Herd - Phase I

A 1998 sculpture of a Blue Wildebeest carved from stacks of paper, titled Herd Phase I by the South African artist Wim Botha (b.1974) as part of his wildlife series. This work was carved from stacks of government forms and papers representing three Wildebeests often displayed as hunting trophies mounted on a wall. The common name "blue wildebeest" refers to the conspicuous, silvery-blue sheen of the antelope's coat. The Wildebeest is a common broad-shouldered and horned antelope in East and Southern Africa. Short biography: Wim Botha was born in 1974 in Pretoria and studied for his BA in Fine Arts at the University of Pretoria. As a student, he was often controversial in the messages he portrayed in his artworks, frequently using stacks of Bibles to create religious icons and stacks of government text as commentary. Botha uses this particular paper medium to seclude his radical content in his sculptures, whereas the subject matter may not be controversial. The use of the type of paper to create his works is iconic of his radical commentary. Botha has won several art awards for his sculptures, which include the Standard Bank Young Artist Award (2005) and the Helgaard Steyn Prize for sculpture (2013). He has exhibited locally and internationally in countries such as Germany, Italy, France, Sweden and Senegal. The work belongs to the South32 Collection and is on a courtesy temporary loan to the University of Pretoria.