Woman Playing The Moropa Drum
In September of 2021 Ledelle Moe introduced 2nd year Fine Art students at Stellenbosch University to the work of Samuele Makoanyane and the Woman playing the Moropa Drum. Techniques of wedging, modelling, and joining in clay allowed for experimentation and practice. Over the course of the project Dr. Rose Kirumira and Nomusa Mtshali, two guest artists with hands-on experience shared a wealth of information on how to work with clay. In addition, Charles Palm, a current SU Honors student, was an integral part of the making processes, participating in classroom discussion and documentation.
A key resource for the students was Stephen Wessels’ photogrammetry videos from the virtual Ke Liha Pene exhibition at Iziko gallery. Students accessed these photographic documents online to examine different areas of the sculpture. Weekly online conversations took place with Steven Sack, curator of Makoanyane Ke Liha Pene exhibition at Iziko gallery, Ulrich Wolff, SU Museum curator, Charles Palm, SU Honors student; and Monique du Plessis, a recent graduate of the SU Fine Art Program who also participated. Collectively, they began to imagine how an exhibition of the works produced by the students and this historic work by Makoanyane might come together. As the conversation unfolded, a show was conceived that would included the photogrammetry videos, the original Makoanyane piece, and students' responses in clay. The result was an exhibition held at the SU Museum.
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