Artist Bio

Conrad Botes was born in Ladismith in the Klein Karoo in 1969. He has a Master of Arts in Fine Arts from the University of Stellenbosch and a Diploma in Second Phase Illustration from the Koninklijke Akademie voor Beeldende Kunsten in Den Haag, Netherlands. In the early 1990s, he founded Bitterkomix, a satirical and highly influential comic book series, together with artist Anton Kannemeyer. 

Conrad’s work often oscillates between different formal practices; he is equally at ease sculpting or painting, and can be drawn into the complicated narrative of the comic sequential narrative or the austereness of portraiture. Yet when it comes to the content of his work, he is fundamentally drawn towards allegory and its ability to seduce the viewer into a narrative. 

He often chooses biblical themes as vehicles for political allegories. “They have a familiarity and a comfort that viewers know and relate to, yet they hold the possibility to mimic reality and challenge beliefs and ideologies,” he says. Growing up during Apartheid South Africa, these themes also hold the potential for exploring the intricacies of guilt and complicity and their relationship to violence. “I am constantly drawn to the subject of violence and it’s disturbing affiliation to racial and gender injustices,” he adds. 

Recent Solo Exhibitions

2024 - “Sailor’s Holiday”, 131 A Gallery, Cape Town

“Martyrs And Rebels”, M Contemporary, Sydney, Australia

2022 - '“Sculpture And Etching”, 131 A Gallery, Cape Town

2021 - “The Anatomy Lesson”, 131 A Gallery, Cape Town

2019 - “BitterKomix” with Anton Kannemeyer, 131 A Gallery, Cape Town

2019 - “The Goliath Protocol”, Everard Read, Johannesburg

2014 - “Wounds of the past”, MContemporary, Sydney

2012 - “Zombie Babylon”, Stevenson, Johannesburg

2011 - “The Temptation to Exist”, Stevenson, Cape Town

2010 - “On Earth as It Is in Heaven”, KZNSA Gallery, Durban

House of Judas, Fred, London

2009 - “Crime and Punishment”, Brodie/Stevenson, Johannesburg

“Hostile Territory”, Aardklop arts festival, Potchefstroom

“Cain and Abel”, Michael Stevenson, Cape Town

2007 - “Satan’s Choir at the Gates of Heaven”, Michael Stevenson, Cape Town

2005 - “Conrad Botes”, ABSA Gallery, Johannesburg 

“Notes from Underground”, Gallery Momo, Johannesburg 

“Devil’s Bullets”, Erdmann Contemporary, Cape Town

2004 - “Forensic Theatre”, Gallery Momo, Johannesburg, 

“Conrad Botes”, Johannesburg Art Gallery, Johannesburg

2003 - “The Big White Sleep”, The Scene Gallery, New York City

“The Big White Sleep”, Galleria L'Ariete, Bologna, Italy

2002 - “Conrad Botes”, Studio d'Arte Raffaelli, Trento, Italy

His work can be found in many private as well as major corporate collections both locally and abroad