Series of 12 titled: “Huishoudelike patente”, ink, charcoal and acrylic on reproductions of sketches made to register patents, size A4, by Andries Bezuidenhout
Artist’s statement: “Working on my second book of poetry, titled ‘Veelvuldige gebruike vir huishoudelike toestelle’ [Tr: Multiple uses for domestic appliances], got me interested in sketches drawn for patent registrations. I downloaded a range of these sketches from the web – from very old patents for refrigerators and washing machines to more recent ones for computers and cellular phone applications. Since they were public record and therefore in the public domain, I wanted to use these as graphics for the poetry book. However, often the reproductions were of such poor quality that they pixelated terribly. I decided to work on them, mostly with ink and charcoal, and in one case (number XII), acrylic paint. I couldn’t help but chuckle at myself for manipulating sketches made by other people in order to protect their intellectual property. Patent sketches are not drawn as art, but I think the best ones lend themselves to the creation of art. The Afrikaans title for the series is ‘Huishoudelike patente’. I guess one could translate this as ‘Patently domestic’. The English translation actually works better than the original, I think. Maybe these sketches capture in some unintended way how I feel about the forthcoming book of poetry.”
Price: R10 000 for the series For sales contact admin[at]andriesbezuidenhout.co.za
More on the book of poetry Veelvuldige gebruike vir huishoudelike toestelle (in Afrikaans).