Wat die Hart van Vol is, Loop die Mond van Oor
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Wat die Hart van Vol Is, Loop die Mond van Oor attempted to encourage dialogue around the Afrikaans language, and thus, the discussion of Afrikaner identity within the South African context, by using an alternative, contemporary, performative language.
This was largely done by not only attempting to disrupt the language, but to physically remove it from the body, by brushing clean the mouth and tongue over a duration of three hours with various cleaning products. Including toothpaste, a bar of soap, Sunlight Liquid and Handy Andy.
During the performance, the Afrikaans language was exhibited on a number of different levels, some more direct than others. This included a soundtrack which consisted of a number of Afrikaans texts. These audio clips included poetry , discussions surrounding the role of Afrikaans in South African universities, protesters shouting: “Afrikaans sal bly”, church sermons in Afrikaans, racist slurs and Afrikaans comedy . These ‘texts’ were interspersed with fond childhood songs as well as popular Afrikaans music.
The piece formed a part of an exploration on contemporary performance at The University of Cape Town (2016).
Concept and Performance by Kanya Viljoen
