Superstroke is a term used for a contemporary art movement with its origins in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. Superstroke is one of the influential art movements regarding African modernism and abstraction. The word "Superstroke" implies the super expressive brush stroke. The Superstroke art movement was initially founded as a reaction to the impact that the

Superflat Superflat is a postmodern art movement, founded by the artist Takashi Murakami, which is influenced by manga and anime. However, superflat doesn't have an explicit definition because Takashi Murakami does not want to limit the movement, but rather ...

art movement, founded by

Takashi Murakami is a Japanese contemporary artist. He works in fine arts media (such as painting and sculpture) as well as commercial (such as fashion, merchandise, and animation) and is known for blurring the line between high and low arts as well as co ae ...

had on modern contemporary art.

Manifesto

The manifesto for the Superstroke art movement was written in 2008 by the

South African __NOTOC__ South African may relate to: * The nation of South Africa * South African Airways * South African English * South African people * Languages of South Africa * Southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the Afric ...

artist

Conrad Bo Michiel Conrad Botha (born 9 August 1972) better known as Conrad Bo is a South African Artist, the founder of The Superstroke Art Movement. He was born in Pretoria, South Africa, but grew up in Witbank, about 100 kilometers from Pretoria, whe ...

and deals with various forms of how paintings in the movement should be executed. This includes the statement that paintings should be created by using very expressive brush strokes. The manifesto also deals with photography and states that expressionism is more important than photo-realism. Then the manifesto states that abstract and figurative art is allowed in Superstroke. It goes further and states that certain subject matters are encouraged, and also makes mention of an

African African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...

theme. Finally the manifesto states that the concept of "art for the sake of art" does not apply, and that members of the movement must produce paintings with texture, and excessive brush or pencil strokes.

Influences

Although the concept of Superstroke was a reaction to

, the paintings in the Superstroke art movement are heavily influenced by

Alberto Giacometti Alberto Giacometti (, , ; 10 October 1901 – 11 January 1966) was a Swiss sculptor, painter, draftsman and printmaker. Beginning in 1922, he lived and worked mainly in Paris but regularly visited his hometown Borgonovo to see his family and ...

Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...

and

Vincent van Gogh Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionism, Post-Impressionist painter who posthumously became one of the most famous and influential figures in Western art history. In a decade, he created about 2 ...

Artwork

Art in Superstroke, varies from realism to abstract, monochrome and full color. Different media such as

collage Collage (, from the french: coller, "to glue" or "to stick together";) is a technique of art creation, primarily used in the visual arts, but in music too, by which art results from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole. ...

, charcoal and plaster of paris are used. Paintings in Superstroke are also identifiable by the frequent use of mathematical signs such as plus, minus, and equal signs.

Contributors

Artists whose artworks are regarded as Superstroke are, Greg Simmonds, Diiezel, Mr. Sputnik,

Menno Baars Menno is a Dutch language given name of Old Frisian origin. It was made popular by the influential Frisian religious reformer Menno Simons ( West Frisian: ''Minne Simens''), and the name was spread by his followers, the Mennonites. ''Menno'' is th ...

John Zaverdino John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

May Wentworth May is the fifth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is the third of seven months to have a length of 31 days. May is a month of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. Therefore, Ma ...

Jaco Erwee Jaco may refer to: Places *Jaco Island, island of East Timor *Jacó, Costa Rica, a town in Western Costa Rica * Jaco, West Virginia Animals * Jaco is the local name for the Dominican endemic red-necked amazon parrot * Usual name for the grey par ...

Laetitia Lups Laetitia may refer to: Mythology and religion * Laetitia (goddess), a minor Roman goddess of gaiety * One of the 16 geomantic figures, primary symbols used in divinatory geomancy Other uses * Laetitia (given name) * 39 Laetitia, an asteroid * ...

References

*''One Small Seed Magazine'' - The South African Pop Culture Magazine *Peffer, J. 2009. ''Art at the end of apartheid''. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

External links