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Willie
Bester is regarded as one of South Africa's most important resistance artists.
He incorporates recycled material into his paintings, assemblages
and sculpture, usually commenting on political injustices and
human rights issues of the day.
Born 1956, Montagu, Cape
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 Studies
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1986
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Community Arts Project, Cape Town
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1991
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Full-time professional artist
No formal art training : Mostly self-taught
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| Solo
Exhibitions:
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| 1982
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Forum, Cavendish Square,
Cape Town
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| 1991
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Gallery International, Cape Town
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1992
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Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg
Millpark, Port Elizabeth
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1993
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South African Association of Art, Cape Town
Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg
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1994
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Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg
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1998
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Emporain, Dakar
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1999
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Opere Recenti, Studio d'Arte
Raffaelli, Trento, Italy Archivio Della Scuola Romana, Introdotto da Achille Bonito
Oliva, Roma, Italy
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| 2000
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Arte
Assortite,
Torino
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| 2001
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Centre D'Art
Contemporain, Brussels, Belgium
Grahamstown Featured artist
Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg
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| 2002
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SASOL
Museum, Stellenbosch
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| 2003
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Association
for Visual Arts, Cape Town
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| 2005
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34
LONG, Cape Town
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| 2007
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Montagu
Museum
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| 2008
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Iziko
South African National Gallery, Cape Town
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| 2009
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Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg
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Sasol
Art Gallery, Stellenbosch
Investec Private Bank & US Wordfest Artist, 2009
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| Group
Exhibitions: |
| 1989
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Baxter Gallery, Cape Town
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1990
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Gallery International, Cape Town
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Institute for African Studies, University of Cape Town
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Jacobs & Liknaitsky Gallery, Cape Town
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1991
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Operation Hunger Exhibition, Cape Town
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Dorp Street Gallery, Stellenbosch
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Gallery International, Cape Town
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Cape Town Triennial
Exhibition, Touring Exhibition
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1991
- 1992
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ZABALAZA FESTIVAL, Museum of Modern Art, Oxford. ( This exhibition
traveled to London and other British centres and was subsequently shown in South Africa at the
S.A.
National Gallery, Cape Town)
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| 1992
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Primart Gallery, Cape Town
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1993
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Venice Biennale, INCROCI DEL SUD : An exhibition of works by 27 contemporary South
African Artists
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INCROCI DEL SUD,
Roma, Italy
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1993
- 1994
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INCROCI DEL SUD, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam
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1994
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UN ART CONTEMPORIAN D'AFRIQUE DU
SUD, Galerie De L'Esplanade, La Defence, Paris
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UN ART CONTEMPORIAN D'AFRIQUE DU
SUD, Galerie De Ballens, Ballens, Switzerland
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HEIMAT PROJECT, Grahamstown Art Festival
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Stallion Gallery, Kentucky, USA
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5th Havana Biennale, Cuba
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Art Salon at The Bay, Camps Bay, Cape
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Ludwig Forum,
Aachen, Germany
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CENTRO DE ARTE MODERNO, Las Palmas
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1995
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DIALOGUES OF PEACE, Exhibition for the UN's 50th
Anniversary, Palaise Des Nations,
Geneva |
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Bernard Jacobson Gallery, London
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Africa '95 Festival, London
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Art Salon at The Bay, Camps Bay, Cape
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De Kleur van Verandering Exhibition, The Hague, Netherlands
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1996
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Chicago Art Fair, Chicago, USA
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Basel Art Fair, Basel, Switzerland
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Simunye ( we are one ) exhibition, Adelson Gallery, New York
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Tradition in Tradition, October Gallery, London
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Contemporary Art from South Africa, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin
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Contemporary
S.A. Art 85 - 95, South African National Gallery, Cape
Town
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South African Art to Atlanta, City Gallery East, Atlanta, USA
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OTRO PAIS : ESCALAS
AFRICANAS, Palau de la Virreina, Barcelona
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The other journey ( Africa and the Diaspora),
Kunsthalle, Krems, Austria
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Seven Artists from South Africa, Boumani Gallery, San Francisco
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1997
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Galleria d'Art Moderna e Contemporanea di San Marino, San Marino
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Lift Off, Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg
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South Africa, Kohn Turner Gallery, Los Angeles, USA
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Not Quite a Xmas Show, Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg
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Art Salon, The Bay Hotel, Caps Bay
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1998
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Biennale de l'Art
Contemporian, Dakar, Senegal
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The Edge of Awareness,
World Health Organization, Geneve,
Switzerland, New York, Soa Paulo, New Delhi
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Still our Land, Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg, joint with Zwelethu
Mthethwa
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Project Conflux, Tendances Mikado Gallery, Luxembourg
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Project Conflux, Hotel de Ville, Dijon, France
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Association
for Visual Arts, Cape Town
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1999
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Art Salon, Bay Hotel, Cape Town
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Rewind/Fast Forward, Van Reekum Museum of Modern Art,
Appeldoorn,
Netherlands
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Claiming Art Reclaiming Space, National Museum of African Art,
Washington DC.
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Studio d'Arte Raffaelli,
Trento, Italy
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Artery, Joao Ferreira Fine Art, Cape Town
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2000
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Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, New York
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Project Conflux, Association for Visual Arts, Cape Town
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2001
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Barcelona
Contemporary Cultural Center, Spain
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Studio d'Arte Raffaelli,
Trento, Italy
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| 2002
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Passport to South Africa, Centro Culturale
"Trevi", Bolzano,
Italy
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Sculpture Biennale,
Spier Estate, Stellenbosch
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National
Art Gallery of Malaysia
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King
George VI Art Gallery, Port Elizabeth
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2003
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Suidoos Festival,
Peninsula Technikon
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'Coexistence-
Contemporary Cultural Production in South African' Rose Art
Museum, USA
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2004
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Dublin
Exhibition
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10
Years - Klein Karoo Arts Festival, Outshoorn, South Africa
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Milk
Can Project, Association for Visual Arts, Cape Town
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Africa Remix - Düsseldorf, Museum Kunst Palast: 24 July - 7 November 2004
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2005
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London, Hayward Gallery: 10 February - 17 April 2005
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Paris, Centre Pompidou: 15 May - 20 August 2005
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Studio d'Arte Raffaelli,
Trento, Italy
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2006
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Tokio, Mori Art Museum: June - September 2006
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2007
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Rocca
di Castagnoli, Biennale Internazionalr dÁrt, Italy
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2009
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34
LONG FINE ART, Cape Town
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Awards:
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| 1991
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Merit Prize : Cape Triennial
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| 1992
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Prix De L'Aigle, 4th Grand Prix International D'Arts Plastiques de
la Vlille de Nice, France
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| 2003
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Honorary
medal for promotion of Fine Arts: Suid Afrikaanse Akademie vir
Wetenskap en Kuns
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| 2004
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Order
of the Disa, Members Class, Government of South Africa
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| 2009
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Johnny
Walker artist award
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| Represented: |
SASOL
Limited, Johannesburg
South African National Gallery, Cape Town
Johannesburg Art Gallery
King George VI Gallery, Port Elizabeth
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
University of the Western Cape, Cape Town
University of South Africa, Pretoria
Department of National Education, Pretoria
Department of Foreign Affairs, Pretoria
Cape of Good Hope Bank, Cape Town
Rembrandt Van Rijn Collection, Stellenbosch
South African Breweries Collection, Johannesburg
South African Broadcasting Corporation ( SABC TV ), Cape Town
South African Broadcasting Corporation ( SABC TV ), Johannesburg
SANLAM, Cape Town
WOOLTRU, Cape Town
MTN Collection, Cape Town
ENGEN, Cape Town
METROPOLITAN LIFE, Cape Town
Human Science Research Council, Cape Town
Cape Provincial Libraries, Cape
Foschini Ltd. Parow, Cape
GENCOR S.A., Johannesburg
Durban Art Gallery, Durban
Tatham Art Gallery, Pietermaritzburg
Pretoria Art Museum, Pretoria
Contemporary African Art Collection, Paris
Vodacom, Cape Town
Smithsonian Inst. USA
Oceana Fishing Group, Cape Town
NASPERS, Cape Town
Zonnebloem Art Collection, Stellenbosch
DE BEERS Collection, Johannesburg
BOE Bank, Cape Town
Willie's work is also in numerous private collections in South
Africa and abroad.
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| Publications: |
BERMAN, E., 1993. PAINTING IN SOUTH AFRICA. Page 363.
Halfway House, Transvaal : Southern Book Publishers, ( ISBN
1-86812-345-6 )
BOGATZKE, H., BROCKMANN, R., LUDSZUWEIT, C. 2000.
ONDAMBO - African Art Forum. Page 30 - 49, Page 174 - 177. Gamsberg Macmillan Publishers ( Pty ) Ltd.,
( ISNB 99916-0-211-9 )
FRANK, H., & D'AMATO., M., 1999.
LIBERATED VOICES, Contemporary art from South Africa. Page 27. New York, London,
Prestel, Munich : The Museum of African Art, ( ISBN
3-7913-2195-1 )
KONATE, Y., 2001. WILLIE BESTER. Bruxelles :
Centre D'Art Contemporain
LEE, D., 2006. WILLIE BESTER, ART AS A WEAPON, Awareness
Publishing Group ( Pty) LTD., ( ISBN 1-77008-178-X )
LITTLEFIELD KASFIR, S., 1999. CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN
ART. Page. 159 -161. London : Thames & Hudson,
( ISBN 0-500-20328-8 )
MAGNIN, A., & SOULILLOU, J., 1996. CONTEMPORARY ART OF AFRICA.
Pages 155 - 156, Page 158. New York & London : Thames a Hudson,
( ISBN 0-500-01713-1 )
PROUD, H., 2008. REVISIONS + EXPANDING THE NARRATIVE OF
SOUTH AFRICAN ART. Stellenbosch Modern and Contemporary Art
GAllery, ( SMAC), ( ISBN 1-874817-36-7 )
RANKIN, E., 1994. IMAGES OF METAL, Post-War Sculptures and Assemblages in South Africa.
Pages 89 - 92. Johannesburg : Witwatersrand University Press, University of Witwatersrand Art Galleries,
( ISBN 1 86814 257 4 )
WILLIAMSON, S., & JAMAL, A., 1996. ART IN SOUTH AFRICA - THE FUTURE PRESENT.
Pages 134 - 139. Claremont, South Africa : David Philip Publishers ( Pty ) Ltd.,
( ISBN 0-86486-321-7 )
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