Vusi Beauchamp South African , b. 1979

Vusi Beauchamp, born in Johannesburg in 1979, studied printmaking and painting at the Tshwane University of Technology and Graphic Design at Damelin. Beauchamp's paintings are created by using various methods, including spray painting and stenciling, as well as materials such as crayons, charcoal, oil sticks and acrylic paints. Beauchamp's somewhat controversial works are meant to comment on social issues, politics and events that are currently taking place in South Africa. Beauchamp's provocative iconography employs popular culture, satire and stereotypes in service of a visual political commentary. He seeks to examine the post-apartheid South African government embattled within itself, the disconnect with its people and our vexed social climate under this new viral threat, mired by false news and heightened insecurities over corruption. Beauchamp challenges preconceived constructed societal associations through the juxtaposition of contrasting iconography, marks, mediums and colours. His works echo the palimpsest of graffiti and decayed advertising in urban spaces through the use of multiple mixed media layers. This layering of media include images from popular culture as well as figures and portraits depicted mimetically in dramatic colours. These striking compositions contribute to the overall sense of vibrant turmoil that Beauchamp's works instillon the viewer. Although his works address South African societal issues, they could easily be related to express the dissatisfaction felt by many international communities with regards to their political and economic leaders