© Fall-out Man Diane Victor
Diane Victor is an artist of uncompromising directness but with a strange quietness in her nature who tackles pressing issues – personal and social violence to racial anxiety, corruption, gender inequality, economic exploitation and social commentary
In 1988, Victor became the youngest recipient of the prestigious Volkskas Atelier Award (now known as the Absa L’Atelier Award) which allowed her to experience the European art scene in France, England and Germany. The historical art and architecture had a huge visual impact on her art. But Victor always chose to stick with the imagery she knows and feels, that of the South African society.
© Diane Victor
Victor is known for her provocative image which tends to get interpreted in the wrong way or evoke anger in the viewer. But Victor states that she wants her works to entice people out of their comfort zones and make them think about the things that upset them “She does not water down taboo content under ‘safe’ visual schemata for the sake of being more palatable or marketable,” writes Catherine Green, a writer for Art South Africa.
Looking beyond the intense emotive qualities of Victor’s work, what remains a constant is the capacity of her style. Whether rendering her subjects in charcoal, or undertaking conceptually challenging embossing, Victor shows an accomplished skill and a meticulous sense for detail. She researches her ideas thoroughly and is able to communicate and express the emotional value of her works.
© Diane Victor
Diane Victor ©
Diane Victor ©
Diane Victor ©
Victor and her work is both paradox and dichotomy. One senses that she would be happy never to see or hear humans again and yet she is a dedicated university lecturer, teaching drawing and printmaking, at various South African institutions including the University of Pretoria, Tshwane University of Technology, Open Window Academy, the University of the Witwatersrand, Rhodes University and the University of Johannesburg. There is no doubting the immeasurable impact of her style and her personality on her students. Victor says teaching allows her to experience different headspaces from an era that is not her own.
© Extinguished Rhino II Diane Victor
Diane Victor is an artist of uncompromising directness but with a strange quietness in her nature who tackles pressing issues – personal and social violence to racial anxiety, corruption, gender inequality, economic exploitation and social commentary. Despite the criticism she has received over her career, she has become a renowned South African artist and printmaker. Her works have been used in high school curriculums and she has won numerous awards. She has exhibited widely within South Africa and overseas and her work can be seen in leading South African corporate, state and private collections as well as in international collections including the Museum of Modern Art in New York.