At Anderson Gallery, ‘honest image-maker’ talks inspiration

Julie DiNisio

Contributing Writer

On Sept. 15, Siemon Allen gave an exclusive gallery tour of his latest work, “Imaging South Africa: Collection Projects,” which is currently displayed at Franklin Street’s Anderson Gallery. On a usual weekday, the small art gallery presents a refreshing escape from the clamor of the city, but last Wednesday evening, it was bustling with activity as art enthusiasts enjoyed the newest exhibition.

With the simple arrangements and clean lines, Allen’s collection is a neat-freak’s paradise and fits in nicely with Anderson Gallery’s black and white décor. While the event was originally planned as a “walkabout,” Anderson Gallery instead seated the patrons together on the floor due to a larger than expected turnout.  Allen, a VCUarts Sculpture Professor, discussed his latest projects, calling himself “an honest image-maker.” “The word ‘image’ refers to something other than the literal image, and that is something I attempt to explore,” he said.

His first exhibit, “Newspapers,” features editions of the New York Times, all painstakingly aligned on a curving wall. Each newspaper pertains to South Africa in some way. “One of the things I was interested in with the newspapers was the idea of an image,” said Allen. “The image that we understand to be South Africans here in the United States is something that’s established in the editorial room.”

The “Records” section was displayed past the first of several flights of stairs. The artist began his vast collection of South African records in a Richmond thrift store; most of them are by Miriam Makeba, a South African singer and political activist during the 1960s and 1970s. Dozens of Makeba’s colorful records provided a vivid backdrop as Allen discussed the collection, saying that, “being an artist, I was very interested in the idea of collecting another artist’s life work.”

Allen, possessing an artistic devotion for the mundane and overlooked, also created several large-scale prints of South African records, all resplendent with scratches and other telling signs of use. “These are my favorite. I collect records, and this is exactly the kind of record I wouldn’t want to have … but in an art context, it takes the record to a whole different place,” said Amanda Briede, an art student with a concentration in Glass Blowing.

The gallery’s top floor exhibited “Stamps,” also centered on a curving wall, a visual technique Allen used with his other pieces. His goal was to “collect images that told this history of South Africa that is obviously skewed in a particular direction and is defined by whomever the government happens to be at a particular point.” The enormous collection — over 23,000 individual stamps — spans a century of South African history and government propaganda.

Traci Horne Garland, the Gallery Coordinator, described Allen’s work as “outstanding and interesting.” She went on to say, “We’ve been focusing on artwork that is global in its scope and the role that international artists have in Richmond.” Anderson Gallery will be displaying “Imaging South Africa” and focusing on Siemon Allen’s international role until Oct. 31.