Thought - Bubblegum Club

The figure of the witch in today’s world

It has been argued in recent times that there is a resurgence of interest and identification with the figure of the witch. Questioning the basis of this renewed interest, I began wondering if the witch had truly re-emerged taking into consideration not only womxn identifying with the symbol of the witch but the practice and…

Unpacking the relationship between mental wellbeing and creativity

The idea of the tortured artist who is unpredictable, troubled, deranged, mentally unbalanced and not well adjusted proliferates media and normal representations of what it means to be an artistic ‘genius’. We see this in the narration of the lives of artists who have contributed tremendously towards culture—novelist and poet Sylvia Plath, abstract painter Agnes…

The gender-sex bell curve and the myth of progress

When a beautiful, innocent baby is born we hail; ‘it’s a boy’ or ‘it’s a girl’. The performance begins —You will wear pink and not blue, you will play with dolls, you will seek perfection and beauty but not bravery —what American philosopher and gender theorist, Judith Butler, dubs gender performativity; the stylised repetition of…

The Gripe // Exploring an Alternative World in Digital Photographic Publishing

Instagram has become one of the most powerful tools for today’s photographer. The platform empowers photographers across the world to have their work viewed thousands, if not millions, of times over. The community behind the social network cannot be underestimated either, openly sharing a wealth of knowledge and inspiring their like-minded peers to take their passion…

Discussions on survival as an independent artist in South Africa

According to the World Economic Forum 15-20 million young Africans are expected to join the workforce every year for the next three decades —begging the question; what opportunities will exist to allow these young individuals meaningful work; work that is challenging, impactful and unexploitative. Surviving as an independent artist has always been a particularly difficult endeavour….

Who is the hero? // A reflection on African Sci-Fi Films

In a post-apocalyptic Ethiopian landscape, where Michael Jordan is enshrined, masked Nazi-clad bandits steal Ninja-turtle amulets, and witches trade in Michael Jackson records, we meet Birdy and Candy. As a rusted spaceship hovers in the sky, and a defunct bowling ball machine returns to life, Candy embarks on a quest to find Santa Claus. As…

Is Algorithm the new Abstract?

Watching the contemporary art scene evolve is a little bit like watching a sports game as a complete philistine with no knowledge of the rules. You can’t really tell who the star player is, you’re definitely not sure where the ball is going to go, you have no conception of what is allowed or not…