Jeannette Unite
Jeannette Unite (born 20 January 1964) is a South African artist who has collected oxides, metal salts and residues from mines, heritage and industrial sites to develop paint, pastel and glass recipes for her large scale artworks that reflect on the mining and industrial sites where humanity's contemporary world is manufactured. Her industrial-scale mining Headgear drawings and "TERRA" paintings were exhibited at Museum Ostwall, Dortmund, Germany in the reconstructed building on the site of mining headquarters for the Ruhr Valley in commemoration of the final year of underground coal mining in Germany. Through 2014 and 2015, her research on Earth's stratigraphy with Department of Earth Sciences, Oxford University and Oxford University Museum, developed into a body of work exhibited at the Centre for Contemporary Art and the Natural World (CCANW), Exeter University, Devon, between October 2015 and February 2016.
Jeannette Unite
Jeannette Unite · Jeannette Unite Image Archive · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Name
- Jeannette Unite
- Education
- Michaelis School of Fine Art
- Born
- 20 January 1964
- Nationality
- South Africa
- Occupation
- artist · photographer
- Languages
- English
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Jeannette Unite (born 20 January 1964) is a South African artist who has collected oxides, metal salts and residues from mines, heritage and industrial sites to develop paint, pastel and glass recipes for her large scale artworks that reflect on the mining and industrial sites where humanity's contemporary world is manufactured. Her industrial-scale mining Headgear drawings and "TERRA" paintings were exhibited at Museum Ostwall, Dortmund, Germany in the reconstructed building on the site of mining headquarters for the Ruhr Valley in commemoration of the final year of underground coal mining in Germany. Through 2014 and 2015, her research on Earth's stratigraphy with Department of Earth Sciences, Oxford University and Oxford University Museum, developed into a body of work exhibited at the Centre for Contemporary Art and the Natural World (CCANW), Exeter University, Devon, between October 2015 and February 2016.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Jeannette Unite. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q26899246 · wikipedia · Jeannette Unite
In this article
Biography
Biography
This travelling exhibition also formed part of the United Nations' Year of Soil and the British Geological Society's Year of Mud.
Artist Jeannette Unite with her 'paintbox' behind - the periodic table of minerals.
Jeannette Unite · Jeannette Unite Image Archive
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Jeannette Unite • Website — www.jeannetteunite.com • Education — Michaelis School of Fine Art • Born — 20 January 1964
Research
Research
Unite's works reference mining heritage sourced from archives and museums. This includes early geological historical maps and texts that were created during the British Industrial Revolution to guide mining the coal that fueled the engines that drove modernity. • Illustration — "Between the Strata of Trauma and Violence", artwork by Jeannette Unite. • Illustration — EARTHSCARS - Minerals and Metals, by Jeannette Unite. • Illustration — EARTHSCARS - A Visual Mining Exploration, by Jeannette Unite. • Illustration — Artist Jeannette Unite with her 'paintbox' behind - the periodic table of minerals. • Illustration — One of the "Headgear" drawings by Jeannette Unite • Illustration — Installation view of Jeannette Unite's Master of Fine Art postgraduate exhibition • Illustration — Installation view of Jeannette Unite's Master of Fine Art postgraduate exhibition • Illustration — One of the commemorative works by Jeannette Unite on the Marikana massacre that took place in South Africa on 16 August 2012
Education and community work
Education and community work
Unite graduated from Michaelis School of Fine Art in 1986, following 4 years of study. From 1987 to 1997, she taught printmaking and general art at Frank Joubert Art Centre, as well as teaching adult education drawing lessons & painting courses. During this time, she spent four years in correspondence with UNISA and provided art training to teachers in Nyanga, a local township area. From 2011 to 2016, she taught the Workshops in Materiality course at Michaelis School of Fine Art, a series of workshops centered around communicating her own unique style of paint preparation and utilization to students. In 2014, she completed her MFA (Masters in Fine Arts) at Michaelis, receiving a distinction.
Selected exhibitions
Selected exhibitions
Source: 2017 MEASURING MODERNITY, Borderline Art Space, Iasi, Romania COMPLICIT GEOGRAPHIES, Eclectica Contemporary, Cape Town 2016 35th International Geology Congress, Invited Earth mining artist, CTICC TERRA, Museum Am Ostwall, Dortmund, Germany Mining Our Heritage | Bergbau Unser Erbe – Germany Preview, Abalone Hermanus Fynarts In Plain Sight: Social Life in South Africa and Romania before and after 1989, Aparte Gallery of George Enescu Uni of Arts, Iasi & Borderline Art Space, Iasi, Romania Out of the Fire, Into the Light, Dr Ingram Anderson, Glass exhibition, AVA, Pretoria STRATA two-woman show with Isabel Mertz at ISart, Franscchhoek Colori sotto il Visuvio (The Colours of Vesuvius), Il ramo d'oro Centre of Arts and Culture, Naples, Italy 2015 Bi-Centenary William 'Strata' Smith, Innovation Centre, University of Exeter PREVIEW Bi-Centenary William 'Strata' Smith, Jo'burg Art Fair Fringe curated by Carol Brown, Mboneng, Johannesburg LAW & ORE, Youngblood Foundation Gallery, Cape Town Between Democracies curated By Judy Peter, Karen von Vey & Richard Gregor, Constitution Hill, Johannesburg Fear & Loss in the Industrial Karoo, Curator Katie Du Toit, Oliewenhuis, Bloemfontein | Pretoria Art Museum | Graaff-Rennet Blowing in the Wind, curator Carol Brown, KZNSA Gallery, Durban and University of the Orange Free State, Art Museum. Between Conceptual and Spiritual, curated by Ortrud Mulder, Abalone Gallery, part of FynArts Festival, Hermanus 2014 LAW & ORE, Abalone Gallery, Hermanus EXTRACT, Youngblood Gallery, Cape Town and Cologne, Germany COMPLICIT GEOGRAPHIES, Fine Arts master's degree exhibition, Michaelis Galleries, Cape Town (MFA with Distinction) 2013 HERE / THERE, UCT and WITS Masters students, Michaelis Galleries, Cape Town HAWK Guerrilla Video Projections on land and group Art Intervention, (curator Lien Botha) Overstrand, Western Cape 2012 Residuum: Mines & Machines Installation at the Western Cape Archives & Records Service, Old Gaol, Roeland Street, Cape Town Exhibition & Presentation: 9th IMHC International Mining History Conference, Johannesburg HAWK Group Art Intervention, (curated by Lien Botha) Overberg, Western Cape (project printed map) Return to the Archive, Museum Africa, Johannesburg 2011 Paradox of Plenty, Michaelis Galleries, University of Cape Town - Installation of mining archive & artist-in-residency Mining the African Industrial Landscape: Presentation; Conflicts & Natural Resources: African Studies Conference, AEGIS, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain Artists Visual Response to the Industrial Landscape: Presentation The Paradox of Plenty, Joburg Art Fair, September On the Surface: The Heritage of Mines and Mining; conference University Innsbruck, Austria Iizkhwepha Zhetu / Shaping our Minds, (curated by Phumzile Dlamini) Durban Art Gallery (catalogue) 3 Parts: More Harmony, South African, United Arab Emirates & Mozambique artists (curated by Phumzile Dlamini), Durban Art Gallery (catalogue) Alumni Exhibition & Auction, Michaelis School of Fine Art, University of Cape Town (catalogue) 2010 6 Meters Under, 4th Beijing International Art Biennale, China The Lie of the Land: Representations of the South African Landscape,(curated by Michael Godby), Michaelis Collection, Old Town House Museum (catalogue) TERRA: Above Below, Oliewenhuis Museum, Bloemfontein (Catalogue) Mineral Resources and Residues of Power in the African Industrial Landscape, Presentation at ICACD (3rd International Conference on African Cultural Development) Cultural Imperatives for Development: 50 Years Post Independent Africa, Kumasi, Ghana 2009 Headgears, 9th Tashkent Biennale, Central Asia, Uzbekistan Presentation ‘The Colonial Gaze’ Scientific conference, Urban Philosophy: Anthropological Landscape’, Tashkent, Uzbekistan Earthscars: Mining the African Landscape: Presentation AngloGold Ashanti, Turbine Hall, Johannesburg Headgear, Inaugural solo exhibition, AngloGold HQ, Turbine Hall, JHB Earthscars: Mining African Landscape, XLIIIrd AICA (International Association of Art Critics) Congress, The Relations Between Art and Science: Complicity, Criticality, Knowledge, Dublin Castle, Ireland On Top of the World, (curated by Andre Vorster) (catalogue) Earthscars, 20:20 Presentation at VANSA, Spin Street, Cape Town 2008 Remembering the Future, Western Cape Archives and Records Service, Old Gaol, Roeland Street, Cape Town Re-structuring the Colonial, Group Exhibition, Thompson Gallery, Johannesburg 2007 Hot Earth, Artworks in response to travels to copper mines of Namaqualand. Thompson Gallery, Johannesburg Visions of Africa, (curated by Dirk Oegema) Pretoria Art Museum 2006 HERM: Boundaries Between the Wild and Cultivated, collaboration Cumbria Institute of Arts, Ann Bryant Art Museum, East London 2005 Gunfree South Africa, Constitution Hill Auction, Johannesburg 2004 Earthscars: A Visual Mining Exploration, William Humphreys Art Museum, Kimberley Earthscars: A Visual Mining Exploration, Mozambique National Gallery, Maputo, Mozambique Earthscars: A Visual Mining Exploration, Irma Stern Museum Gallery, University of Cape Town Surfacing, with Lynne Lomofsky, Unite Studio, Cape Town 2003 S.U.M., Bag Factory Residency Exhibition, Fordsburg Art Studios, Johannesburg (catalogue) Sentences & Gestures, Zebra II, Hampstead, London South African Artists, Old Mutual Place, London 2001 Sentences, Bell-Roberts Contemporary Gallery, Cape Town (catalogue) Heart For Art, Red Cross Fundraiser, The Foundry, Cape Town SA Today, Signature Artist, (curator Patrick Lagus), Fair Centre, Helsinki Blue Danube, animated projection, edited by Koeka Stander, concert with Sibelius Orchestra, Helsinki, Finland 2000 Sentences, art animation film, 8 minutes, edited by Koeka Stander Artichoke, Multimedia event, Sandton Civic Centre, Johannesburg 1999 Thresholds, Irma Stern Museum Gallery, University of Cape Town Inaugural Group Exhibition, National Library of South Africa, Cape Town Softserve, Public Eye Event, IZIKO South African National Gallery, Cape Town Thupela Workshop, IZIKO South African National Gallery, Cape Town 1994 Print Triennial, Musee d’Art Contemporain Internationale, Lyon, France 1993 South Africa in Black and White, Print exhibition (curated by Ray Maylen), South African National Gallery, Cape Town Aids Awareness, AVA Association for Visual Arts, Cape Town Brides, (curated by Christopher Peter), Irma Stern Museum Gallery, University of Cape Town 1992 Art Now, AVA Association for Visual Arts, Cape Town 1990 Critics’ Choice, AVA Association for Visual Arts, Cape Town 1981 Young Artists’ Exhibition, 1st Prize, Kellogg's Foundation (catalogue)
Publications and texts
• COMPLICIT GEOGRAPHIES, 2016, Edited by Ivor Powell. 400 page monograph on artwork by Jeannette Unite investigating how wealth from land and Earth is divided, measured and allocated and global cycles of extraction, consumption and waste. • TERRA, 2012, Edited by Andrew Lamprecht and Ivor Powell with contributions by Ashraf Jamal, Kathryn Smith, Marian Tredoux and Bongani Ndodana-Breen. 192 page monograph surveying twenty years of Unite's practice and research. • ‘Headgear: Mining Engineering Drawings’, Critical Interventions, USA 6: 91-101, Spring 2010. • ‘TERRA: Sands and Detritus Soiled with History’, Art South Africa, 9(1): 98-9, Spring 2010. • ‘Exploring the Visual Residues of Colonial Exploitation’, Nukta Art: Contemporary Art Magazine of Pakistan. 5 (1): 80-85, 2010.
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Jeannette Unite”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q26899246: Jeannette Unite
General reference · Wikidata
Awards, grants and residencies
• Mzansi Golden Economy Grant, SA Department Arts and Culture (funding for TERRA in Dortmund, Germany and COMPLICIT GEOGRAPHIES, CCANW, Exeter University, Devon) 2016 • MacIver Scholarship, Michaelis School of Fine Art, University of Cape Town. 2013 • Twamley Postgraduate Bursary, University of Cape Town. 2013 • Jules Kramer Travel Award, University of Cape Town. 2012 • Academic Bursary from Michaelis School of Fine Arts, University of Cape Town 2012 • CCA (Center for Curating the Archive), University of Cape Town. 2012 • Fellowship Artist-in-Residency, Michaelis Galleries, University of Cape Town 2011 • AEGIS - African Travel Grant for African resource conference closing presentation, University Autonoma, Madrid Spain 2011 • Art Moves Africa (AMA) Research Grant for Travel in Africa 2009 • Tashkent Biennial (merit award for original use of natural materials) 2009 • CSIR, Awarded Public Art Competition /Glass Wall Installation, Department Science and Technology Buildings, Pretoria 2006 • Bag Factory, Fordsburg Artists’ Studios (Triangle Network) Johannesburg 2003 • Constitution Hill (Glass & Steel Water History Sculpture) Finalist 2003 • Thupela Workshop, South African National Gallery Annex. 2000 • Thupela Workshop, South African National Gallery Annex.1999 • Kellogg's Young Artists Award, First Prize National Art Competition. Prize: (Four year all-inclusive international art scholarship.) 1981
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Resourceful artist digs deep IOL.
- 2.SLOW March 2016.
- 3.Jeannette Unite Studio presents Law and ORE Fine Music Radio. www.fmr.co.za.
- 4.Earth artist explores geologic deep time. Artslink. 2016-09-04.
- 5.Land Matters - a Visual Exploration of Land, Mining and Resources in South Africa.
- 6.Terra-Jeanette Unite. issuu.
- 7.Dortmund-Agentur, Stadt Dortmund. Bergbaugeschichte: Jeannette Unite - "Terra" - Alle Veranstaltungen - Veranstaltungskalender - Freizeit & Kultur - Stadtportal dortmund.de. www.dortmund.de.
- 8.GfG sponsert Ausstellung im früheren Ostwallmuseum. www.gasmessung.de.
- 9.KG, Westdeutsche Verlags- und Werbegesellschaft mbH & Co. Kunst von Jeanette Unite im alten Museum am Ostwall - Baukunstarchiv NRW. lokalkompass.de.
- 10.Dortmunder Kulturblog: Baukunstarchiv: Jeannette Unite präsentiert Arbeiten zur Bergbaugeschichte. dortmunder-kulturblog.blogspot.co.za.
- 11.Südafrikanerin Jeannette Unite präsentiert im neuen Baukunstarchiv Arbeiten zur Bergbaugeschichte - Nordstadtblogger. Nordstadtblogger. March 2023.
- 12.Redaktion. Baukunstarchiv NRW: Kunst von Jeanette Unite. Westfalen erleben. 2016-03-18.
- 13.COMPLICIT GEOGRAPHIES, Centre for Contemporary Art and the Natural World. www.ccanw.co.uk.
- 14.Abroad (Devon - UK) Jeannette Unite at CANNW - The South African Art Times. 2015-10-30.
- 15.Complicit Geographies British Society of Soil Science. soils.org.uk.
- 16.Jeannette Unite Presents Work Inspired by British Geologist William 'Strata' Smith. Design News. 2015-10-22.
- 17.Exhibition celebrates William Smith, the "Darwin of geology" Fine Times Recorder. www.theftr.co.uk.
- 18.Unite, Jeannette. Jeannette Unite About The Artist. jeannetteunite.com.
- 19.Measuring Modernity Jeannette Unite Exhibition Iasi, Romania Borderline Art Space. borderlinespace.com.
- 20.Complicit Geographies Jeannette Unite Exhibition Cape Town Eclectica. eclecticacontemporary.co.za. 2017-01-16.
- 21.Review: Jeannette Unite at Youngblood Gallery - What's on in Cape Town. What's on in Cape Town. 2015-02-16.
- 22.Aachron Editions. Critical Intervention: Journal of African Art History and Visual Culture, No.1, July 2007. 2007-01-01.
- 23.'Subterranean meets the surface' as art.
- 24.Land Matters - a Visual Exploration of Land, Mining and Resources in South Africa.
- 25.Davenport, J., Digging Deep: A History of Mining in South Africa, Jonathan Ball Publishers, Ebook Online
- 26.Paradoxical beauty of toxic minerals IOL.
- 27.Tim Atkinson. DE KAT TV Jeannette Unite Insert. 2014-10-10.
- 28.((sabc3topbilling)). Top Billing visits a Sandton Penthouse (Full Insert). 2014-08-25.
- 29.Mkhwanazi, Katlego. Artists who drill below the obvious. The M&G Online.
Bibliography printed in the source article · 54
- Barnes, M. Kellogg's Young Artist Award. Sunday Times. October 18, 1981.
- Emslie, A. Angry Artist puts Violence on Walls. Cape Times. April 9, 1990.
- Benita, M. Female nudes lost in paint. The Argus. May 2, 1990.
- Kramer, N. Artist work strong, thick & gestural. The Argus. March 23, 1990.
- Munitz, B. Bushmen Art. Cape Times. October 1992.
- Vosloo, E. Jeannette Unites Vibrant Energy with her Artwork. Sunday Times. May 22, 1994.
- Jolly, L. Music brings paintings to life. Cape Argus. April 17, 2001.
- Meylan, R. SA Art in Finland. Weekend Argus. December 15, 2001.
- Verkkola, T. Kaukainen Etela-Afrikka onkin hyvin laheinen. Helsingin Sanomat. December 2001.
- Goniwe, T. Fragile Firedancer Flower. Design Indaba Magazine. December 2001.
- Edmunds, P. Jeannette Unite at Bell-Roberts Contemporary. Artthrob. 2001.
- 2001 Emslie, A., 'Jeannette Unite: Sentences', (Catalogue), Cape Town: Bell-Roberts Contemporary.
- 2002 Riitta-Eiilisa, L., ‘Straussin musiikki juhlistiuuden vuodenpaivaa Helsingissa Finland’, Helsingin Sanomat, January.
- 2003 S.U.M residency exhibition, Bag Factory, Studios, (Catalogue).
- 2004 Minnaar, M., ‘Energy, Emotion and Eco-Morality’, Cape Times: Independent Newspapers, 25 February.
- 2004 Roper, C., ‘Art Pick of the Week’, Mail & Guardian, 20–26 February.
- 2004 Smith, K., ‘Art Pick of the Week’, Mail & Guardian, 10–16 December.
- 2005 Smith, K., ‘Art of 2 Cities’, Art News, London, 2nd quarter.
- 2007 Lamprecht, B., ‘Hot Earth’, Die Beeld, October.
- 2008 Davenport, J., ‘One-person Cape Town Exhibition Explores Aesthetic Appeal of Mining’, Mining Weekly, October.
- 2008 Keylock, M., ‘Mining the Past’, Mail & Guardian, September.
- 2008 Bryant, J., 'Archive exhibit', Design Ways Magazine, 2 September.
- 2008 Wilkinson, V., ’Africa's Heritage True Grit’, Weekend Argus, 21 September.
- 2009 Lange. J., ‘Mined over Matter’, Design Magazine Creative Economy.
- 2009 Lambrecht, B., ’Die Mens en Sy Opgewing’, De Kat, September.
- 2009 Knox, B., 'Headgear: an Exhibition by Jeannette Unite', Look Away, Johannesburg, Issue 13 Quarter 4: 24.
- 2009 Prinsloo, L. , ‘Gold-Mining Major Hosts Mining-Themed Exhibition’, Engineering News Magazine, 10 July.
- 2009 Lamprecht, A., 'Artist Bio', Artthrob, Online
- 2010 Thurman, C., ‘Mines, Headgear & the Mind’, 18 February.
- 2010 Unite, J., 'Earthscars: Above Below', (Catalogue), Oliewenhuis Art Museum, Bloemfontein.
- 2010 Godby, M., ‘The Lie of the Land’, (Catalogue), Michaelis Collection, IZIKO Museum.
- 2010 Beijing Biennial, Chinese Artists Association, (Catalogue).
- 2011 Bell, S., ‘Resourceful Artist Digs Deep’, Cape Times, March.
- 2011 Van Bosch, C., ‘Vlook Myne’, Die Burger, March.
- 'Subterranean meets the surface' as art.
- 2012 Powell, I., ‘Mines, Machines and Residual Power’, Cape Times, 3 August.
- Land Matters - a Visual Exploration of Land, Mining and Resources in South Africa.
- 2012 Martin, W., ‘Mining Artists Digs Deep for Material’, The Good Weekend, Weekend Argus, Sunday, July 15.
- 2012 Adams, S., ‘Book Review: TERRA’, Amandla, September Issue no. 26/27. Unite's artwork used for special Marikana issue.
- 2013 'HERE/THERE: WITS UCT Masters Exhibition', (Catalogue).
- 2013 Headgear used for cover image for the seminal mining history book Digging Deep by Jade Davenport. Davenport, J., Digging Deep: A History of Mining in South Africa, Jonathan Ball Publishers, Ebook Online
- Paradoxical beauty of toxic minerals IOL.
- Tim Atkinson. DE KAT TV Jeannette Unite Insert. 2014-10-10.
- 2014 'New Contrast', South African Literary Journal, Volume 42 No. 3.
- 2014 Daehnke, N., ‘South Africa: 10x12’, Imago Mundi, Luciano Benetton Collection.
- ((sabc3topbilling)). Top Billing visits a Sandton Penthouse (Full Insert). 2014-08-25.
- 2014 ‘Pringle Bay Dream Drowns in Red Tape’, Noseweek, Issue 176, June.
- 2014 Collison, C., ‘An Artist's Quest for Creative Gold’, Atlantic Sun, July 17.
- Mkhwanazi, Katlego. Artists who drill below the obvious. The M&G Online.
- 2015 Nel, A., 'Seeds Remind Jeannette Unite of the Wonder of our Planet', Wanted profile feature, Business Day, October, Online
- 2015 Aupias, L., ‘An Alchemist's Eye’, Private Edition, issue 27 April.
- 2015 CCTV, China Central TV, Episode featuring Unite's work, February.
- 2015 Kolver, L., ‘Artist advocates for art representation at Indaba’, Mining Weekly, 6 March.
- 2015 Roets, A., 'Jeannette Unite's Soils of War', The Citizen, 11 September, Online
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessauthority record
General reference
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Photography
11,392 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Jeanne Moutoussamy-AshePhotographer
- Jeanne ThwaitesPhotographer
- Jeanne-Marie BarbeyPhotographer
- Jeanne-Marie SensPhotographer
- Jed FieldingPhotographer
- Jef AérosolPhotographer
- Jef GeysPhotographer
- Jeff AntebiPhotographer
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Jeannette Unite?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.