Xgaoc'o X'are

Xgaoc’o* X’are grew up on a farm in the Ghanzi District and joined The Kuru Art Project in 1992. At that time, he was in his late teens and the creative possibilities at the Kuru Art Project revealed a new world to him. For Xgaoc’o Xare art allows the images that dwell in his mind to materialize on canvas through careful brushstrokes in simplified forms and joyous colours.

X'are attended school for a short period only. He enjoyed learning but was teased by the bigger boys, which is why he ran away from school. His elders did not send him back and he grew up on the farms doing occasional jobs like erecting fences and cutting poles. Xgaoc’o X'are is familiar with the veld and the animals that live in it. He remembers going with his father or brother to hunt animals for the pot. They did not hunt with bows and arrows but used horses and spears. For a young boy, these were exciting experiences that he will never forget.

X'are's knowledge and love of the Kalahari can be seen in his work. It reflects a simplicity that is peculiar to him. In these simplified animal and plant forms lies a strong resemblance to the rock art that was done centuries ago by his ancestors. Xgaoc’o Xare depicts the majority of his animals facing in the same direction, which is similar to many rock engravings, in particular, the ones at Twyfelfontein in Namibia.

He has no specific preferences concerning techniques and media, although he loves working with oil paint. Working with monoprints is probably the most painterly of all printing techniques and thus suited him well.

* Xgaoc’o signs his work Qhaqhoo (the old spelling of his Naro name).

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