A Glass House I Call Home: Unboxing Fragility

A GLASSHOUSe I CALL HOMe:

unboxing fragility

Thomas Masingi

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First and foremost, I would like to acknowledge my family for the endless support they have shown

me throughout the years. I dedicate this body of work to my daughter Nneka, my mother, my late

grandmother and my brother Sam. I would like to give special mention to Michaeline Maepa, Zinzi

Mavuso, Calvin Mosekare, Andisiwe Diko, Sango Filita, Mduduzi Khathamzi and Magauta Ramokgopa

for being supportive throughout the journey. I would also like to extend my gratitude to Prof.

Mpako and Sesi Fihliwe Ndala, for granting me the opportunity to be here. The project would not

have been a success if it weren’t for Mangala Strider, Matome Masipa, Farai Matake, Khanyisa

Mhlongo, Simbongile and the St. Alban’s College Form 3 boys. To Nkoborwana Pohotona, Sello

Mahlangu and Kgafela Loate for their contributions to the project. Lastly, I would like acknowledge

my lecturers/supervisors Lawrence Lemaoana, Dr. Ania Krajewska and Dr. Leana van der Merwe,

for the awesome feedback I received from them.

A GLASSHOUSE I CALL HOME: UNBOXING FRAGILITY


I live in a glass house

Sheltered by uncertainty

Mothered by vulnerability

My father is fragility

But just like most fathers

He has been absent for most of my life

Once in a while he reappears

Claiming me as his son

Especially when I seem to be getting stronger

Exposing me to society’s attacks

He calls it being transparent


I am constantly being broken into

In attempts to shield myself

I paint beautiful images in the form of affirmations

On my inner walls

Using silence as a medium

So, the closest I have come to being secure

Was attaining translucency

I am constantly being broken into

And in response I have molded myself into a bottle

But I struggle to contain myself

Emotions filled to the brim

My anger can longer be capped


I am the offspring of the fractured

Composed of shards of toxicity

Taught to throw stones that leave me shattered within

Crystallizing my brokenness

Crushed by trauma

I am now just grains of sand

Living inside an hour glass

Running out of time to fix myself

I wish these glass walls could turn into mirrors

For I long to self-reflect

And to no longer throw stones

Cause a cracked reflection of me

Is not something I wanna see

CONTENTS

Introduction .........................................................................................................1

Background .........................................................................................................2

Research Methodology .........................................................................................................4

Selected Artists .........................................................................................................5

Selected Artist: Tsoku Maela .........................................................................................................6

Selected Artist: Tracy Rose .........................................................................................................8

My Artworks

Media and Techniques .......................................................................................................10

Video Art: Label Me Not .......................................................................................................11

Drowning In Toxicity .......................................................................................................13

Unboxing Fragility .......................................................................................................15

Photography: Peaks and Valleys .......................................................................................................17

Conclusion ........................................................................................................23

Bibliography .......................................................................................................24

List of Illustrations .......................................................................................................26

Artist CV .......................................................................................................30


Introduction

As someone who lives with depression and anxiety, I often find myself feeling vulnerable. This

makes it difficult for me to maneuver my way around certain spaces, spaces that make me feel uncomfortable.

I have learnt to embrace my vulnerability when I am surrounded by people I value.

Being a black male comes with a lot of challenges. One thing I have to constantly deal with is the

stigmatization that comes with living with depression, especially in my community where mental

illness is misunderstood. Where I am from, a man is expected to be tough and not show any signs

of weakness. Men who express emotions such as love, empathy and fear, to name but a few, get

ostracized by the society. The society I am from puts pressure on men to live according to the

standards it has set for them. I chose not to conform to the norms of society. There is a constant

internal battle that I go through to resist the pressure. I look at masculinity as a glasshouse that

one lives in, a place where throwing stones is not ideal. A Glasshouse I Call Home: Unboxing Fragility

looks into the relationship between masculinity and mental health, with specific focus on

themes such as vulnerability, fragility and toxicity. I am fascinated by boxing, a sporting code that

is associated with violence, toughness and aggressiveness.


1

BACKGROUND

A Glasshouse I Call Home: Unboxing Fragility finds its roots in my previous body of work titled

Masculinity Ain’t Working Out (2022), which focused mostly on masculinity and mental in the context

of gym culture. In A Glasshouse I Call Home: Unboxing Fragility, the main focus is on how living

with mental health issues such as depression and anxiety can make one vulnerable, fragile and/or

in extreme case toxic. Vulnerability has to do with the one’s ability to open up about their feelings

and experiences despite them being heavy on the individual expressing them. It is concerned with

facing one’s fears by showing up regardless of the difficulties involved (Galla, sn). Although, I may

exhibit certain toxic traits I am able to contain myself to avoid hurting other people. It has not

always been that way though. There were times in my life, particularly my high school days, where

I would get into fights with my peers. As grew older, I became more sensitive towards the people

around me and showing a great deal of empathy for them. My empathetic nature manifests itself

through my poetry pieces. I strongly believe my toxic traits stem from growing up in an abusive

household.


2

A Glasshouse I Call Home: Unboxing Fragility focuses on masculinity in the context of the black

South African society. There seems to be a very high rate of young black men involved in homicide.

I argue that there are numerous factors that contribute to the violence practiced by black men

within the society. The reasons behind the disproportionate number of young black men involved

in homicide include subscription to patriarchy or hegemonic masculinity, South Africa’s apartheid

segregation and racism, state repression, unemployment and poverty, racially inequality, substance

abuse and the flawed justice system (Ratele, 2013). I believe that masculinity, in general, is

a glasshouse. However, black masculinity is probably the most fragile glasshouse one could possibly

live in and yet we continue to throw stones that hurt us and the people we love and are meant

to protect. My body of work is about breaking free from the shackles of society and being unapologetic

about the man I am. One that is not ashamed of being vulnerable.


3

Research Methodology

This is a desktop research study, which entails that I gather data about the topic from sources

available on the internet. This includes research articles, theses, websites and electronic books

that are available. It is a qualitative study that uses grounded theory to support the assumptions

and answer the questions I have in relation to my theme. Studies that employ grounded theory

focus mainly conceptual thinking and the building of theory instead of testing the theory on an empirical

basis (Khan, 2014:224). Most of the violence caused by black men is deeply rooted in patriarchy.

Patriarchy is a system of beliefs and values that stems from political, social and economic

systems that promote gender inequality. Patriarchy undervalues emotions such as compassion

and empathy, while supporting aggressiveness in men (Nash, 2020). This suggests that there is

absolutely no room for vulnerable men under patriarchy. Furthermore, there seems to be a great

deal of frustration among black men, which could be attributed to the fact that most of them live

below the breadline. Breuer and Elson (2017:3) state that aggressive responses to frustration do

not prevent people from attaining goals and that it can be used as defence mechanism to cope

with frustration. With that said, one could argue that boxing allows one to be aggressive without

necessarily being frustrated. This does not mean that boxers do not get frustrated when they are

in the ring.


4

SELECTED ARTISTS

For the purpose of this study, I looked at the works of Tsoku Maela and Tracy Rose. I selected

Tsoku Maela because not only does his series Abstract Peaces speak to the notion of vulnerability,

but it also touches on one of the root causes of the said vulnerability, which in his case is anxiety

and depression. The work resonates with me because I suffer from depression and anxiety. In

terms of Tracy Rose, I look at her artwork “Love Me, Fuck Me” because it seems to speak to the

notion of the battle with the self and the shadow self to a certain extent.


5

The series Abstract Peaces was not so much a

structured body of work, but rather an outlet for

him to deal with his mental health condition.

The series chronicles the struggles that the

artist experienced through a collection of surreal

portraits. The work gives the view a visual

representation of the various stages the artist

went through on his way to recovery. There is a

strong use of metaphoric visual language,

which can be seen through the incorporation of

props such as rose, books and paint brush. I re-

SELECTED ARTIST

TSOKU MAELA

Fig 1: Tsoku Maela, (2016), Auxin, digital photograph

sonate with because during the peak of my struggle with depression , there was this strongsense

of desperation for something or someone to dig me out of the hole. In A Brief Reminder of Solitu-de

(2016), one can sense the desperation to be free from the shackles of mental illness. It can be said

that the rose in the frame is symbolic of love and that he is suggesting that love is all he needs to

help him deal with his struggles with depression.


6

Fig 2: Tsoku Maela, (2016), A Brief Reminder of Solitude, digital photograph

The title also suggests that it is not easy to

feel loved and supported when you are isolated.

In Auxin (2016), Maela is seen holding

onto the stem of a rose, while the petals lay

on the bed. This suggests that he can feel

the thorns of rose, but not see the petals.

When one is depressed, it is difficult for

them to see beauty amidst the pain they

would be going through. What I find most

compelling about the works is the fact there

is an element of intimacy and the allowing

of access to the self, which I assume is the

perfect way to capture the audience

(https://gupmagazine.com/portfolios/abstract-peaces/).


7

Rose has gathered information relating to gender

stereotypes from history and she finds joy in the

many guises. The concept of the boxer punching

herself with black and white gloves, while uttering

or reciting the words “Love Me. Fuck Me. Love

Me, Fuck Me” raises doubts in the minds of the

women who may have assumed that they were

no longer going to suffer from discrimination

based on gender or sex and race. Although, I was

not able to gather much on the artwork itself, I

assume that it touches on issues surrounding

the inflicting of violence of the self. I also think it

comments on the notions of insecurities and vulnerability

(Bedford, 2001). I draw inspiration from

it because of the use of boxing gloves as a

symbol of projected and protected violence. I am

very intrigued by the use of text in relation to the

SELECTED ARTIST

TRACY ROSE

Fig 3: Tracy Rose, (2001), Love Me, Fuck Me

colour of the gloves. For instance, she wrote “Fuck Me” on the white glove, which could be suggestive

of racism, whereas she wrote “Love Me” on the black glove, which could be symbolic of black

love. And the fact that fact that the white glove is hitting her is very potent in relation to the violent

nature of racism.


8


9

Media and Techniques

The media and techniques used in my body of work include video art and photography. I incorporated

a variety of materials into the creative process. I play with ideas surrounding vulnerability

and fragility within both private or personal and public spaces, in this case the gym. Boxing gloves

form an integral part of the work as symbols for the battles that men in our society face. I employ

the use of fabric, carbolineum, bubble wrap, fragile tape and stickers in the body of work. I also toy

with idea of masculinity being a glasshouse that one lives inside and therefore I use plexiglass to

illustrate the line between vulnerability and fragility. The aim is to build-up tension between the

materials such as shatter-able, see-through glass and the protectiveness of fabric as a veil, and to

explore their metaphorical potential to either hurt or safe keep. For the final presentation, photographic

prints on polyester fabric and transparency paper (framed and unframed) are suspended

from the ceiling in an attempt create a boxing ring-like structure. A punching bag, hanging from the

ceiling is also placed in the centre of the ring.


10

Video art: Label Me Not

Label Me Not (2023) is a video artwork that looks at masculinity as a product of society. I use the

employment of fragile stickers as symbols to indicate that men are products, as in they are shaped

into fragility by society. This artwork looks interrogates the notion of fragile masculinity. It asks

whether men are inherently fragile or whether they are fragile because society labels them as such.

I believe that fragility is projected onto the man by outside forces such as the patriarchal system,

gym culture and peer pressure, to name but a few. Quite often men succumb to societal pressure

and this leads to them internalising certain ideals pertaining to masculinity.


11

VIDEO ART

Label Me Not (2023)

Fig 4: Label Me Not (2023)


12

Drowning in Toxicity

Drowning in Toxicity (2023) investigates the concept of toxicity within one’s personal space and

also how it is projected outside the private space. The application of carbolineum on the body

comments on how the preservation of traditional norms of masculinity can be toxic to the self and

the society at large. Carbolineum is used on "dead wood", something that will not grow and is only

used to preserve existing structures and old norms. Boys are not born toxic, they are socialised

into toxicity. They are often told by others how a man should conduct themselves and sometimes

this involves toxic behaviour such as getting into fights, bullying and other acts of violence, which

they end up internalising. The video starts off with carbolineum being applied onto the model’s

body by an outside source, then the model starts applying it onto himself, thus internalising the

toxicity.


13

VIDEO ART

Drowning in Toxicity (2023)

Fig 5: Drowning in Toxicity (2023)


14

Unboxing Fragility

Unboxing Fragility (2023) takes a look at how fragility manifests itself within the context of a

semi-public space, in this case, the gym. The gym is a place I have visited plenty of times and every

time I encounter men who claim to be tough by virtue of having built muscles. Within the gym, there

is great deal of obsession with building big muscles among men and some of them tend to feel

insecure about how they look in relation to others. This leads to an unhealthy sense of competitiveness

that exposes one’s fragility. I tend to feel that gym culture promotes the need for people,

men in particular, act or react aggressively when they feel challenged, thus exhibiting a sense of

fragility.


15

VIDEO ART

Unboxing Fragility (2023)

Fig 6: Unboxing Fragility (2023)


16

Photography: Peaks and Valleys

Peaks and Valleys (2023) is a photography series that explores the various phases/stages of my

battle with depression and anxiety. I focus on the moments were there was complete darkness and

moments where there was a glimmer of hope. The use of fabric of various thickness and level of

translucency becomes essential in showing the different stages of one’s recovery from mental

illness. The fabric also alludes to the notion of a shroud, evokes an injured body and signals the

desire to hide and become invisible because of the scarred psyche. The use of bubble wrap speaks

to the notion of being fragile amidst the battle against depression, needing to be handled with care.

Carbolineum is incorporated into some of the photographs to allude to the fact that toxic energy is

exhausting, thus leaving one drained.


17

PHOTOGRAPHY

Down and Out Series 2023)

Fig 7: Down and Out I Fig 8: Down and Out II Fig 9: Down and Out III


18

PHOTOGRAPHY

Engulfed, But Ready to Fight Back Series (2023)

Fig 10: Engulfed, But Ready to Fight Back I Fig 11: Engulfed, But Ready to Fight Back II Fig 12: Engulfed, But Ready to Fight Back III


19

PHOTOGRAPHY

Within Reach Series (2023)

Fig 13: Within Reach I Fig 14: Within Reach II Fig 15: Within Reach III


20

PHOTOGRAPHY

Grey Area Series (2023)

Fig 16: Grey Area I Fig 17: Grey Area II Fig 18: Grey Area III


21

PHOTOGRAPHY

Product of Society Series( 2023)

Fig 19: Product of Society I Fig 20: Product of Society II Fig 21: Product of Society III


22

Conclusion

This study focuses on the relationship between masculinity and mental health. Male vulnerability,

fragile and toxic masculinity are themes that the study mainly addresses. Furthermore, the relationship

between these themes and the concept of space is explored. The study draws inspiration

from the works of Tsoku Maela and Tracy Rose. The study is desk-research study and it uses

grounded theory. The media techniques used include video art and photographs that are printed on

polyester fabric and transparency paper to illustrate the different stages of recovery from mental

illness.


23

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bedford, E.2001. Welcome to the Pearly Gates: The 49th Venice Biennale. Archive:no 50

https://artthrob.co.za/01oct/reviews/venice2.html Accessed 12/09/2023

Breuer, J., & Elson, M. (2017). Frustration-Aggression Theory. In P. Sturmey (Ed.), The Wiley Handbook

of Violence and Aggression (pp. 1-12). Chichester: Wiley Blackwell.

https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119057574.whbva040 Accessed 28/10/2023

Galla, S.(sn). Understanding male vulnerability by Dr. Brene Brown:Emotions. Mens Group

https://mensgroup.com/understanding-male-vulnerability/ Accessed 14/09/2023

https://artpace.org/exhibitions/technical-knockout-3/ Accessed 09 /09/2023

https://gupmagazine.com/portfolios/abstract-peaces/ Accessed 17/09/2023


24

Johansson, T.1996. Gendered spaces: the gym culture and the construction of gender. Young,

4(3):32-45

Khan, S.2014. Qualitative research method: grounded theory. International Journal of Business

and Management, 9(11)

Nash, C.J.2020. Patriarchy. International Encyclopedia of Human Geography (Second Edition),pp

43-47


25

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Front Cover: Masingi, T. Within Reach. 2023, Digital Photograph

Poem Cover: Masingi, T. A Glasshouse I Call Home. 2023, Digital Art

My Artworks Cover: Masingi, T. Breakthrough. 2023, Digital Art

Back Cover: Masingi, T. Glimmer of Hope. 2023, Digital Photograph

Figure 1: Maela, T. Auxin. 2016, Digital Photograph ...........................6

Figure 2: Maela, T. A Brief Reminder of Solitude. 2016, Digital Photograph ...........................7

Figure 3: Rose, T. Love Me, Fuck Me. 2001, Digital Photograph ............................8

Figure 4: Masingi, T. Label Me Not. 2023, Video Art Still .........................12

Figure 5: Masingi, T. Drowning in Toxicity. 2023, Video Art Still .........................14


26

Figure 6: Masingi, T. Unboxing Fragility. 2023, Video Art Still ..........................16

Figure 7: Masingi, T. Down and Out I. 2023, Digital Prints on Polyester Fabric, 29.7cm x 42cm

..........................18

Figure 8: Masingi, T. Down and Out II. 2023, Digital Prints on Polyester Fabric, 29.7cm x 42cm

..........................18

Figure 9: Masingi, T. Down and Out III. 2023, Digital Prints on Polyester Fabric, 29.7cm x 42cm

..........................18

Figure 10: Masingi, T. Engulfed, But Ready to Fight Back I.2023, Digital Photograph, 21cm x

29.7cm ..........................19

.


27

Figure 11: Masingi, T. Engulfed, But Ready to Fight Back II.2023, Digital Photograph, 29.7cm x

42cm ........................19

Figure 12: Masingi, T. Engulfed, But Ready to Fight Back III.2023, Digital Photograph, 21cm x

29.7cm.26 ........................19

Figure 13: Masingi, T. Within Reach I.2023, Digital Photograph, 29.7cm x 42cm ........................20

Figure 14: Masingi, T. Within Reach II.2023, Digital Photograph, 29.7cm x 42cm ........................20

Figure 15: Masingi, T. Within Reach III.2023, Digital Photograph, 29.7cm x 42cm ........................20

Figure 16: Masingi, T. Grey Area I.2023, Digital Photograph, 29.7cm x 42cm .........................21

.


28

Figure 17: Masingi, T. Grey Area II.2023, Digital Photograph, 21cm x 29.7cm .........................21

Figure 18: Masingi, T. Grey Area III.2023, Digital Photograph, 29.7cm x 42cm .........................21

Figure 19: Masingi, T. Product of Society I.2023, Digital Prints on Polyester Fabric, 29.7cm x 42cm

..........................22

Figure 20: Masingi, T. Product of Society II.2023, Digital Prints on Polyester Fabric, 29.7cm x

42cm ..........................22

Figure 21: Masingi, T. Product of Society III.2023, Digital Prints on Polyester Fabric, 29.7cm x

42cm ..........................22

.


29

ARTIST CV

2019

‘New’ - Group Exhibition. Johann Van Heerden Art and Gallery. Pretoria

2019

‘Visions Of The Soulful’ - Group Exhibition. Trent Gallery. Pretoria

2019

‘Africa Art Collective’ - Group Exhibition. Julie Miller Investment Art Institute. Johannesburg

2022

Unisa Third/Final Year Student Exhibition,Unisa Art Gallery. Pretoria

2023

'Between Ink and A Pleasant Place' - Group Exhibition. Trent Gallery. Pretoria

2023

Curated St. Alban's College Student Exhibition. Trent Gallery. Pretoria


30

thomasmas2604@gmail.com

+27 54 610 6549


A Glass House I Call Home: Unboxing Fragility

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