Figure 99: Johann van der Schijff. Ystervuis, 1993.
[ Return to: Part 1 - 5.Conclusion ]
A rugged, evil-looking vehicle, made to carry military personnel, is supported on thin stainless steel legs sprouting from a crushed pile of junk. It is a cyberpunk fetish referring to the archetypal war machines used by the security forces in South Africa. [Figures 99] Its cold mechanical, calculated presence is amplified by the absence of personnel. Conceptually, the high-tech parts of the hand weapons could have been salvaged from the wreckages of these machines left behind on post-apocalyptic battlefields. [Figure 100]
Figure 100: A police 'Casspir' driving through a squatter township near Cape Town.
(Argus. 1994, February 2)
Cyberpunk and new Gothic sources such as Batman and Judge Dredd influenced the design of the vehicle. [Figures 101] The cowhide wheel-covers are derived from materials used in African fetishes. Consequently they are intended to transform the sculpture into a fetish, simultaneously hailing and mocking the brute power of the immense military machine.
Figure 101: Judge Dredd, firing away.
(Bisley 1991: 14)
Figure 102: Johann van der Schijff. Ystervuis, 1993.
Mild-steel; stainless steel; rubber; cow hide.
H: 1700 mm W: 480 mm L: 770 mm
Figure 103: Johann van der Schijff. Drawing no. 1,
Ystervuis, 1993.
Figure 104: Johann van der Schijff. Drawing no. 2,
Ystervuis, 1993.
Figure 105: Johann van der Schijff. Drawing no. 3,
Ystervuis, 1993.
Figure 106: Johann van der Schijff. Drawing no. 4,
Ystervuis, 1993.
Figure 107: Johann van der Schijff. Drawing no. 5,
Ystervuis, 1993.
Figure 108: Johann van der Schijff. Drawing no. 6,
Ystervuis, 1993.