Litnet

Jemma Kahn grew up in Johannesburg. She studied Fine Art and Performance at WITS university. Shortly after graduating, Jemma spent two years in Hiroshima province, Japan, where she learned the visual storytelling medium known as kamishibai. This compact, highly visual medium has had an enduring impact on her work. Upon returning to South Africa, Jemma collaborated with many talented South African visual artists, writers and directors to produce her kamishibai trilogy The Epicene Butcher (dir. John Trengove, 2012), We Didn’t Come to Hell for the Croissants (dir. Lindiwe Matshikiza, 2015) and In bocca al lupo (dir. Jane Taylor, 2016). In 2018 Kahn won the Standard Bank Young Artist for Theatre Award and wrote, directed, illustrated and starred in The Borrow Pit as her showcase for the award. A year later she wrote and starred in Cellist with Rabies (dir. Jaco Bouwer, 2019). Kahn has performed her work extensively both nationally and internationally. She currently lives in Cape Town and is doing her Honours in Psychology at UWC.

Photo: Jemma Kahn in The Borrow Pit. (Picture: Retha Ferguson and SUWF)