Sandra Hanekom
(1971 – )
Sandra Hanekom was born in 1971. She went to school at the Johannesburg School for the Arts (previously known as Die Kruin). After she matriculated, she went to study Fine Arts at Stellenbosch University. Since 1994 she has been working as an artist and has participated in various group exhibitions both nationally and internationally. She had her first solo exhibition, Waiting, in 1998 at the Open Window Contemporary Art Gallery in Pretoria. In 1999 Hanekom, with Wilna Coetzer, curated the Anima-I exhibition which showed some remarkable artists such as Lien Botha, Fritha Langerman, Hanneke Benade and Doreen Southwood. In 2001 Hanekom had her second solo exhibition, Muf, at the Bellville Art Gallery.
Hanekom has also served on the boards of the Durbanville Cultural Society, the East London Art Society and the Bellville Arts Board.
Hanekom has described her work as being ironically romantic. It has a definite sense of narrative and the personal.
Quote from the Artist
“I have always wanted to be an artist. This sense of self and destiny has shaped my being so conclusively, it has effectively ruined the prospect of being anything else. It has also left me singularly obsessed. Because I cannot “do” anything else, I have to work hard at art. I believe in the dictum of taking art seriously and not the artist, and applying that rule to myself.
I would describe my work as ironically romantic, with a definite sense of narrative and the personal.
I have to “believe” the work myself to make it believable to the viewer. Belief in itself is an incredibly difficult action to me, especially when random or external. The only “belief” fathomable to me is in my own reality on un-reality.
My works become vessels carrying the essence of my life and when I try very, very hard, those of other people as well.”
Exhibitions:
2010 Kladboek, US Woordfees 2010, Stellenbosch
2009 Summer in the City, iArt Gallery, Cape Town
2009 Main exhibition at US Woordfees 2009, Stellenbosch
2008 Mused, iArt Gallery and Media24 at KKNK, Oudtshoorn
2008 Transform, Carol Lee, Johannesburg
2007 Location: Sandra Hanekom, Andre Naude, Fried Contemporary, Pretoria
2007 Cultivaria Festival exhibition, curated by Johann du Plessis, Cultivaria, Paarl
2007 Water, Upstairs@Bamboo, Johannesburg
2007 Art on Paper, De Kraal Gallery, Paarl
2007 Gilded, Die Ateljee, Piketburg
2006 Turn the Table, Art Space, Johannesburg
2006 Group Exhibition at Grande Provence, Franschoek
2006 Cultivaria Festival exhibition, Cultivaria, Paarl
2006 Crash, Boom, Bang!, with Chris Deidricks, Lawrence Lemaoena & Musha Neluheni, Stegmann Gallery, Bloemfontein (as part of Volksblad Fees)
2006 Woman, Carol Lee Fine Arts, Johannesburg
2005 Perfect Portrait, Art-b, Bellville
2005 9 Painters, Hugo Naude Gallery, Worcester
2005 SASOL In-House Art Exhibition, Rosebank, Johannesburg
2005 Teapots, Johann Smit Art Gallery, Clarens
2005 Artists from the Cape, Carol Lee Fine Arts, Johannesburg
2005 Deur with Hermie Voulgarelis, Rust en Vrede Gallery, Durbanville
2005 Finding You, Association for Visual Arts, Cape Town
2004 Gifted, Art-B, Bellville
2004 Self Portrait, Durbanville Cultural Society, Durbanville
2004 Drie Stemme with Clare Menck and Wilna Coetzer, Gordart Gallery, Johannesburg
2004 Puzzle, Durbanville Cultural Society, Durbanville
2003 Collaboration with Marlise Keith, Durbanville Cultural Society, Durbanville
2003 Trilogy, Sanlam Art Gallery, Art-B and Durbanville Cultural Society, Durbanville
2003 Love in Times of Ambivalence with Andre Naude, Theo Kleynhans and Christo Basson, Pretoria Arts Association, Pretoria
2002 Annual Miniature Exhibition, Art-b, Bellville
2001 Aarsel, KKNK, Oudtshoorn
2001 Landscape, Bellville Arts Association, Bellville
2000 Index Exhibition with Theo Kleynhans, Theo Ntuntwane and Hennie Meyer, Good Hope Centre, Cape Town
2000 The Art of Drawing, curated by Vivian van der Merwe, Dorp Street Gallery, Stellenbosch
1997 Little Gems, Open Window Gallery, Pretoria
1997 A Little Big Thing, curated by Gordon Froud, Thompson Gallery, Johannesburg
Awards :
2005 Finalist in ABSA Atelier
2002 Finalist in ABSA Atelier
1999 Finalist in ABSA Atelier
1997 Finalist in ABSA Atelier
Curatorship:
2008 Mused, iArt Gallery and Media24 at KKNK, Oudtshoorn
2007 Elements of Landscape, Die Ateljee, Piketburg
2006 Gilded, Die Ateljee, Piketburg
2001 Masters and Mavericks, Bellville Arts Association, Bellville
2000 Container, Rust en Vrede Gallery, Durbanville
1998 White Pages, Theatre Gallery, Durbanville
1998 Transcendental, Theatre Gallery, Durbanville
Public / Corporate Collections:
SASOL Art Collection
Nandos International
Hollard Insurance
ABSA Bank
Spier Private Collection