The Spier Contemporary has been produced twice, both as an exhibition and as a competition in 2008 and 2010. It was conceived to provide a platform for South African visual and performance artists in every kind of medium, from the more traditional, such as painting and sculpture, to performance art and new media installations, to show their work, uncompromised by the limitations of technology, space and access. Artists in South Africa often work under extremely varied conditions and see the world from radically different perspectives. These differences shape the countries collective identity and unique social and cultural landscape. The Spier Contemporary provided a platform for exploring South Africa’s diversity, giving audiences insights into its complexity and thus contributing to South Africa’s understanding of difference.
The core objectives of the Spier Contemporary were to: Create a large-scale national exhibition, which genuinely reflects the diversity of the visual and performance arts community living in South Africa; Develop new audiences and markets for artists, which do not normally have access to 30,000+ potential buyers; Access new audiences and develop their respective appreciation of a spectrum of artistic forms; and Provide training and development for visual and performing artists and curators.
The inaugural 2008 exhibition received over 2,500 artists submissions from around the country, exhibited 95 artists in Cape Town and Johannesburg and hosted 25,000 visitors. The 2010 exhibition received over 2,700 artists submissions, exhibited 101 artists, attracted over 20.000 people in Cape Town. The winning artworks selected as part of the competition in 2010 toured four cities in South Africa and attracted 23,000 people.