Penny Simpson the Green Door Catalogue 2019
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PENNY SIMPSON The Green Room RUST-EN-VREDE GALLERY : SOLO EXHIBITION CATALOGUE PENNY SIMPSON - THE GREEN ROOM 5.2.2019 - 6.3.2019 After completing a BA Fine Arts Degree at Wits, followed by 4 years in the UK studying Theatre Design at the then Sadlers Wells Design School (now known as Montley), Penny Simpson returned to South Africa and joined CAPAB as a Design assistant to Raimond Schoop. On Schoop’s return to Europe, she remained with CAPAB as a member of the design team, designing sets and costumes for drama, musicals, opera and dance - most notably for The Taming of the Shrew, Tempest, Anthony and Cleaopatra, The Magic Flute, Fiddler on the Roof, Evita, The Rocky Horror Picture Show and Sunset Boulevard. Simpson has received awards for her designs, including the Naledi Award for her costume designs for Evita and most recently Sunset Boulevard; and Fleur de Cap Awards for Evita and Fiela se Kind. She has been received nominations for the Nederburg Award for décor and Fleur de Cap Award nominations for costumes for Rocly Horror Picture Show and Sunset Boulevard. In 1993 Simpson returned to the Artscape as Costume and Wardrobe manager and remained there until 2012. She continues to freelance. Penny Simpson makes use of a life spent in theatre to pay tribute to some of the many talented creatives to pass through the ‘Green Room’ doors. This solo exhibition celebrates and immortalises, on canvas, a select group of performers, directors, designers, musicians and choreographers who have made an impact on the South African Performing Arts Industry. *All photographic reference material for the paintings were either supplied or gathered and compiled from various sources, or taken by the artist herself. Photographers who took the original images were credited where possible on the caption labels. SMAL NDABA Co-founder and managing director of Sibikwa Arts Centre. As an actor, playwright and director, he has toured throughout South Africa, the USA and Europe, gaining national and international recognition for his work. He has initiated arts programmes for street children and juvenile prisoners and assisted both South African and Mozambican Community Arts centres to build capacity. As a playwright and director his work focusses on community issues. Smal has over 30 years’ experience working in the community arts sector. He is a recipient of numerous awards; amongst them the Naledi Lifetime Achievement Award 2005. PENNY SIMPSON Smal Ndaba Oil on Canvas 45,5 x 56 cm SOLD ANNA-MART VAN DER MERWE Anna-Mart van der Merwe is currenty playing in Helena Spring’s new version of Poppe Nongena, a film long in the making. She has also been on screen in the latest Afrikaans films Kanarie and Dis Koue Kos Skat. She has also done stage work in The Seagul, Moby Dick and King Lear and she has appeared in Athol Fugard’s The Painted Rocks of Revolver Creek. She is perhaps best known for her television work in 7de Laan, Erfsondes, Konings, Torings and Soul City. After a Photograph of Robert Hamblin Production: Macbeth Slapeloos PENNY SIMPSON Anna-Mart van der Merwe Oil on Board 58,5 x 73,5 cm R 4 500 DAWID MINNAAR Dawid Minnaar first appeared as Snoopy in Charlie Brown as a student and since then he has appeared in English and Afrikaans plays and television dramas, including Poppie Nongema, Fiela se Kind, Diepe Grond and Fugard’s The Train Driver. He has played Eugene Marais and PW Botha (in Madiba). He is well-known for his television work in 7de Laan, Binnelanders and Torings. From a photograph by Robert Hamblin Production: Bloed en Rose PENNY SIMPSON Dawid Minnaar Oil on Board 48 x 58 cm R 3 000 PIETER TOERIEN The most famous impresario in South Africa presented puppet shows to schools in Cape Town at the age of 17; he introduced bio-vaudeville and at 20 signed with Marlene Dietrich to tour. He then brought to South Africa entire productions from the West End including the record breaking The Other Side of the Swamp and musicals such as Cats, Evita, Sunset Boulevard, Les Misérables and Matilda. Pieter has most recently initiated the LAMTA Musical Theatre Academy at the Thetre on the Bay - his legacy to the industry. PENNY SIMPSON Pieter Toerien Oil on Canvas 30,5 x 40,5 cm R 3 000 YVONNE BRYCELAND First lady of South African theatre, Bryceland was a commited artist who, in 1972, defied racial segregation by co-founding, with husband Brian Astbury, SA’s first non-racial Space Theatre. Bryceland performed there in several Fugard Plays, including People are Living there, Statements After an Arrest and Boesman en Lena, later repeating the role on film. On leaving South Africa for the UK where she later performed in The Woman by Edward Bond at the Royal National Theatre, she remained in the UK for eight years, during which time she received the Lawrence Olivier Award for Best Actress for her performande in The Road to Mecca. This she reprised in New York for the Obie and Theatre World Award, repeating the role on film. PENNY SIMPSON Yvonne Bryceland Oil on Canvas 25,5 x 30,5 cm R 2 900 JOHN KANI John Kani started acting in Port Elizabeth with Athol Fugard’s Serpent Players, reflecting South Africa’s social conditions. He attracted wide attention and plaudits in 1975 when Fugard, Winston Ntshona and he devised Sizwe Banzi is Dead and The Island. He has appeared in Shakespeare in Europe and the USA, in stage, film and television and recently in his own plays. He has won many plaudits and awards. PENNY SIMPSON John Kani Oil on Canvas 28 x 35 cm R 2 900 SAUL RADOMSKY Saul Radomsky has spent a lifetime creating illusions. He studied Fine Art and then Theatre Design in London, learning about all the trickery in the wonderland of theatre. He designed productions all over Britain until David Kramer asked him to stage Kat and the Kings for London, Frakfurt, New York, then for all of Kramer’s shows at home and touring. Later he designed Athol Fugard’s plays. He now designs for The Fugard Theatre and David Kramer in particular. PENNY SIMPSON Saul Radomsky Oil on Canvas 28 x 35 cm R 2 900 PIETER-DIRK UYS A playwrigh and producer at the Space Theatre, London and Edinburgh, he produced and performed one-man revues at the height of the Apartheid era. His best known creation is Ambassadress Evita Bezuidenhout, for whom according to Uys, the local politicians wrote scripts. He has played Evita everywhere - including parliament. His humour and comedy criticises and lampoons the SA Government - before and after the democracy. PENNY SIMPSON Pieter-Dirk Uys Oil on Canvas 28 x 35 cm R 2 900 ROBYN SCOTT Robyn Scott’s awards include Best Actress at the Edinburg Festival for her role of 86 year old Rosa Kaplowitz in London Road, and for the same role - Naledi and Fleur du Cap awards, Known for both comedy and drama, she has worked on Those Who Can’t on TV and, while best remembered as the 60 year old Queen Elizabeth I, she toured in High School Musical. At Maynardville she played in Twelfth Night, The Winter’s Tale and both Lady Macduff and The Porter in Macbeth. Films include Rosie’s Royal Adventure. PENNY SIMPSON Robyn Scott Oil on Board 53 x 63 cm SOLD COBUS ROUSSEAU Afrikaans actor and a pioneer of Afrikaans Drama. Rousseau has appeared in stage productions, feature films and telivision dramas like Die Sonkring. His first film in 1965 was Debbie, followed by Die Kandidaat, Die Wildsboudjie and Jannie Totsiens - fifteen in all; including Faan se Trein in 2014 at the age of 80. Major stage productions were Hamlet, King Lear, Richard III, Uncle Vanya and The Idiot. In 1971 he won an award for service to the Arts from the SA Academy for Science and Arts. After a Photograph by Robert Hamblin PENNY SIMPSON Cobus Rousseau Oil on Canvas 40,5 x 50 cm R 2 000 DAVID KRAMER South African singer, songwriter, playwright and director, Kramer is most noted for musicals about Cape Coloured communities. His music has earned seven gold or platinum records. David Kramer and Taliep Peterson collaborated on the highly acclaimed District Six, a politically influenced musical telling of the story of District Six; the first of several winning musicals including Kat and the Kings, Karoo Kitaar, Blues and recently, Langarm. He has produced shows including Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Orpheus in Africa. PENNY SIMPSON David Kramer Oil on Canvas 45,5 x 35,5 cm R 2 900 WILLIAM KENTRIDGE South Africa’s pre-eminent contemporary artist works in various mediums including short, lyrical animated films of charcoal drawings in states of composition and erasure. He has worked as an actor, playwright, set designer and theatrical director, draughtsman, performer and film maker. He has an ongoing collaboration involving multimedia performances with the Handspring Puppet Theatre, including operas and original plays. PENNY SIMPSON William Kentridge Oil on Canvas 28 x 35 cm R 3 100 CHRISTOPHER KINDO Kindo, hailing from Simon’s Town in the Cape, overcame the restrictions of Apartheid to become one of South Africa’s top ballet dancers and choreographers. He was the first coloured principal dancer for the CAPAB Ballet; a founder member, principal dancer and dance master of the PACT Dance Company and co-founder of South Africa’s first contemporary dance company, Jazzart. He won the FNB Vita Award (Best Male Dancer) and the Standard Bank Young Artist Award for Dance.