Mornè Venter

Morné Venter is a South African artist working primarily in ink and other mixed media. He was born in Roodepoort in 1988 and completed a BA degree in Information Design at the University of Pretoria in 2010. He has since been living and working full-time in Pretoria. Venter started his career as an artist in 2012. He has participated in various group and solo exhibitions in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Pretoria. He has qualified as a finalist in both the Sasol New Signatures and Absa L’atelier competitions. His work is influenced by horror, emotion, fauvism and abstract expressionism.

Venter explores the ever-shifting interpretations of identity and human connection through the lens of philosophical existentialism. His primary artistic philosophy is centered around the idea of the "mess". This idea is an apt description of both his views on the human condition and his personal artistic process. His obsession with human nature manifest itself in a series of emergent messes and mistakes distilled into visceral imagery intended to relay and provoke perspectives on the human experience. Process and outcome are inextricably intertwined in his work and hinge on playful experimentation and exploration of different drawing media through the development of unusual techniques and methodologies. Each piece is an improvisational exercise that is then distilled through a conversation between the artist and his current lived experience.

The interplay of word and imagery is an important aspect of the work presented by Venter. His titles, often presented as short-form poetry, act as both an enhancement and important emotional entry point to the work. The exemplification of universal states of being is crucial to his artmaking practice and through the interplay of these various elements, the audience is invited to impose their own lived experiences on each piece.