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project description End of the World (Cape Point), 2004

Cape Point, at the southern tip of South Africa, was once believed to be the place where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet. It is one of those places that reminds us of our transience. End of the World (Cape Point) is a visual echo of that exchange. At Cape Point, I sensed, in a moment of intense spiritual awareness, the meeting between mortality and immortality.

The end of the world, like a thief in the night, can come at any moment. It cannot be owned or known yet, paradoxically, it is solid, ever-present, for the end is included in ‘now and forever’. There can be no doubt that the end of anything has an attraction and beauty of its own; a calm inevitability, or the promise of renewal.

Abrie Fourie has not shied away from expressing the spiritual grounding which lies behind his works. While he doesn’t force his religious doctrine onto the viewer, he does provide an honest statement about the forces which motivate his work. This willingness to be open and upfront about the content of his work, coupled with a high level of dedication to his craft, sets Fourie apart from his contemporaries. He produces at a prolific rate, yet remains selective about which exhibitions and projects to participate in.

In the song Pictures of You, Robert Smith of The Cure sings “I’ve been looking so long at these pictures of you that I almost believe that they’re real.” Abrie Fourie creates compelling images that bring us into his world and share a piece of his soul. He transports us to spaces where we have an opportunity to confront our own feelings about the world and the way we live. And unlike the lovelorn Smith crooning about lost love and opportunity, Fourie constructs a world of hope and promise, one frame at a time.