PRESS RELEASE
THE SHAPES OF REMEMBERING | JADEN WELLS, MATTHEW MICHAEL, RUBY BAILEY
Sep 9 – Sep 30, 2026
JADEN WELLS, MATTHEW MICHAEL AND RUBY BAILEY
THE SHAPES OF REMEMBERING
Within the current generation of young South African artists there are those whose practices engage with identity and fragmented memory. Works shaped by symbolic languages and open-ended imagery are invitations for viewers to form their own interpretations rather than follow a fixed narrative. Sometimes, however, concurrently woven within these conceptual approaches is a strong investigation into more traditional realism. Whether depicting psychological, remembered or imagined spaces, the three artists included in this exhibition also draw from personal experience while remaining attentive to observation and representation.
Their practices flows between abstraction and realism, exploring the relationships between perception and reality, internal memory and external presence. The Shapes of Remembering brings together three such artists: Jaden Wells, Matthew Michael and Ruby Bailey. Together, these artists demonstrate how these discrete languages need foundationally to coexist, offering distinct yet complementary ways of understanding identity, experience and the worlds around them.
