"Waiting"

• Who is the artist of the installation titled "Waiting"?

  Jan van der Merwe
• What materials are used in Jan van der Merwe's installation "Waiting"?

  Rusted tin and found objects
• What style does Jan van der Merwe's work "Waiting" represent?

  Installation
• What does the installation "Waiting" consist of?

  An old bedstead with a wedding dress and a wardrobe made of barbed wire
• What historical references are evoked by the old bedstead and clothing in "Waiting"?

  References to South African history
• What narrative does the installation "Waiting" suggest about the fiancée?

  She has been left waiting for her future husband, who is presumably deceased
• How does the use of barbed wire in the installation serve as a metaphor?

  It represents the concentration camps where women and children were imprisoned during the Anglo-Boer War
• What broader social issues does the installation "Waiting" address?

  Women and children trapped in poverty or social upheaval
• How does the artist confirm the historical setting of the installation?

  By using real objects covered with thin layers of rusted tin
• What does the delicate and brittle rusted surface of the installation evoke?

  Meaning and interpretation on various levels
• What does the old wedding dress and bed signify in the context of the installation?

  They invite a historical reading of the victims of ideological conflict
• What question arises from Jan van der Merwe's strategy of retrieving the past?

  Why does van der Merwe bother to retrieve the past?
• What does the Afrikaans title "wag" mean in relation to the installation?

  It means "to wait" and also "guard"
• How is the idea of waiting depicted in the installation?

  As a process that leads to decay
• What is the significance of the absence of characters in the story of "Waiting"?

  It emphasizes the theme of endless waiting
• What does the installation "Waiting" suggest about the permanence of the objects used?

  They seem preserved for eternity but are deteriorating and fragile
• How does the installation "Waiting" relate to the historical context of the Anglo-Boer War?

  It reflects the suffering of women and children during that period