybrand
  Wiechers, Thabo Pitso, Tineke Meijer and Zanoxolo Sylvestre Mqeku

• 'CROSSING BORDERS' curated by Rika Nortjé and Daniel Mosako - contributing artists: John Moore, Toni Pretorius, Poorvi Bhana, Helena Hugo, Gabisile
  Nkosi, Dumisani Mabaso, Karin Daymond, Pauline Gutter, Cobus van Bosch, Lehlohonolo
  Mkhasibe, Thembinkisi Sinalo Ntuli, Thuli Zondo, Enoch Ndlovu, Thabo Molapo, Pauline
  Mazibuko, Mojaki Lebatla, Daniel Mosako, Petros Mwenga, Allen Kupeta, Benon Lutaaya,
  Joao Ladeira, Cindy Leah Awuor, Roy Ndinisa, Attie Gerber and Rowland Daniel

• 'DIVINE' by Paul Boulitreau

• 'FILMVERSE 2' by Diek Grobler and Nita Cronjé

• 'TIRO' curated by Sandi Baker - group exhibition from Botswana by the artists Sedireng Olehile Mothibatsela, Ann Gollifer,
  Velias Ndaba and Aldo Brincat

13 October 'LGBTIQ+: SPEAK OUT - SEXUAL AND GENDER BASED VIOLENCE DIALOGUE'

2015

5 - 27 February 'THE BEGINNING' by Rowland Daniel (sculpture)

5 - 27 February 'VOICES OF THE DRYLANDS' by Attie Gerber (photography)

18 - 25 February 'BOOK LAUNCH & EXHIBITION: SCULPTURAL WORKS OF HANNES PETRO VAN DER WALT' (sculpture)

5 March - 10 April 'IK BEN EEN AFRIKANDER' a group exhibition (various media)

5 March - 10 April 'BLOCK A: THOKOZA WOMEN'S HOSTEL' by Angela Buckland (photography/installation)

25 March 'OPEN MIC POETRY EVENING' an NWU Gallery audience development initiative managed by Kevin du Plessis (Spoken Word Poetry)

16 April - 15 May 'IJUSI: DESIGN BASED ON AFRICAN EXPERIENCE' a travelling exhibition of the iJusi design magazine in collaboration with the Michaelis Galleries (graphic design)

16 April- 15 May 'OBJECTIONS' a group exhibition with Pat Sithole, Mbongeni Buthelesi and Zolile Phetsane. Curated by Tiina Liebenberg in association with Lizamore & Associates. (abstract painting/painting with plastic/pastels)

30 April 'AUTUMN GARDEN SOIREE' a wine tasting and live music event in the Botanical Gardens hosted by the NWU Gallery & Puk Arts

21 - 29 May 'SEHNSUCHT' an interdisciplinary group exhibition with Marna de Wet, Kevin du Plessis, Jean Lampen & Eljana van der Merwe. Collabotaive concert with the NWU School of Music by Conroy Cupido & Tinus Botha. (various media)

21 May - 17 July 'CONVERSATIONS WE DO NOT HAVE' curated by the Voices of Women Museum & Coral Bijoux in collaboration with the MTN SA Foundation (various media)

30 Jul - 18 September 'UNREST' by Hasan & Husain Essop (Standard Bank Young Artists 2014) (Photography)

20 & 21 August 'SPOKEN WORD POETRY FESTIVAL' with Lebo Mashile and WordNSound Live Literature Company. Festival director: Kevin du Plessis (Spoken Word Poetry)

3 - 9 September 'SPRING ART SALE' a group exhibition and art sale with artists Christiaan Diedericks, Philip Badenhorst & more.

5 - 10 October 'ATOPIA' by Sannel Aggenbach as Aardklop Festival Artist.

5 October - 6 November 'THE GAMES PEOPLE PLAY' a group exhibition curated by Yannis Generalis & Gordon Froud. (various media)

15 October - 6 November 'TOP UP INSIDE OUT' curated by Thulani Zondo. A group exhibition with 13 artists from the artists' collective Ubuhle Bobuntu Arts. (renewable materials)

 

2014

6 February - 20 March 'VENUS AT HOME' by Usha Seejarim

6 February - 20 March 'STILTE' by Johann du Plessis

27 March - 2 May 'BLEEK' by Richardt Strydom

27 March - 2 May 'WOLF IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING' by Anne-Marie Tully

8 May - 20 June 'THE RETROSPECTIVE YEAR' by Maureen Quin

3 July - 8 August 'THE PURPLE SHALL GOVERN' by Mary Sibande (Standard Bank Young Artist of the Year winner)

14 August -26 September 'CATHEDRA' a group exhibition curated by Gordon Froud.

14 August -26 September 'A PAROUS PILGRIMAGE' by Yannis Generalis

16 October - 7 November 'THE LOTUS EATERS' by Barbara Wildenboer

16 October - 7 November 'THE TROUBLE WITH MEMORY' by Cobus van Bosch.

 

2013

14 February – 15 March 'BOOMENSLIK' by Paul Schutte

21 March – 3 May 'SURFACE' by Helena Hugo

9 May – 21 June 'REFLECTIVE CONVERSATIONS' Group exhibition

9 May – 24 May 'THE WISDOM OF DRAGONFLIES' by Christiaan Diedericks

27 June – 8 August 'RETINAL SHIFT' by Mikhael Subotzky (Standard Bank Young Artist Winner)

1 August – 13 September 'LOOKING BACK WHILE MOVING FORWARD' selection from the NWU Art Collection

30 September – 4 October STRIJDOM VAN DER MERWE Clover Aardklop Festival Artist

10 October – 8 November CANSA Group exhibition

 

2012

16 February – 15 March 'RESERVOIR' by Hanneke Benadé

22 March – 11 May 'PLAYPEN' by Roger Ballen, curated by Christina Naurattel

17 May – 13 July 'INK-COMPLETE: CAPTURING MUSIC II' by Sean Brand & Christelle Duvenage

19 July – 10 August 'DE MAGNETE' by Jacki McInnes

16 August – 20 September 'FAENA' by Nandipha Mntambo (Standard Bank Young Artist Winner)

1 – 6 October DANIEL NAUDÉ Clover Aardklop Festival Artist

18 October – 16 November 'IN CASE TIME FORGETS' by Coral Fourie

 

2011

6 April – 2 May 'RELAAS' by Rosemarie Marriott

12 May – 25 June 'CAPTURING MUSIC' Group exhibition featuring Sean Brand

23 June – 22 July 'ROOMMATES – THE MUTE OPERA' Group exhibition by Paul Boulitreau and friends (curated by Gordon Froud)

2 August – 3 September 'END GAME' by Michael MacGaerry (Standard Bank Young Artist winner)

8 – 22 September 'SILIVA ZULU' Digital exhibition in collaboration with the Italian Institute of Culture

26 September – 9 October SAM NHLENGETHWA Clover Aardklop Festival Artist

13 October – 4 November 'THE ANIMALS AND ALICE' by Wilma Cruise

 

2010

18 February – 9 April 'SICH SELBST IN EIN BILD VERWANDELN: TRANSFORMING YOURSELF INTO AN IMAGE' by Magriet Botha

15 April – 13 May 'KUNSTENAARSBOEKE' Group exhibition

20 May – 16 July 'PLAY OFF' by Gordon Froud & Lance Friendlande

20 July – 20 August JO ROOS Solo exhibition

26 August – 29 September 'PAINTERS THAT PRINT' Group exhibition in collaboration with the Artist Proof Studio

24 – 29 September ANGUS TAYLOR Aardklop Festival Artist

14 October – 5 November GROUP EXHIBITION by Hennie Kruger & Amanda Haagner

 

2009

28 April – 22 May 'MORE THAN ONE...ARTWORK, STYLE, SIZE' Group exhibition curated by Dawid Ras

25 – 29 May 'AN EXPLORATION OF THE SOUTHERN AFRICAN GEOGRAPHY' video exhibition

29 Mei – 29 June '(RE)INVENTING VAN EYCK' Group exhibition in collaboration with SANAVA

16 July – 14 August 'TUSSENSPEL' by Lynette Ten Krooden & Sanna Swart

18 – 28 August SCHOOL FOR 'COMMUNICATION STUDIES: 50 YEAR FESTIVITIES' Group exhibition

28 September – 3 October DIANE VICTOR Aardklop Festival Artist

 

2008

6 – 27 February Botanical Garden Gallery opening: 'RENDEZVOUS FOCUS SCULPTURE' (Alexandra school project fund-raiser group exhibition featuring 50 artists)

12 March – 11 April 'MALICE IN WUNDEDLAND' by Paul Boulitreau

12 March – 11 April 'SEVERAL SPECIES' by Sybrand Wiechers

15 April – 14 May 'TERUGBLIK' group exhibition featuring Philip Badenhorst, Annelise Bowker, Zuanda Badenhorst,& Nola Strauss

21 May – 9 June 'PAPER BOAT' by Carla Moretti-Loughton

26 July – 15 August 'OPSLAG' by Pauline Gutter

30 September – 4 October 'RENDEZVOUS FOCUS WEARABLE ART' Group exhibition

15 October – 6 November 'MEDITATIVE RESPONSES' Group exhibition

 

2007

12 – 22 March SANLAM COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER PHOTOGRAPHY COMPETITION FINALISTS (in collaboration with Potchefstroom Herald)

17 April – 15 May 'BLINDSPOT' group exhibition with Ian Marley, Hannah Paton en Richardt Strydom)

22 May – 18 June 'THE GAZE' group exhibition

22 June – 11 July Selection from the NWU Collection

17 July – 14 August 'FACING DISTORTIONS' by Paul Boulitreau & Richard Smith

21 August – 14 September 'BICYCLE' by Robertus van der Wege, Johan Botha & Maja Maljevic

24 - 29 September NICHOLAS HLOBO Aardklop Festival Artist

9 – 30 October 'MINDMAPPING' Group exhibition in collaboration with ArtSpace, Johannesburg

6 – 29 November 'RETROSPECTIVE' by Titia Ballot

 

2006

1 – 31 March Cronje Lemmer & Erhard Grobbelaar

6 June – 21 July 'SEEKING REFUGE: GERMAN JEWISH IMMIGRATION TO JOHANNESBURG IN THE 1930's'

28 July - 4 August 'VAN GRANATE EN ROBYNE' by Karen Fivaz Cloete

2 - 9 August 'DEDUCT' by Angus Taylor

21 August – 18 September Sonja Britz (in collaboration with with ArtSpace, Johannesburg)

5 - 19 September 'LIZZIE' (1911 – 1996) by Awie van Wyk & Ina Pheiffer

26 - 30 September MARCO CIANFANELLI (Aardklop Festival Artist)

21 September – 28 October Jo Roos (solo-exhibition)