‘Atlas of Uncertainty’ reimagines the African city through art and flux

I first sawAtlas of Uncertaintyon a crisp winter morning at the Wits Origins Centre, the gallery quiet in the moments between one school group leaving and another arriving. It seemed fitting that the exhibition should be held there, in the middle of Braamfontein, with Johannesburg bustling outside the gallery windows. The range of works represented in the exhibition is as sprawling and diverse as the three African cities thatAtlas of Uncertaintyexplores.

Accra, Nairobi and Johannesburg are all booming with industry, culture and migration but they are also places characterised by flux and instability. The exhibition challenges the viewer to consider what the African city encompasses. What makes Accra, Nairobi and Johannesburg the cities they are?

Of course, speaking in this way implies that African cities are mirrors of one another, virtually indistinguishable. However, the exhibition team was intentional about showcasing both the differences and the similarities of the three cities; at once recognising that there are certain realities which are largely universal, while also highlighting the idiosyncrasies of Accra, Nairobi and Johannesburg. Atlas of Uncertaintyopens with Ilanga Lishonile’sThe Herd, a floor-to-ceiling tapestry featuring a blue-black piece of fabric with bright beaded tendrils snaking outward from its centre.

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It resembles a map of sorts but not in the traditional sense. Instead, like most of the works on show, it reimagines the concept of the atlas, offering viewers a counter-cartography of the African city. The rest of the works are arranged in the temporary exhibition space, seeming to follow their own internal order and rhythm, despite the artists each using vastly different mediums.

Professor Loren Landau, part of theAtlas of Uncertaintyproject team, says the organisers weren’t entirely sure what to expect when they first put together the open call for visual artists in Accra, Nairobi and Johannesburg. The exhibition was originally slated to open at The Point of Order, one block down from the Origins Centre but when the Atlas team surveyed the artworks they were given, they realised that they needed a much bigger space. Billie McTernan’sMap of Dreams and Realitiesis one such work.

Originally outlined to be a small tapestry no bigger than 1m2, the work seemed to take on a life of its own, growing to become one of the largest works featured in the entire exhibition. The delicate panels are stitched together in a haphazard weave, embroidered with what appears to be writing. The tapestry hangs in the space between two floors, stray threads reaching groundward.

Its fragility is striking, particularly in contrast to its size. It resembles a curtain, a veil between worlds.

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