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DIANE VICTOR

Diane Victor is an artist of uncompromising directness but with a strange quietness in her nature who tackles pressing issues - personal and social violence to racial anxiety, corruption, gender inequality, economic exploitation and social commentary - in the new contemporary South African landscape post-apartheid. In 1986, she graduated with a BA Fine Arts Degree from the University of the Witwatersrand. She grew up as an only child on a small farm in Midrand and used drawing as a means to express herself. “I’m not a words person at all, I have a general mistrust for words and I find that I cannot use them in the same way I can use mark or line,” Victor explains. In 1988, Victor became the youngest recipient of the prestigious Volkskas Atelier Award (now known as the Absa L'Atelier Award) which allowed her to experience the European art scene in France, England and Germany. The historical art and architecture had a huge visual impact on her art. But Victor always chose to stick with the imagery she knows and feels, that of the South African society. Her works have been used in high school curriculums and she has won numerous awards. She has exhibited widely within South Africa and overseas and her work can be seen in leading South African corporate, state and private collections as well as in international collections including the Museum of Modern Art in New York. NEWS Diane was selected as the Festival Artist at the annual KKNK Festival in Oudshoorn, South Africa. During an Benefit Auction held in honor of Diane early in 2013 at the World Famous Goodman Gallery in Johannesburg, a stunning ZAR 1,8 million was raised to help Diane fund a life-saving kidney transplant in the USA. Diane will be take part in a Group Show hosted by Essentially Art in November 2013. She plans to visit Amsterdam to produce some of her world famous Smoke drawings for the show.

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ARTIST CV

2013 'No Country for Old Women' – Absa KKNK Oudtshoorn – Festival artist. Benefit Auction – Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg. 'Tom Waits for No Man show', curated by Gordon Froud, travelling exhibition. 2012 'Ashes to Ashes and Smoke to Dust' Solo exhibition – University of Johannesburg (UJ) Art Gallery. Recent work – solo presentation – David Krut Projects, New York, USA. 'Celebrating 20 years of artists proof studios' group exhibition – Johannesburg Art Gallery, Johannesburg. 'Terra incognito' group show – Fried Contemporary, Pretoria. University of Pretoria staff exhibition – AULA, University of Pretoria. 'This Place /displace' – The George Bizos Foundation Benefit Auction, UJ Gallery, Johannesburg.   2011 'Fables and Folly' – Faulconer Gallery, Grinnell College, Iowa, USA. Contemporary prints from South Africa – Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), New York, USA. 'The butcher, the undertaker and the dealer' – Absa KKNK Oudtshoorn. Artist’s book show – KKNK Sasol 'Designs of self' 4-person show – Fried gallery, Pretoria. 'Brief lives' at halls abattoir – Innibos Nelspruit civic center – Festival artist. 'Collateral: printmaking as social commentary' – Gus Fisher Gallery, University of Auckland, New Zealand. 'Altered pieces' group show – Thompson gallery, Johannesburg.    

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ARTIST CV

2010  ('Transcend' Solo show – Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg. 'Transgressing the page' book art show – Potchefstroom University. 'Out of [south] Africa' printmaking show – Highpoint center for printmaking, Minneapolis, USA. Center for contemporary print residency exhibit – CCP, Connecticut, USA. 'Smoke Screen: Fraility and Failing' – David Krut Projects, Chelsea, New York, USA. 'Peek a boo' – contemporary art from South Africa, Helsinki, Finland. 1EEB4 international experimental engraving biennale, Romania. Staff show University of Pretoria, Fried gallery, Pretoria. 2010 Soccer World Cup exhibition, UNISA gallery, Pretoria. 2009 Woordfees – Stellenbosh 'Dystopia' group exhibition – UNISA gallery, Pretoria. 'Art and Violence' - SPIER, Stellenbosh. Group show – Reservoir, Oliewenhuis museum, Bloemfontein. New work – Fried contemporary, Pretoria. 'Domestic' curated group show – Goethe institute Jhb: Krakow Print Trienalle – Krakow Poland. Lesotho, S.A High commission, Maseru, Lesotho.

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ARTIST CV

2008  (Solo exhibition – Goodman Gallery, Cape Town. Three-person show – Fried contemporary, Pretoria. 'Decadence' group show – Grand province, Cape Town. MAPS – Grasskop hotel – The Disaster’s of Peace. Aardklop festival artist, Potchefstroom. 'Print 09' Group shows – Bell–Roberts, Cape Town. New prints - David Krut gallery, Johannesburg. 2007 'Out of Africa'group show – Cork Street gallery, London, UK. 'Flesh' group show – KKNK Oudtshoorn. 'Positive Pulse' HIV hospice group exhibition – Sun international resorts. 'Creative creatures' group show – Aardklop \ Grand province, Cape Town. 'GREENHOUSE' group show – Bell-Roberts, Lourensford estate, Cape Town. Group show – Amaridian gallery, New York, USA. Bussan international print show – Bussan, Korea. 'Draft' 5 person drawing show – UJ gallery, Johannesburg. International Graphiztriennale Wien – Kunstlerhaus, Vienna. Art from South Africa – Bratislava, Slovak Republic. 'I Love u + or' group show – l’espace Michel Simon, Paris, France. South Africa on Paper – gallery Barry Keldoulis, Sydney, Australia.

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AWARDS AND COMMISSIONS

2012: KykNET Fiesta award. Beste prestasie in visuele kuns vir Innibos Feeskunstenaar & KKNK Uitstallings. 2011: Festival artist - Innibos arts festival Nelspruit. 2011: Herrie Kanna award at ABSA KKNK. 2010: CCP printmaking residency – Connecticut, USA. 2009: Festival artist – Aardklop, Potchestroom. 2006: Statutory award of MTG - Krakow Print Triennial. Krakow Poland. 2006: Finalist of the SASOL wax in Art Award. 2005: Gold Medal Award for Visual Art - SA Academy of Arts and Sciences. 2002: WAM Sasol Wax Award winner. 2000: Windsor and Newton Millennium competition - Finalist. 1999: Vermont Studio center residency – Vermont, USA. 1998: UNESCO residency – Vienna Austria. 1997: Fellowship to the Ampersand foundation – New York, USA. 1995: Johannesburg Civic theatre Commission award. 1999: J & B Rare Achievers Award - Arts. 1988: ABSA atelier award - Annual studio award - Paris. 1986: New Signatures Award. 1986: Martienssen prize – University of Witwatersrand. 1985-1986: University of Witwatersrand Student awards.  

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COLLECTIONS

IZIKO South African National Gallery - Cape Town Pretoria Art Museum Johannesburg Art Gallery Gertrude Possel collection – WAM, University of Witwatersrand ABSA Bank Sanlam Collection Standard bank of South Africa Bundeskanzelampt - Vienna, Austria MoMA New York - print collection 2005 Metropolitan Museum of Art – N.Y Library of congress, USA Grinnell Collage - Iowa, USA SABC - South African Broadcasting Corporation Tatum art gallery Pietermaritzburg Spier South Africa MTN South Africa Reserve Bank of South Africa S.A. Association of Arts SASOL Corporate collection University of Pretoria collections University of Johanesburg collections.

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