Asha Zero
Encyclopedia
Asha Zero is a South Africa
n artist
.
Asha Zero is a pseudonym
, intended to draw attention to identity as a shifting, unstable concept, while deflecting attention from the so-called person behind the name. In keeping with this notion, Zero's work deals with issues of fragmented
identity in contemporary society, distressed and atomized by information overload virtual and authentic, false and true.
'Asha Zero is only one guise amongst many individuality-destroying pseudonyms. The name is not a signifier in a floating world of possible meaning. It is a flickering signal in a virtual domain of electronic meaninglessness.' (De Lange n.d:1)
Exploiting the disrupted, often politically inclined visual language of collage
, Zero transposes abrasions and fractures into obsessively painted surfaces. Torn, scarred and disjointed images remain figurative, suggesting a desperate, contradictory
impulse towards collapse and wholeness at the same time.
Asha Zero's work has been linked to Trompe-l'oeil, a painting style that employs illusion to deceive the eye into believing it actually IS what it DEPICTS, thereby effecting a moment of wonder when the viewer discovers the deception.
is Zero's main mode of expression, but not the only
one. Operating under several pseudonyms, including Broop Nook and Whatsnibble,
Zero is involved in at least two bogus 'companies' or 'collectives',
Roadkillvisiontoiletries and Mobilediscoetcetera. These are platforms, so to
speak, for artistic interventions, publications or performances in anonymous
mode, facilitating socio-political commentary of different kinds, similar to
the critical ways in which Banksy
operates in London
.
Tshwane University of Technology
and obtained a National Diploma in Fine
Art with majors in drawing
, printmaking
and photography
. Important influences
included local street culture – skateboarding
, graffiti
and especially
electronic music
. Regular participation in small exhibitions and performances
in Pretoria
, Johannesburg and environs and in Cape Town
paved the way for an
artistic career.
A short monograph
on Asha Zero was published by MapZAR, a collecting and
publishing initiative by South African contemporary art aficionado, Harrie
Siertsema.
Zero's work was shown at the Amsterdam Realisme 08 art fair
. When the show Say for me opened in Cape Town in March 2008, Zero's reputation had spread to the extent that the show sold out on the first night, largely to collectors from Europe and the UK.
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
.
Asha Zero is a pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
, intended to draw attention to identity as a shifting, unstable concept, while deflecting attention from the so-called person behind the name. In keeping with this notion, Zero's work deals with issues of fragmented
identity in contemporary society, distressed and atomized by information overload virtual and authentic, false and true.
'Asha Zero is only one guise amongst many individuality-destroying pseudonyms. The name is not a signifier in a floating world of possible meaning. It is a flickering signal in a virtual domain of electronic meaninglessness.' (De Lange n.d:1)
Exploiting the disrupted, often politically inclined visual language of collage
Collage
A collage is a work of formal art, primarily in the visual arts, made from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole....
, Zero transposes abrasions and fractures into obsessively painted surfaces. Torn, scarred and disjointed images remain figurative, suggesting a desperate, contradictory
impulse towards collapse and wholeness at the same time.
Asha Zero's work has been linked to Trompe-l'oeil, a painting style that employs illusion to deceive the eye into believing it actually IS what it DEPICTS, thereby effecting a moment of wonder when the viewer discovers the deception.
Anonymity, pseudonyms and collectives
Painting in acrylicAcrylic paint
Acrylic paint is fast drying paint containing pigment suspension in acrylic polymer emulsion. Acrylic paints can be diluted with water, but become water-resistant when dry...
is Zero's main mode of expression, but not the only
one. Operating under several pseudonyms, including Broop Nook and Whatsnibble,
Zero is involved in at least two bogus 'companies' or 'collectives',
Roadkillvisiontoiletries and Mobilediscoetcetera. These are platforms, so to
speak, for artistic interventions, publications or performances in anonymous
mode, facilitating socio-political commentary of different kinds, similar to
the critical ways in which Banksy
Banksy
Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based graffiti artist, political activist, film director, and painter.His satirical street art and subversive epigrams combine irreverent dark humour with graffiti done in a distinctive stencilling technique...
operates in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Career
Asha Zero spent three years between 1994 and 1997 at the Technikon Pretoria, nowTshwane University of Technology
Tshwane University of Technology
Tshwane University of Technology is a higher education institution in South Africa that came into being through a merger of three technikons — Technikon Northern Gauteng, Technikon North-West and Technikon Pretoria....
and obtained a National Diploma in Fine
Art with majors in drawing
Drawing
Drawing is a form of visual art that makes use of any number of drawing instruments to mark a two-dimensional medium. Common instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, inked brushes, wax color pencils, crayons, charcoal, chalk, pastels, markers, styluses, and various metals .An artist who...
, printmaking
Printmaking
Printmaking is the process of making artworks by printing, normally on paper. Printmaking normally covers only the process of creating prints with an element of originality, rather than just being a photographic reproduction of a painting. Except in the case of monotyping, the process is capable...
and photography
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
. Important influences
included local street culture – skateboarding
Skateboarding
Skateboarding is an action sport which involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard.Skateboarding can be a recreational activity, an art form, a job, or a method of transportation. Skateboarding has been shaped and influenced by many skateboarders throughout the years. A 2002 report...
, graffiti
Graffiti
Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property....
and especially
electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
. Regular participation in small exhibitions and performances
in Pretoria
Pretoria
Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is one of the country's three capital cities, serving as the executive and de facto national capital; the others are Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein, the judicial capital.Pretoria is...
, Johannesburg and environs and in Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
paved the way for an
artistic career.
A short monograph
Monograph
A monograph is a work of writing upon a single subject, usually by a single author.It is often a scholarly essay or learned treatise, and may be released in the manner of a book or journal article. It is by definition a single document that forms a complete text in itself...
on Asha Zero was published by MapZAR, a collecting and
publishing initiative by South African contemporary art aficionado, Harrie
Siertsema.
Zero's work was shown at the Amsterdam Realisme 08 art fair
Art fair
An art fair is a commercial exhibition that shows the work of artists or art dealers. Each entrant has to pay a fee.Art fairs are not to be confused with art exhibitions. Exhibitions are organised by curators....
. When the show Say for me opened in Cape Town in March 2008, Zero's reputation had spread to the extent that the show sold out on the first night, largely to collectors from Europe and the UK.