“And we? On our parts, we come and go, come and go. This is the scene of temporary sojourn, we know, our short lives are mere brief visits…” Peter Clarke – At the Archaeologist House
Versatile artist, writer, and poet Peter Clarke was awarded an ACT Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010 for Visual Art however, his creativity was not limited to the canvas but also extended to the page. Clarke produced a notable body of work, despite never having had a studio of his own. Clarke worked extensively in a variety of media, producing paintings, graphic prints, and woodcuts. He made books from recycled paper and leather, and collages that combined different material and found objects. Processes that are still widely used in contemporary art.
Clarke’s work both written and visual, explored the human condition. Clarke admits to being influenced by Gerard Sekota, this is evident in his colour palette and his pastoral yet somehow fleeting depictions of the everyday echoed in his writing. – At the Archaeologist House
Born on this day in 1929, to a domestic worker and dock hand, Peter Clarke like so many inspiring South Africans had to create all his opportunities despite constantly being restricted and barred by the crippling Apartheid government. However despite the considerable odds Clarke went on to show at over fifteen exhibitions both nationally and internationally throughout his career that spanned over five decades.
Clarke made art for art’s sake and donated a sizable body of work to the Caledon Museum and in 2005, President Thabo Mbeki conferred The National Order of Ikhamanga in Silver on him for excellence in the fields of arts and literature. Clarke plays a pivotal role in our national identity and is a perpetual reminder that great art, although affected by circumstances, need not be stunted by the same circumstance.
Peter Clarke would have been 87 today.
Click here for more information about the annual ACT Awards presented by the Arts & Culture Trust (ACT) since 1998.