Zanzibar study 

Walter Battiss made this watercolor, Zanzibar Study. Here, the artist appears to play with the cultural and social complexities inherent in representing a place like Zanzibar. Battiss, a white South African artist, would have encountered a Zanzibar marked by its history as a key site in the Indian Ocean trade, with a diverse population and a legacy of colonialism. The light washes of color and abstracted forms resist easy categorization. Are these architectural studies? Fanciful figures? The composition, full of gaps, is a field of visual play rather than a definitive statement. To interpret this work fully, it would be useful to examine Battiss’s broader body of work. His interest in indigenous art forms and his complex relationship with South African identity at a time of political tension and transformation are vital to understanding the social and political implications of his work. Approaching art history means embracing context to truly understand the dialogues artists create.