Third Worlds: Model Cities Essay

The exhibition Third Worlds: Model Cities was displayed at the Michaelis Gallery at the University of Cape Town. Tessa Dowling the Professor of South African Languages at UCT, Harry Garuba the Professor of English and African Studies at UCT, Svea Josephy the Senior Lecturer of Photography at Michaelis School of Fine Art, Carson Smuts an architect and Noeleen Murray lecturer at UWC and architect all used their specific knowledge to comment on the fact that South Africa is a known as a “third world”. This collaboration and mixture of genres challenges the viewers’ ideas by comparing and contrasting places in South Africa that were named after other conflict zones in the world. By challenging the icons and structures built in these model cities the question is asked why do these places share the same name and how does the conflict that has happened in these places effect how we see these structures? By using fine art, photography, literature, architecture and language the various collaborators were able to illustrate a dynamic viewpoint of what a city is. These artists confronted the idealistic planning of a city and how these plans change when reality and the people who live in the cities alter this utopian concept.

The exhibition is a result of GIPCA (the Gordon Institute for Performing and Creative Arts) that was established to enhance the arts at the University of Cape Town and to broaden the range of collaborative and interdisciplinary projects. (Media Update 2010) The exhibition uses the theme of architecture and the urban landscapes of South Africa, to look beyond the structures and to question what and who forms a part of these model cities? The central part of the exhibition is constructed around the abstraction of Cape Town structures and removing them from their original contexts.

The artists create a third realm where the structures have been abstracted and the viewer is forced to look at the structure as the construction was initially designed. By adding intellectual works such as Svea Josephy’s photographs and Tessa Dowling’s use of language, the viewer is reassured by the reality of these places and the people who live there. The most important part of this new realm is that it looks at these places from a new perspective. In the past art works the people of these impoverish places were transformed into an “other” by tourists and outsiders judging them and not understanding their culture. The title “Third World” has a negative connotation referring to these places to be inferior to that of the “First world” countries. “Third worlds” are known for their poverty and economic problems but when thinking of South Africa as a “Third world” we are confronted with various spaces some that fit this label and others that are so different that the label of “First world” would be more appropriate. This balance of the very rich and poor can be seen in the way spaces are developed and destroyed by the people living in them.

The exhibition emerged from an interaction between two previous bodies of work ‘Twin Towers’ and ‘Desire Lines, Space, Memory and Identity in the Post-Apartheid City’. Both bodies of work explore the aspects of South Africa’s architectural landscape and the history that lies beneath it. The first project Svea Josephy’s ‘Twin Towers’ presented photographs that demonstrated suburbs and informal settlements in South Africa such as Athlone, Barcelona, Sun City and Delft. She looked at why these spaces had the identical names of other famous cities throughout the world and the fact that they shared the same name allowed a direct comparison of the different location. (Capetowntoday.co.za, 2007)

This was a new way at looking at the impoverish sites of South Africa and comparing it to the more lavish equivalent. Svea Josephy created a new way of looking at these places by showing both the reality of how these places truly look but also the humanity of the people who live there. She creates a fresh perspective from the past issues such as migrancy, forced removals, resettlement and economic living conditions. Josephy’s photographs illustrate the history of these settlements and the actions of political figures that influenced why these people were forced to live there. Elements from South Africa’s past are still effecting why and where people have chosen to live. Colonialism, Apartheid and issues throughout Africa such as war, severe poverty and natural disasters have shaped the urban landscape. Josephy is able to create this original outlook because her photographs focus on the everyday and ordinary places. Josephy looks at the political influences that dictates the naming and renaming of a place and how with each changing of governments the past will always influence the future. (Capetowntoday.co.za, 2007)








Hyde Park, London, England






Hyde Park, Mitchells Plain, Cape Town

Both these images were featured on the same page of a newspaper in South Africa reflecting two instants of life. In the above images Josephy started comparing and contrasting a location in South Africa that has the same name as a place in England. By placing them together the differences become visibly apparent. Hyde Park in Mitchells Plain has been photographed in a way to highlight the poverty of the location. The photograph of Hyde Park in England is the complete opposite, this tourist theme park destination with its scenic green grass and lounging chairs is a world apart from the harsh reality of Cape Town’s ghetto. (Murray, N and Josephy, S)
The lounge chairs act as a symbol of wealth and power of the first world. By placing these images together the history between these two countries is apparent and it can even be said that England’s involvement in South Africa’s History through Colonialism played a role in why Mitchell’s Plain is the way it is today. Colonialism was the first structure to create the segregation between white people and any race that was different to the English. This led to the formation of Apartheid that removed people from their homes and placed them in areas where they no longer had a choice where they had to live and weren’t able to improve it.

Her exploration of naming a space is explained by South Africa’s history with the influence of Colonialism, names such as Delft, The Hague which is both found in the Netherlands and Athlone which is found in Ireland. When Apartheid was finally over the influence of disaster was apparent when labelling places such as Tsunami, Kosovo, Rwanda, Harare, Vietnam and Beirut. She states “Stylistically (and in terms of the photographic methodology) I see this work at the intersection of the inspirational work of South African photographer, David Goldblatt’s perceptive studies of the South African landscape and its structures while being influenced heavily by the German Düsseldorf school in terms of composition and heightened colour.” This is reflected in Josephy’s photographs and the images intertwine with the other genres because they add the dimension of reality to the exhibition. The photographs create a window into these places reminding the viewer that the cities are not perfect models; they are filled with real people who have authentic and strenuous problems. (Capetowntoday.co.za, 2007)










Lansdowne fire station near Kuwait taxi rank Khayelitsha







Entertainment Centre, Kuwait City, Kuwait

Noeleen Murray explains why they chose to represent various structures in South Africa: “We looked at the naming of places taken from the early 1990’s of intense moments of war; liberation and reconciliation.” (Bell, S, 2010) In the above two images you can see the comparison of the Entertainment centre in Kuwait City with the Lansdowne fire station in Kuwait City Khayelitsha. “Compare the images of Kuwait taxi rank after the shootings and violence with the image of Kuwait city which was destroyed by Iraqi forces when they invaded Kuwait,” said Josephy. (Bell, S, 2010) This comparison of aerial photographs displays a surprising spacious, neat, clean streets and the appealing blue of the sea in Kuwait City is mirrored by the blue swimming pool in Khaylitsha. The aerial viewpoint allows the viewer to look at these places in an abstracted form merely shapes squares and circular blocks.

The reason why a place in Khayelitsha has the same name as a city in the Middle East is because of the terrible taxi wars that resulted in various shootings in the area. When naming the place they thought it was appropriate to name it after a country that is known for its war and conflict. Even though these areas share a name that is known for misery and conflict the images of these places do not reflect this. The opposite is shown Kuwait City photograph is similar to something you would see in a travel magazine encouraging people to come to this place. The Khayelitsha photograph does the same the fact that Josephy used an aerial viewpoint gives the location an elegant feel and changes the viewers’ idea of what they thought the “squatter camps” would look like.

Language is used in this exhibition both in the traditional sense by using the artist statement to explain the numerous concepts of the exhibition and text is also used to demonstrate the details of each work e.g. the titles of the work, which artist created the work etc. Language is incorporated in a unique way; specific text was placed underneath the photographs creating a line that transports the viewer through the exhibition. This subtle line was placed there with the intention to highlight the way the people who live in these structures have created these words and added their own meanings to them. This glossary of new terms translates the meanings of these new words but also tries to look at the people who live in these places without ‘othering’ them. Language is the type of genre that can stop the viewer from gazing at these people in a critical and judgemental manner like many photographers, planners and architects may do. (Murray, N and Josephy, S)

The text allows us to learn things about the dwellings the people live in but also the conditions they live with daily. This text displays various words in Xhosa such as ‘i-apstayis” from the English word upstairs referring to a double storey shack and “isitena/iziten” which means brick describing a brick house. These new words are used to describe the people living in these dwellings, “ezimbacwini” a person who lives in a bad quality shack and “imbacu” someone who has no place to live. There are phrases that are used to distinguish between people who live in good and bad quality shacks. “Ndihala ezitoyilethi” (I live in the toilets) means that this person has a good quality shack that is near running water and toilets and “Ndihlala ezimbacwini” (I live in poverty) refers to shacks that are far away from the vital amenities. (Murray, N and Josephy, S)

The role of the architects can be seen in the models or sculptures of famous land marks both in South Africa and in the other places in the world. By creating these mini models and using a specially designed machine that places down hundreds of thin layered pieces it can achieve the exact proportions but in a miniature size. By placing these structures on white pedestals in a gallery the context of these models change into that of a sculpture illustrating to the viewer the reason why these structures have become so iconic. Structures such as the Cape Town bridges, Disa Towers known as “the tampon towers” and the circular cooling towers all have a simplistic modernistic architectural style that suit the model city concept. Displaying these sculptures strips them of their original context and focuses only on the architectural design. By displaying the buildings in this way the architects are able to demonstrate what the ideals were for Cape Town and how the structures would function in a greater urban culture.
The architects found a way to compare the Green Point stadium that was linked to the informal settlement of Kosovo in Cape Town with the replica of the Statue of Liberty in Kosovo. These sculptures then connect with the photographic work and continue the comparing and contrasting of these locations. The sculptures that are being compared are slightly different from the other sculptures on normal pedestals. The South African sculpture of the Cape Town stadium is placed on top of a clear plexi glass pedestal. Directly below the South African sculpture placed upside down is the model of the statue of liberty, the artists have chosen to display the sculptures this way to make the viewer think what influences the naming of a city. They are demonstrating how the histories of other cities can influence the way we name our cities and how the cities function.






Three Dimensional Models of Cooling Towers

By using new media the artists were able to create an interaction with both artwork and the viewer. The various shaped cards that were available to the viewer to hold up to the screen and immediately see the three dimensional building on the screen creates an excitement for the viewer because they feel part of the artwork. Although this encourages an interaction with the artwork the viewer is still limited to what they can do with this model. The viewer can only look at the model, no alterations can be made and this refers to way an ideal city is planned. The power remains with the people who create these places and the political powers who name these places. The general public doesn’t have any control and many don’t have a choice where they must stay.

This collaboration exhibition created a platform for a photographer, language experts and architects to combine their skills. They were able to create a unified body of work that functions together to comment on South Africa’s urban structures. The photographs focus on the naming of a place and why certain places in South Africa have the same names as other famous locations in other parts of the world. The sculptures were able to challenge why the structures are so well known, to abstract them and strip them from their context. When concentrating on what a city is made of we see that the city’s history is major factor in how the city is formed. When creating a city the utopian idea of the perfect city is what architects strive for but once the structures are built and function in reality this idea is very difficult to maintain.
Bibliography:

Magazine Article:
1. Bell, S, 2010, Interesting overview of different worlds and living spaces, Cape Times, 26 February
Online Resources:
1. Bizcommunity.com, 2010, Third Worlds: Model Cities at the Michaelis Gallery, Available Online: http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/428/42825.html, Last Viewed: 31 March 2010

2. Capetowntoday.co.za, 2007, "Twin Town" by Svea Josephy, Available Online: http://www.capetowntoday.co.za/Art/Various/Twin-Town.htm Last Viewed: 31 March 2010

3. Malcomess, B, Svea Josephy at Bell-Roberts, Available Online: http://www.artthrob.co.za/07dec/reviews/bellroberts.html, Last viewed: 31 March 2010


4. Media Update, 2010, Third Worlds: Model Cities exhibition, Available Online: http://mediaupdate.co.za/default.aspx?IDStory=22472, Last Viewed: 31 March 2010

5. Murray, N and Josephy, S, Notes towards an alternative glossary of (south) African architecture, Available Online: http://www.africancitiesreader.org.za/reader/chapters/25_NM.pdf, Last viewed 31 March 2010

6. Postamble, 2010, Exhibition: Third Worlds: Model Cities, Available Online: http://www.postamble.org/News/View.aspx?Articleid=16, Viewed: 31 March 2010

7. Sorensen, L, 2001, Modernization and the Third World, Available Online: http://the_imperfect_planet.tripod.com/sorensenportfolio/id10.html, Viewed: 31 March 2010

8. Wilson, P, 2010, Third Worlds: Model Cities exhibition, Available Online: http://www.artlink.co.za/news_article.htm?contentID=23854, Last viewed: 31 March 2010

9. Wilson, P, 2010, Third Worlds: Model Cities, Available Online: http://www.pwmc.co.za/client-news/1002-third-worlds-model-cities-michaelis.html, Last Viewed: 31 March 2010