The Long Day: Sculpture by Claudette Schreuders reflects South African social realities

TEMPE, Ariz. – Claudette Schreuders, a post-Apartheid generation South African artist best known for her autobiographical figurative sculpture, will show 11 new sculptures in her first American museum exhibition. The Long Day: Sculpture by Claudette Schreuders runs March 20 – June 19 at the ASU Art Museum. The exhibition is co-organized by the ASU Art Museum and the Art Gallery at San Diego State University and is scheduled to travel nationally.

Schreuders, born in 1973, is inspired by family photographs and memories of the social experience of growing up white, female and Afrikaans in the broader political context of South Africa. Her carved and painted wood sculptures pay homage to the styles of African tribal art, the Colon figures of West Africa and Western religious woodcarving.

“Schreuders’ accessible, but moody, works convey the revolutionary changes in South Africa and of individuals grappling with the country’s inscrutable past,” says curator Heather Sealy Lineberry. “Her allegorical figures range from works inspired by family history to anonymous figures observed in private moments that become political in a public space – like reading a newspaper about Rwanda in a park.”

Since receiving her master of fine arts degree from the University of Cape Town in 1997, Schreuders’ work has been exhibited in numerous group exhibitions in South Africa, Japan, Germany, Great Britain and the U.S., and in solo exhibitions at the Jack Shainman Gallery in New York.

“When I was studying art, it felt like the only relevant art to make was overtly political art,” says Schreuders. “These new works explore how domestic life goes on whatever the political situation is, and also how the politics of the place you live manifests itself in your personal space.”

The ASU Art Museum, named “the single most impressive venue for contemporary art in Arizona” by Art in America, is part of the Herberger College of Fine Arts at Arizona State University. The museum is located on the southeast corner of Mill Avenue and 10th Street in Tempe and entry is free. Hours are 10 a.m. – 9 p.m. on Tuesdays (during the academic year), and 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. For more information, call (480) 965-2787 or visit the museum online at http://asuartmuseum.asu.edu.

Media Contact:
Denise Tanguay 
480.965.7144
denise.tanguay@asu.edu

 Claudette Schreuders, The Three Sisters, wood and enamel, 31 _” H. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York.