November 2016 — Fine Arts

After working on an eight-year photographic series titled “Signal The Future”, that included shooting some of SA’s underground musicians for various British publications, photographer and artist Georg Gatsas will be on a three-month residency in Johannesburg. Through his photography, Gatsas, 37, explores subjects such life in megacities, gentrification, migration politics, music and the digital revolution.

The residency will serve as a launching pad for his next photographic series which will look at Johannesburg through its musicians, to be published in various publications during the residency. He will be shooting for publications such as Zweikommasieben, Saiten and WoZ. Gatsas would like to use some of the images as well for his solo exhibition at the Kunstmuseum St. Gallen which will be held from November 2017 till February 2018.

Gatsas will work closely with British musician and Jo’burg frequenter Gervase Gordon, aka Ok Zharp who is expected to create a soundtrack to the images, in collaboration with local musicians, producers and vocalists.

“It is my goal to distill contemporary Johannesburg in 2016 in photographic impressions. I will be able to do this through its own representatives: the musicians of the city,” he says.