A free, open-air photography exhibition brings African stories into the heart of Cape Town’s CBD.
WORDS Neyani Mphephu PHOTOS Slater Studio
At the corner of Alpha and Lower Loop Streets in Cape Town’s CBD, a daily commute has become an encounter with African photography. The Mission for Inner City Cape Town has unveiled Alpha Street Gallery, a free, open-air exhibition that transforms one of the city’s busiest pedestrian routes – travelled by 8 600 people each weekday – into a space for pause and discovery.
The gallery presents two collections, curated by Ruby Schalit of ICLEI Africa and Shani Judes of SJ Artists. Unsung Heroes, developed through AfriFOODlinks’ #AfricanCITYFOODMonth photography competition, features winning images selected from more than 180 submissions by photographers across the continent. The collection celebrates the often-unseen individuals who sustain urban food systems – informal traders, community growers, researchers, educators and custodians of traditional food knowledge. City in Motion, a retrospective drawing on six years of RISE Africa’s annual photography competitions, offers perspectives on how people experience, shape and reimagine cities, capturing the movement and complexity of African urban life.
SJ Artists and Orms bring a track record of outdoor photography to the project, having staged similar displays along the Sea Point Promenade. “Our vision has always been to create an Inner City that feels vibrant, welcoming and alive every day of the week,” says Brad Armitage, co-founder of Mission for Inner City Cape Town. “Every artwork, every activation and every investment in the public realm gives people another reason to walk, explore and reconnect with Cape Town.”
“Cities are remembered because of how they make people feel,” says Brad. “Public spaces should do more than simply move people from one place to another. They should spark curiosity, encourage people to stop, connect and experience the city differently.”
For Ruby, displaying the images in the heart of the city carries its own significance. “Bringing these images together helps us see African urban life in all its diversity and displaying them in the heart of Cape Town means those stories can now become part of thousands of people’s everyday journey through the city,” she says.
Shani sees the work as a means of strengthening how people relate to their surroundings. “When our cities celebrate local stories and lived experiences, public spaces become places of pride, connection and belonging,” she says.
Free to visit, Alpha Street Gallery invites commuters, residents and visitors alike to encounter African photography in an unexpected setting – proof that some of Cape Town’s most inspiring galleries have no walls at all. missionforinnercity.org | africa.iclei.org
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