Namibia

Anita Heystek: A Woman’s Journey

Article by Andrew Robson

^{Anita Heystek is soft-spoken, bashful, and introspective. As I interview the award-winning artist at her home in Swakopmund, she tactfully exposes me to a woman’s journey; it is an echo, through which one woman’s voice tells of a universal passage all women must eventually traverse to find their own inner peace.}

^{Anita has lived in Namibia for the past three years. She has participated in over thirteen shows and exhibitions since 1997. In 2005, she won the Namibian Standard Bank Biennale’s prize for two-dimensional art.}

^{Andrew Robson (AR): When I looked through your CV, I noticed that you studied art in 1964, and then again from 1994 – 1997. Please tell me more about this.}
^{Anita Heystek (AH): I attended the Technical College in Pretoria, South Africa, in 1964, after graduating from high school. My mother had passed away shortly before I started the art course there, and after completing my first year, my father told me I had to change my studies from art to secretarial work. He insisted that there was no money in art, forcing me to become a secretary so that I could earn an income instead. Which I dutifully did. Then, life being what it is, I got married and had children. I was a full-time mother after that. It was only after the death of my husband that I returned to art, attending The Open Window Art Academy in South Africa from 1994 – 1997. I completed a diploma in Fine Arts there.}

^{AR: You are planning to have a solo exhibition at the National Art Gallery of Namibia in August this year. How is that going?}
^{AH: Slowly.}

^{AR: Could you tell me a little about how you go about your work?}
^{AH: I start with a period of planning and thinking. This is a vital part of the working process, during which I consider the purpose of the artwork and what its requirements are - the size of the piece; the thickness of paper; the appropriate objects I could use to represent my concept…}
^{This takes a long time. I constantly ask myself: Can it work? Will the piece draw the viewer closer to have a better look? Will the viewer be able to interpret my work as reflecting an experience similar to one they have had?}
^{I then concentrate on composition - placing my objects on the paper. At a later stage the symbols I use to convey my message will appear.}

^{AR: I believe you have developed a personal ‘ritual’ for these times of work.}
^{AH: I have a strange way of coping with the stress of the process. I tie a bandana very tightly around my head – to keep my ideas together inside my head – then wear only black clothes and my apron, because I work with charcoal.}
^{Finally, I clear my whole studio, cut my paper and drink several cups of coffee.}

^{AR: Is getting started on a project difficult for you?}
^{AH: At times, yes. I experience dry-patches of creativity where I become intimidated by a blank piece of paper in front of me. When this happens, I will go for a walk along the beach, bandana in place to keep my ideas from escaping, and usually come back with renewed energy and insight.}

^{AR: What drives your creativity?}
^{AH: The therapeutic value of the art-making process does. Art has always been a therapeutic tool for me. I went through the cycle of being a wife and mother, and when my husband passed away, being a single mother. I was the matriarch of the family and had to make decisions on my own. Even though I was not young any more, I chose to complete the Fine Arts Diploma I had started thirty years before. It was the best thing I could have wished for. My life transformed completely, and I portray this in my art in an attempt to motivate other women to grow and change.}

^{AR: What medium do you work in and why?}
^{AH: I love the feeling of charcoal on paper. I start a new drawing with a thin, long, willow charcoal. It is very delicate and I put the first stages of my drawing down lightly. Suddenly, the paper is not intimidating anymore. As I progress, it almost feels like I am sculpting, the way I work the surface with charcoal and my fingers. Sometimes, I add colour with soft pastels in order to bring out certain areas or to emphasise the mood of the work. I use a lot of layering. I like the look of transparency, to see what is going on under a veneer.}

^{AR: How do you choose your subject matter?}
^{AH: I focus primarily on issues that mature women deal with - how they experience and see the world around them; the liberation that maturity can bring; the possibilities of crossing boundaries to a new and exciting life.}
^{In general, society has created certain roles and moulds within which women are meant to move. I am a ‘baby boomer’, so rebel against such moulds. I know of many mature women who lead the so-called traditional life, the selfless life in which they end up serving others while neglecting their own potential. Watching my daughters and other women entering stages of life that I have already been through reminds me of my own life and its rhythms.}
^{I, myself, dealt with empty-nest syndrome not long ago. The result has been that I have at once become more selfish and self-aware. I had to move to a place within myself where I am more prominent in my own life and art.}
^{These are all experiences I use as themes, as subjects.}

^{AR: What about the objects and symbols that appear in your drawings?}
^{AH: The objects and symbols I use are from everyday life. I observe how these objects and symbols relate to my own personal experiences. I strive to represent the objects and symbols in a recognisable way, but use them in a surreal manner.}

^{AR: For example?}
^{AH: I will use a needle and thread to represent fixing, healing, helping. Or plants and flowers to show spiritual growth and protection. Embroidery and lace patterns symbolise}
^{femininity, the delicate.}

^{AR: What, in your opinion, is the current state of art in Namibia?}
^{AH: Namibia has a number of talented artists that I feel should get more support. They need more sponsorships and competitions available to them. For example, our only National competition, The Standard Bank Biennale, has been replaced by a Triennale now sponsored by Bank Windhoek. In my opinion the new competition should have been added instead of replacing.}
^{Artists also require support from galleries. Galleries could do more to expose and market the individual artists by informing and targeting possible buyers, or those interested in art. Assistance with media interviews and contact lists would also go a long way to helping artists.}
^{Lastly, I think we could do with more exposure in, and interaction with, our neighbouring country, South Africa. And the rest of the world. We need to avoid isolation and stagnation of the arts and be exposed to new and exciting influences.}

^{AR: Is your art ‘African’?}
^{AH: I do not want my art to be categorised like that. I believe that art is universal; a personal expression. The world is a global village and there has been a lot of influence and cross-pollination in art. Art has changed so much lately. Traditional art, like beautifully crafted sculptures from Africa, stands alongside the work of western artists in the world’s auction rooms. Installations, digital and even graffiti and street art are part of the contemporary scene. The expectation from the western world that art from Africa should be immediately recognised and categorised as being ‘African art’ could be unrealistic and unfair.}

^{AR: Is there anything else you would like to add?}
^{AH: Artists need to communicate with one another to prevent stagnation and isolation. We need to meet at exhibition openings and other gatherings to talk art! And we also have to be exposed to positive criticism from someone qualified to give it. It is a vital ingredient in the process of creative growth.}

Andrew Robson
Postbox 229, Swakopmund
Namibia
Phone: (064) 46 35 83 : Cell: 081 215 22 44