Sarah Baartman (sculpture)
Artist: Willie Bester
Year: 2016
Date of Action: March 9th, 2016
Region: Africa
Location: University of Cape Town
Subject: Political/Economic/Social Opinion
Medium: Sculpture
Confronting Bodies: Students at University of Cape Town
Description of Artwork: This sculpture by the renowned South African artist Willie Bester is a depiction of historical figure Sarah Baartman (also spelled Sara, Saartje, Saartjie, and Bartman, Bartmann (1770s–29 December 1815), a South African Khoikhoi woman who, famously, due to her large buttocks, was exhibited as a freak show attraction in 19th-century Europe under the name "Hottentot Venus". Bester created the work as a way to represent his own struggles with racism and racial inequity.
The Incident: On March 9th, 2016, students covered the piece as part of their procession to the Center for African Studies Gallery which was intended to commemorate the anniversary of the Rhodes statue being removed.
Results of Incident: Bester was surprised and upset by the students' decision to cover his piece. He did not intend for the piece to offend people. He believed that there were many better ways of expressing offense other than covering it. Bester was extremely angry with the university's inability to support him and demanded the restoration of the work.
Source:
• Image: Photo by David Goldblatt. Willie Bester’s sculpture of Sarah Baartman covered with cloth by students of the Rhodes 'Must Fall Movement'. Main Library at the University of Cape Town (05/14/2016). "Image" has not been listed as valid URI scheme.
Sarah Baartman sculptor speaks out against art censorship, “I was trying to understand my own suffering” says Willie Bester, whose work has been covered up at UCT. Ground Up, June 5, 2017
[https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/quarrel-over-sarah-baartman-sculpture-at-uct-20180303 Quarrel over Sarah Baartman sculpture at UCT, NEWS24
South Africa: Art destroyed and censored at University of Cape Town, Freemuse, 21 July 2017