Ashraf Jamal

Following two successful publications with Hatje Cantz, photographer David Lurie now turns his attention to two of the most pressing issues facing South Africa and the global ecosystem today, namely land and drought. The “Karoo” (meaning Land of Thirst) is a semi-desert landscape in the high plains of South Africa, occupying nearly a third of the country. Due to its extremes of climate, this vast hinterland was largely uninhabited by European settlers until the early nineteenth century, but since then intensive sheep farming has destroyed the Karoo’s sensitive ecological balance, which has become increasingly arid, even compromising South Africa’s food security. In his highly subjective style, Lurie captures the vast, barren Karoo plains, stone mounds, gravel roads, abandoned towns, and rare water sources. His images inquire into the influence of humans on the environment and remind us of the importance, as well as the fundamental beauty, of nature.

In the World presents a collection of essays by Cape Town cultural analyst and art critic Ashraf Jamal focused on 24 South African artists working in painting, photography, sculpture and performance. Aimed at a wide, international audience, the texts reconfigure the national narrative of South African art within a broader African and global context. From identity politics to the boom of "African art" in a global contemporary art market, Jamal explores a variety of issues at the heart of South African art practice. Artists discussed include Ed Young, Khaya Witbooi, Mary Sibande, Ricky Dyaloyi, Kate Gottgens, Georgina Gratrix, Nigel Mullins, Anton Kannemeyer, Pieter Hugo, Zanele Muholi, Mohau Modisakeng, Thania Petersen, Jaco Roux, Sam Nhlengethwa, Conrad Botes, Paul Edmunds, Francois Knoetze, Simphiwe Ndzube, Robin Rhode, Kemang Wa Lehulere, Wim Botha, Beth Diane Armstrong, Esther Mahlangu and Tony Gum.