Chrisél Attewell
Contemporary South African Fine Artist
Chrisél Attewell (b. 1994) is a multidisciplinary artist from South Africa. She received her BAFA (Fine Arts, Cum Laude) from the University of Pretoria in 2016 and is currently pursuing her MA in Visual Arts at the University of Johannesburg. Her work has been represented locally and internationally in numerous exhibitions, residencies, and art fairs. Attewell was selected as a Sasol New Signatures finalist (2016, 2017) and a Top 100 finalist for the ABSA L’Atelier (2018). Attewell was selected as a 2018 recipient of the Young Female Residency Award, founded by Benon Lutaaya. Her work was recently showcased at the 2019 Contemporary Istanbul with Berman Contemporary. Inspired by the traces people leave behind, Attewell’s living environment is often reflected in her work. Her work is experimental in nature and often takes a performative approach to the process of making.
Website: chriselart.com & bermancontemporary.com
Instagram: @chrisel_attewell
Solo Exhibitions
2020 SOCIOGENESIS: Resilience Under Fire, Berman Contemporary, Johannesburg. Curated by Els van Mourik.
2019 Substratum, Lizamore & Associates Gallery, Johannesburg
2018 Architectus Konstruksie, Klein Karoo Nationale Kunstefees (KKNK), Oudsthoorn, Western Cape
2018 Under Construction, Assemblage, Braamfontein, Johannesburg
Group Exhibitions (15/28 full list available on request)
2021 Annual Winter Show: The Liminal Space, Berman Contemporary, curated by Morgan Kunhardt. Johannesburg.
2021 Making and Interpreting Art in 2021, SARChI Postgraduate Exhibition, curated by Dineke Van der Walt.
2020 Learning to Breathe Differently, Berman Contemporary, Curated by Els van Mourik, Johannesburg.
2019 ArtLadies, Berman Contemporary, Curated by Els van Mourik, Johannesburg.
2019 Collecting Contemporary, Lizamore Gallery, KKNK, Oudtshoorn.
2019 SAFFCA Group Exhibition, Gerhard Sekoto Gallery, Alliance Française, Johannesburg.
2018 Unsettled, ABSA Gallery, curated by Thabo Seshoka, Johannesburg.
2018 Talking to Deaf Ears, ABSA Gallery, curated by Sarah McGee, Johannesburg.
2017 Thami Mnyele Fine Art Awards, Coen Scholtz Recreation Centre, Kempton Park.
2017 Young Capital – White Noise, Joburg Fringe, Curated by Mbali Tshabalala, Johannesburg.
2017 Sasol New Signatures, Pretoria Art Museum, Pretoria.
2017 Fresh Produce, Turbine Art Fair, Curated by Rolihlahla Mhlanga, Johannesburg.
2017 My XXX, Innibos National Arts Festival, Curated by John-Anthony Boerma, Nelspruit.
2016 Sasol New Signatures, Pretoria Art Museum, Pretoria.
2013 Hidden Urban Histories, Rembrandt Hall, University of Pretoria, Pretoria.
Collections
The African Arts Trust Collection
The ABSA Bank Collection
The Project Space Collection
Harrie Siertsema Personal Collection
South African Foundation of Contemporary Arts Collection
Commissions
The Leonardo Building, Sandton. A commission for a 1×1,5m artwork to be placed in the lift of the building and a large copper work for behind the reception desk.
Quorum Properties, Johannesburg. A commission of 25 copper sculptures and entrance hall hanging rock installation.
Art Fairs
2020 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair, Berman Contemporary and Christie’s, Online, London
2019 Contemporary Istanbul, Berman Contemporary, curated by Els van Mourik, Istanbul, Turkey
2019 Turbine Art Fair, solo booth: Earth to earth, stone to stone, dust to dust. Curated by Els van Mourik
2018 Investec International Cape Town Art Fair, The Project Space, curated by Asha Waja, Cape Town
2018 Young Female Residency Award, The Project Space by Benon Lutaaya, RMB Turbine Art Fair, Johannesburg
2018 Group showcase with Millennium Gallery, RMB Turbine Art Fair, Johannesburg
2017 RMB Talent Unlocked, curated by Rolihlahla Mhlanga, Turbine Art Fair, Johannesburg
Awards (4/8 full list available on request)
2018 ABSA L’atelier, Top 100.
2018 Grant received for the solo project from The African Arts Trust as part of the Assemblage Exhibition Programme.
2017 Thami Mnyele Fine Art Awards, top 100, Coen Scholtz Recreation Centre, Kempton Park
2017 Sasol New Signatures, finalist, mentioning in catalogue, Pretoria Art Museum, Pretoria
Publications
2019 Countering Artybollocks – an exhibition curated by Bland&Boring, written by Tracy Murinik, Art Africa, June
2018 South African Art Scene: Artist using printmaking to explore Johannesburg’s architectural history, interview by Yolisa Njamela, CGTN Africa
2018 Khuluma Magazine (Kuluhla’s in-flight magazine), Jozi’s Lost Pockets, written by Trevor Crighton, October
2018 Prestige Digital Magazine, Jo’burg’s Rebirth Documented as Art, written by Trevor Crighton, August 2018
2018 SA Art Times, Sculpture Fair, September 2018
2016 SA Art Times, University of Pretoria Graduate Exhibition, December 2016
Residencies
2019 Southern African Foundation for Contemporary Art (SAFFCA), Residency at Entabeni Farm, Knysna
2018 Recipient of the Young Female Residency Award with The Project Space, founded by Benon Lutaaya
2017 Artist Career Development Programme developed by Assemblage
Conferences, Presentations, and Papers:
2021 “Circular economies in the artistic practices of Otobong Nkanga and Ibrahim Mahama”, Making and Interpreting Art in 2021, SARChI Postgraduate Conference in association with UJ, the National Research Foundation and the Department of Science and Innovation
2019 A Womxn’s Work: Sculpting and Living. A discussion with Avi Soulful and Chrisél Attewell on the processes, practices, challenges and glories of being a (female) sculptor in South Africa. Turbine Art Fair Talks Programme Sponsored by RMB Private Bank.
Education
2021/ongoing. MA in Visual Arts, University of Johannesburg.
2013/16 BA(FA) Fine Arts, Summa Cum Laude, University of Pretoria
Dissertation: Making Your Audience Cry: A Neuropsychological Reading of Marina Abramović’s ‘The Artist is Present’.
2008/12 National Senior Certificate, Hoërskool Noordheuwel