Stephan Erasmus

Stephan Erasmus is a practicing artist and curator based in Johannesburg, South Africa. His work is held in various collections: The Bibliotheca Alexandrina Alexandria, Egypt, Johannesburg Art Gallery and ABSA collection, to name but a few. He has participated in countless group and solo exhibitions across the country.
In his writing of love letters, Erasmus samples text from various sources such as poetry, music lyrics and biblical text as a starting point. The use of existing text is significant in that it becomes emotional triggers that exist in public and has links to specific emotional conditions or events.
For Erasmus it is important that the selected text is transformed into a visual format that breaks away from the act of reading or listening. Moving the reader into an experience of struggle and involvement in the detanglement of the text and the significance of the selected encryption process.
The encryption mimics a physical act of writing sorrowful love letters, sewing the letters together to become a web, in which the reader can get lost in. Leading into a self-created prison of words and their meanings.

2007 Completed a Masters degree in Fine Art at the University of the Witwatersrand
1999 B-Tech degree with Honours in Fine Art at the Technicon Witwatersrand
(T. W. R.) now called the University of Johannesburg (UJ)
1997 Completed National Diploma in Fine Art at T.W.R. (Merit Award). Majors: Sculpture and Printmaking

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2018 - Constructed, Is Art Gallery, Franschhoek, Western Cape, South Africa
2015 - Line Structure, Hazard Gallery Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
2013 - Restructure, NIROX projects, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa.
2011 - Hartland, Brundyn + Gonsalves , Cape Town, South Africa.
2010 - Hartland, Absa Gallery, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa.
2008 - Die Middernag Son (Midnight Sun), Woord Fees, University of Stellenbosch Museum
Dorp Street Gallery, Stellenbosch, Western Cape, South Africa
2007 - Die Middernag Son (Midnight Sun) – Oliewenhuis Art Museum Bloemfontein
2005 - Requiem for a Cipher, Gordart Gallery, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa.
1999 - The God Prosthetic, Civic Gallery, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa.



SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2018 – Our Anthropocene: Eco Crises, The Centre for Book Arts, New York, USA
2017 - Bookness: Contemporary South African artists` books, FADA gallery, University of
Johannesburg, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
2017 - Booknesses: Artists` books from the Jack Ginsberg Collection, University of
Johannesburg Art Gallery, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
2017 - anima/anamé, Semaphore Gallery, Neuchâtel, Switzerland ...