Life on campus

                                                Art as seen through the eyes of their creators.

 

On the 9^th of April, the third year students at the University of the Free State held an art exhibition in the Johannes Stegmann Art Gallery. This was a means for these students to showcase their art with the theme Oculus; circles found in nature and through the artist’s interpretation and representation of the shape that can be more complex than first thought. The eye was the focus, as a way to do with looking; the main sense we have of seeing art, and also about architecture.

The theme has the logo “Observe. Immerse. Experience” which is exactly how the exhibition went on this night. You could observe displays big and small on the walls of paintings and sketch drawings, each showcasing some image involving a round element like that of a human skull or the shape of a cocktail dress. Immerse yourself by gazing at strange hollow carved animals filled with coloured beads or petals or grains, floating in coloured liquid.

On the floor was a wooden puzzle play board where spectators could feel free to create their own images as they slide each block back or forth, sharing the experience of creating a form of art like that of the artist. More was displayed in glass, clay, stone and even books transformed into frames.

With the enjoyment of wine and mini cupcakes, all in circular shapes of course, the night according to host Beon Hodges, a third year student in charge of organising the event, thought it was “a great success” and that the “turnout was impressive”. A successful night ended with a few art pieces sold and the students buzzing with the anticipation of going to the next display which will be held on the 14^th of May.

Meet my friend

There is a unicorn in our midst. A young lady passionate about saving others through hard work and fine arts. Meet Janke Du Preez.

Third year Journalism student by day and dreamer by night. Miss Du Preez is greatly interested in the film industry, and though she would like to be involved with fantasy adventures or dramatic comedies, she is more interested in making a difference through film that are different from the norm. Cultural documentaries are her thing. A real people person, she states that “I would love to showcase all the different cultures of the world in my movies and show the public what is really happening to people we don’t usually hear about in the news.”

Her goals of becoming a film director and script writer were inspired by the works of several not commonly known directors, including that of Alejandro Amenábar, who opened her eyes to the world around her and how film can be a medium to “expose you to the cultural issues of the world and shed some light on aspects you didn’t know about others before”.

Through the money she gets from her films Miss Du Preez will then love to work for the UN and establish charities to help the environment, children and stop cruelty against animals. This young woman, now only twenty-two years of age, has a vision that many would think is impossible to achieve in this day and age, but that won’t stop her.

She isn’t just focused on serious issues but also wants to take the audience “on a journey” with her art of film and bring a lighter side to the fold. This she sees as her form of expression and even now spends her free time making mini slideshow movies about her own life; a small start to what could be owning her own movie company one day. Through hard work and focusing on her vision, she believes that she will achieve her dreams.

This driven ‘unicorn’ is confident that her dreams will come true and those of the people she wants to help.

My take on things

Zombies on campus!

This year the schedule for the Kovsie students took a turn for the worst in my opinion. The holidays, corresponding to those of the schools in the nation, were taken away from the students. I felt those glorious days of de-stressing ripped from my soul.

Those in authority claim that we don’t have enough time to deal with our mountains of work for our various classes and there was unconfirmed talk of Education students being responsible for signing a petition to give students more time to work.

They should have asked the entire student body their opinions about this drastic change. It took me by surprise and shock filled me as I checked it and saw that it will be reality. Now, close to exam time, the students and I are the walking dead on the UFS grounds. Without that week, yes just one week of getting back our bearings and recharging for the coming classes and exams, we have turned into zombies who use grunts as greetings and sluggishly walk to class we don’t want to be in.

The start of year energy and excitement was diminished by us not having our times off. Those students who complained about not having enough time for work could have asked for extra classes to catch up or perhaps used their weekends more wisely, either through the use of academic advice or planning out schedules in order to ‘tackle’ their work.

Along with the grunts are the complaints. They hang over campus like a fog; a toxic mist that spreads the disease of negative thoughts to other students and even their parents.

We do have a week off after Easter but it is in such a terrible place. Instead of using it to feel better about the academic year, it will be spent studying for the next round of tests and assignments that need to be done for right after our ‘break’. That doesn’t help much.

I want my normal long holidays back, ones that can be used for work and play without also having stress plaguing it constantly.