With 2018 winding down we thought it was an opportune moment to reflect on the year for the Scheryn Art Collection and look forward to 2019.
At the beginning of the year, we were delighted when a significant collection joined forces with us. This collection added 200 works, so that the Scheryn Art Collection now consists of 310 individual pieces. We own work from a diverse array of artists, working in a diverse range of media ā all with a common thread of being rooted in the African continent.
Also, over the course of 2018 Scheryn acquired 20 artworks from 12 different artists hailing from countries such as South Africa, Benin, Kenya, Morocco, Tanzania and the United Kingdom. Some of the artists added included Penny Siopis, Igshaan Adams, Julien Sinzogan, Zanele Muholi, Lubaina Himid, Candice Breitz, Wangechi Mutu and Achraf Touloub.
Throughout 2018, Scheryn loaned out artworks by Billie Zangewa, Athi Patra Ruga, Nick Cave, Abdoulaye Konate and Samson Kambalu to various exhibitions taking place at public museums, private museums, foundations and galleries in South Africa and Europe. We take our responsibility of regularly displaying elements of the collection seriously. We firmly believe art should be available to the public and not stored way indefinitely. In this regard, we are working on building relations with a number of possible partners.
Scheryn was proud to support the 2018 Institute for Creative Arts (ICA) Live Art Festival. For the festival, Scheryn commissioned Nastio Mosquitoās Respectable Thief, which took place at Zeitz MOCAA in The Scheryn Collection Arena. Nastioās piece, which was originally commissioned by MoMA in 2016, has travelled across the United States of America, United Kingdom, Europe and Australia. It was a fantastic opportunity for Scheryn to be able to bring a work of such magnitude to a South African audience.
During the year, the Scheryn Art Collection also welcomed Piet Viljoen as a director. We are thankful for his valuable contribution throughout the year.
Finally, Scheryn director, Herman Steyn, took part in panel discussions as part of Art Baselās Conversation Programme and the Cape Town Art Fair where he spoke about the establishment of the Scheryn Art Collection, how its goals have developed over time and our vision for its future.
Looking towards 2019, Scheryn will continue to build the collection around African Contemporary Art. We will do this by supporting artists, galleries, museums and auction houses, being involved in both public and private initiatives locally and abroad, sponsoring residencies, loaning works from the collection and building the collection until we have the capacity to display it.