Ruth Sacks is a South African artist currently living in Johannesburg

Johannesburg

Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...

. She completed a laureateship at the HISK in Gent, Belgium, in 2009 and an MFA at the University of Cape Town in 2007. She was born on the 27th September 1977. She mainly works with installation

Installation art

Installation art describes an artistic genre of three-dimensional works that are often site-specific and designed to transform the perception of a space. Generally, the term is applied to interior spaces, whereas exterior interventions are often called Land art; however, the boundaries between...

 and performance

Performance art

In art, performance art is a performance presented to an audience, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performance may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or...

.

Work

Ruth Sacks' work examines historical situations and past ideas concerning the future in order to comment on contemporary environments. Recent projects have been made up of responses to architectural elements, art objects, manuscripts and books from past ages. Sacks works with fiction

Fiction

Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...

 and its relationship to the construction of history. She sees fictional narratives as important tools in interpreting current circumstances. Sacks tends to approach a topic by examining the literature and popular mythology that has grown up around it. A recurring theme in her work is the relationship between Europe and Africa that emerges from these investigations. One could see Sacks' practice as creating new fictions that can be realized in different forms and mediums. The installations, public interventions and text pieces that she produces pay tribute to a wide range of influences.

Exhibitions

Sacks has taken part in a variety of exhibitions, including "Performa 09" in New York (2009), ".ZA giovane arte dal Sudafrica", Palazzo delle Papesse in Siena

Siena

Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena.The historic centre of Siena has been declared by UNESCO a World Heritage Site. It is one of the nation's most visited tourist attractions, with over 163,000 international arrivals in 2008...

 (2008), the 52nd Venice Biennale

Venice Biennale

The Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...

 on the African Pavilion (2007), and the "1st Architecture, Art and Landscape Biennial of the Canaries

Canaries

Canaries may refer to:* Canary Islands, an archipelago in the Atlantic belonging to Spain* Canaries Quarter, a village on the Caribbean island of Saint Lucia* "The Canaries", the nickname of two English football teams: Norwich City F.C. and Hitchin Town F.C....

" (2006). Recent solo exhibitions include “Double-Sided Accumulated” at Extraspazio in Rome, Italy (2010) and "False Friends" at the Kunstverein in Amsterdam, the Netherlands (book launch) (2010). She currently resides in Johannesburg

Johannesburg

Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...

, South Africa.

Selected exhibitions and projects

• 2011: "Malleability Revisited (locatie: Kanaleneiland)", Expodium, Utrecht, the Netherlands (cat)
• "Alptraum", Deutscher Kuenstlerbund - Projektraum, Berlin, Germany, The Company, LA, USA
• 2010: "Double-sided Accumulated", Extraspazio, Rome, Italy: solo show
• "False Friends", Kunstverein, Amsterdam, Netherlands (book launch): solo show
• "FIT Chapter H", Maison Gregoire, Brussels, Belgium (curated by Emmanuel Lambion)
• "Flat Characters", Die Kelder, Universiteit Antwerpen, Belgium
• 2009: "Performa 09", sponsored by the Museum for African Art, New York, USA (curated by Lisa Binder) (cat)
• "Dada South?", Iziko South African National Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa (curated by Kathryn Smith and Roger Van Wyk)
• "Futur", Frac Aquitaine, Bordeaux, France (curated by Marie Canet)
• "La Conquete de l'Espace", HISK, Ghent, Belgium (curated by Oscar Van Den Boogaard) (cat)
• "Polyphonie", Grenslandhal, Watou, Belgium (curated by Hans Martins) (cat)
• "First Things First", CCNOA, Brussels, Belgium
• "Test Patterns", San Francisco Camerawork, San Francisco, USA (curated by Leigh Illion)
• 2008: "False Friends", Conflict Room, Antwerp, Belgium
• "Scratching the Surface Vol. I", Association for Visual Arts, Cape Town, South Africa (curated by Gabi Ncobo)
• ".ZA giovane arte dal Sudafrica", Palazzo Delle Papesse, Siena,Italy (curated by Lorenzo Fusi) (cat)
• 2007: Luanda Pop:Check List, curated by Fernando Alvim and Simon Njami, Biennale di Venezia 2007, Venice, Italy
• "Open Studio", 26 Commercial Street, Cape Town, SA: solo show (cat)
• "Open Studio", Cortex Athletico, Bordeaux, France: solo show
• "GIMBERG / NERF / SACKS / YOUNG", SMAC, Stellenbosch, SA (cat)
• "Come", KZNA Gallery, Durban, SA (cat)
• "Fresh II", Grahamstown, National Arts Festival, Grahamstown, South Africa (curated by Jay Pather)
• 2006:1st Architecture, Art and Landscape Biennial of the Canaries, Los Lavaderos, Tenerife, Spain (cat).