Seibeb Paints The Pandemic

Rudolf Seibeb takes a silver taxi to the city from his home at Okahandja.

At The Project Room’s large white gate, he lowers his yellow-patterned mask and waves enthusiastically at the waiting journalist. Loosely bundled against the cold in a large olive jacket and possessing a frame more slight than his prolific artistic output would suggest, Seibeb ambles into the independent gallery and sees his exhibition for the very first time.

‘Hokverhale – Navigating a Lockdown’ is Seibeb painting the pandemic. When Namibia locked down, turning away tourists as the media blared about the potentially deadly coronavirus, Seibeb took to his workshop at Okahandja’s woodcarvers market to reflect on the ‘new normal’.

Gathering news from the community, the newspaper and the radio, the artist found both peace and inspiration.

“I had time. I couldn’t move around,” says the veteran artist of the impressive collection of work all constructed during the last three months. “For me, lockdown was also peaceful. Nobody bothered me. I was alone. I painted and looked and painted.”

What Seibeb saw is our somewhat surreal new reality. In his art crafted with acrylic paint and disparate found objects, the masks, alcohol and travel bans as well as the restrictions on movement come to life in complex collisions symbolising the practical, isolating and emotional elements of the Covid-19 experience.

During an impromptu exhibition tour, Seibeb hurries across the room to reveal an artistic Easter egg. “Look at the eyes,” he says, pointing out how in the titular and acrylic ‘Navigating the Lockdown’ the subject’s eyes and patterned cheeks merge to form the now ominous number and current year ‘2020’.

Intriguingly, the meaning behind the artist’s cryptic composition is peeled away layer by layer as Seibeb reveals that the piece’s central ship doubles as a mask and speaks to the banning of travel, navigating the treacherous waters of this disease and the need to wear masks to protect against Covid-19.

In ‘Hokverhale’, everything is intentional.

The animals roaming Seibeb’s recurring and haunting faces harking back to when tourists roamed the land in search of wildlife and may even have bought a painting to commemorate the experience.

“Today, us artists, we can’t sell anything,” says Seibeb. “People can’t come in to see the animals or our art.”

When the Namibian government announced the Covid-19 lockdown, the travel bans and the stay-at-home orders, Seibeb admits he thought “it was the end of me”, but now feels happy he can exhibit his work, which so stirringly depicts the here and now.

Even while looking forward to a return to community and perhaps a cure born of traditional medicine.

For now, Seibeb retires to the gallery balcony to drink a cup of coffee and feels good to present ‘Hokverhale’, which translates to mean something akin to ‘cage stories’. Yet in his bold, relevant and reflective collection, it’s clear the celebrated artist’s seemingly inexhaustible ingenuity will always run free.

In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.