Still at large

Writing about the arts in South Africa is a tricky proposition. Trying to keep up with the country's politics is a fool's errand. Yet these are the twin tasks set before Chris Thurman moonlighting as an arts critic and occasional socio-political commentator. In this book, the many frontiers between art and politics are made explicit. When reading its `dispatches' - grouped thematically and framed by introductory letters - context is key. A week is a long time in politics; the twists and turns in the South African and global current affairs create an intriguing dialogue between the columns, polemics, essays and reviews collected here. Still at Large presents itself as an historical barometer or thermometer, indicating the pressure and heat of particular moments in time. Along the way, in a voice shifting from the journalistic to the academic and from chatty to critical, Thurman plays various roles: guide, provocateur, companion, campaigner, raconteur, castigator, confidant and teacher. He may not be a consistent correspondent, but he is good company.