This piece, by Norman Catherine, graphically illustrates a toxic wasteland while informing the viewer of the devastation on the essence of all that sustains life on this planet, water. The current exhibition at the Standard Bank Art Gallery aims to highlight various aspects related to the effects of man’s interaction with nature and, in particular, with water, one of our most precious resources.

The centrally placed, disproportionately large, primitive male figure resembles a victim of genetic mutation, possibly caused by severe pollution, a result of it’s own doing. It’s dark, vacant eye sockets are set above a menacing grimace and exposes fish – like serrated teeth. A sense of impending doom is conveyed by the pathos evident in the scene. The stance of the anonymous figure standing in red, toxic looking water, cradling and looming large over a catfish held in its arms, creates a sense of unease. The anxiety present in the work is further emphasized by the lurid clashes of colour and hatched lines created by the sense of urgency resulting from the layering of the expressive mark making caused by the artist choice of medium.

A large section of the work featured in the exhibition Water: the [Delicate] Thread of Life revolves around spiritual iconography and investigates aspects central to the concept of water and its role in spiritual practices. Here, the Christian parable of the fish and the loaves and Old Testament or Jewish teachings relating to the 10 plagues visited upon Egypt during when water turned into blood, is called to mind. No miracles are depicted in the work, only the wanton destruction of God’s creation and mans’ primary sustenance featuring man as perpetrator and victim.