WORDS Palesa Mohola PHOTOS Courtesy of FNB Art Joburg

In a city deemed nobody’s home, FNB Art Joburg has become a gathering where artists, galleries, collectors and cultural producers converge to engage with work that shapes how Africa sees itself and how the world sees Africa.

The fair returns for its 19th edition this year at the Sandton Convention Centre from the 4th to the 6th of September with multiple celebrations from its curated fair sections and public programme, to city-wide initiatives such as Open City, which returns in partnership with Brand South Africa, the BMW Art Generation, and the celebration of Johannesburg’s 140th birthday.

“Johannesburg has always been a place where ambition meets possibility; where artists, entrepreneurs, thinkers and communities arrive carrying different histories and leave having built something entirely new. It is a city propelled by movement, sustained by inquiry and shaped by people willing to imagine beyond what already exists. That restless energy has made Johannesburg one of the continent’s great cultural engines, and it remains the reason FNB Art Joburg continues to call this city home,” says fair director Mandla Sibeko.

With dozens of exhibitors, the fair is designed to highlight a distinct facet of contemporary art in eight specialised sections: Gallery HUB, Gallery LAB, MAX, GIF, INK, AUX, ORG, and the newly added ARC section, ensuring that there is something for everyone.

Gallery HUB: Showcases Africa’s leading galleries, representing institutionally recognised artists shaping global narratives.

MAX: An extension of the fair’s Gallery HUB presents large-scale installations that reimagine scale, space and audience engagement.

Gallery LAB: Curated by Kim Kandan (Fair Manager, FNB Art Joburg), Gallery LAB supports emerging and hybrid spaces that experiment with new modes of presentation and representation.

ORG: Gives visibility to non-profit and artist-run initiatives driving cultural infrastructure and community building.

AUX: Offers talks, screenings and performances that invite audiences into meaningful conversations about art and its contexts.

INK (formerly ETC): Celebrates print culture, spanning critical writing and art publications to artist books and limited-edition prints that acknowledge language and documentation as central to cultural legacy.

GIF: Focuses on photography as one of South Africa’s most significant artistic mediums, tracing both its histories and its futures.

ARC: This new section expands how contemporary artistic practice is encountered at the fair. Dedicated to artists and works that challenge convention, it creates a space for discovery, dialogue and critical inquiry. | artjoburg.com

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INTERVIEW BY Palesa Mohola PHOTOS Courtesy of Berman Contemporay

While many walk along the shore to collect shells and cute pebbles, Thirza collects plastic waste that has washed ashore, which she takes to her studio to make bright and colourful sculptures that are later photographed and disposed of – because her sculptures are not made for permanence, but rather to raise awareness around pollution and to try to prevent, or at least reduce, the use of plastic.

Here, Thirza tells us about her plastic-reuse practices and current body of work.

What first inspired you to create After the Tide, and what story are you hoping this exhibition tells?

“After the Tide is an exhibition curated by Candice Berman (Berman Contemporary), showing a selection of previously unseen works from the Plastic Ocean series, as well as new works specially made for this exhibition. The new works are a series of sculptures photographed against a white background in the bright African sunlight. These playful 3D collages (sculptures) receive full attention in the harsh sunlight against the plain background.

“The exhibition is intended to provoke questions about consumption, idolatry, and what it is we value in our lives today. It also examines our changing relationship with plastics and the increasing and overwhelming presence they have in our lives.”

Your work transforms discarded plastic into still-life photographs. What draws you to finding beauty in materials that most people would overlook?

“I see the beauty in the pieces of plastic washed ashore, aged by the currents, salt, and time. The faded colours made me keep the items I picked up instead of disposing of them. They felt like small treasures that I had found and wanted to keep.”

Can you walk us through your creative process, from collecting plastic on the coastline to producing the final sculpture to photograph?

“At the start of the project, I picked up daily waste from the beaches, created a work each day, and posted it on Instagram. Later, I went on trips to desolate beaches to find even more interesting treasures.

“I built small, one-minute sculptures, which often collapsed while I was photographing them. The unstable structures needed only a breeze of wind to fall into pieces. At one point, I was tempted to make the impermanent structures permanent and started to fix them together.”

Your photographs evoke the style of traditional still-life paintings. Why was it important for you to reference that art-historical tradition in this body of work?

“The Plastic Ocean series provides a kind of Vanitas for the 21st century. Traditional icons of mortality, ephemerality, and wealth have been traded out for bottles, baskets, and bowls: single-use items which are used and discarded, now only existing as empty vessels of destruction.”

Has there been a particular object you’ve found on a beach that stayed with you emotionally or changed the way you think about plastic pollution?

“One of my first finds was a bottle which could still stand on its own, but half of the bottle was gone, as if a shark had taken a bite out of it. What changed the way I think about plastic pollution is the enormous and endless amount of it that I find.”

Your work is at the intersection of art and environmental awareness. Do you see yourself primarily as an artist, an environmental advocate, or both?

“I am primarily an artist with great emotional depth; that is what drives me to make art.

“But honestly, I cannot say one or the other. I would say they are inseparable. The ecological grief I experience is the motor behind my work in Plastic Ocean, the Fatal Flowers painting series, and the personal grief in my figurative paintings.”

Many viewers may initially be captivated by the beauty of your images before realising they’re made from waste. How do you hope that moment of realisation affects them?

“The images show a clash between worlds, offering minimal and aesthetically pleasing compositions which, on closer inspection, instil a sense of ecological grief. Plastic Ocean questions consumption, idolatry, and what it is we value in our lives today. The effect is a quirky, playful, and Pop Art paradox.

“At first glance, the debris do not disgust us. On the contrary, their dainty appearance almost seems to gloss over the ugliness of all the plastic pollution on our beaches. But only for an instant. Our initial attraction soon fades.”

What conversations do you hope After the Tide will spark among audiences here in Cape Town, a city with such a strong connection to the ocean?

“The visibility of the problem is important, and we need to pass our concern on to the younger generation. It should be part of education in schools.”

After spending years documenting plastic pollution through your work, has your own relationship with consumption and sustainability changed? If so, how?

“I learned that we are well-trained consumers, and that is something that should change. We don’t need a new this and that most of the time. ‘Use what you have and buy what you need’ is a slogan that helps me every time I am tempted to buy something.

“I can still be tempted sometimes. What is a great help as well is to sleep on a decision to buy something. You will see that most of the time the urge passes, and you forget about it.” plastic-ocean.net | @thirzaschaap

After the Tide runs until 28 November at Berman Contemporary in the Silo District at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront. | bermancontemporary.com

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WORDS Neyani Mphephu PHOTOS Courtesy of ORMS School of Photography

What happens when you take beauty seriously? When softness becomes a strategy, and joy a form of resistance? These are the questions at the heart of Pretty Serious, the second annual Women’s Month exhibition from ORMS School of Photography and Art School Africa.

Following the inaugural Many Selves in August 2025, the exhibition returns, but the mood has shifted. Pretty Serious explores the playful, excessive, tender, ridiculous, stylish, emotional and joyful dimensions of femininity – qualities so often dismissed as frivolous, yet used here as a delicate art of resistance. It is, at its core, a light feminine touch applied to the long, heavy conversation around womanhood. Invited artists engage with femininity as a space of imagination, exploring what it means to find power in softness, romanticise the everyday, embrace excess, or perform femininity on one’s own terms. The result is a show that resists easy categorisation, leaning into the messy, glorious contradictions of being a woman in 2026.

Curated and produced by Buchanan & Co., a Cape Town-based strategic advisory focused on contemporary art from Africa, the exhibition brings together a wide range of practices spanning painting, photography, sculpture, printmaking, collage and fibre art. Featured artists include:

• Alexia Smit
• Alka Jiven
• Celeste Jacobs
• Edinah Chagwedera
• Inge Prins
• Kauthar Kamish
• Khanyisa Buthelezi
• Kristen McClarty
• Zarah Cassim
• Nina Turok Shapiro
• Lauren Hendricks
• Martha Kubule
• Myra Brown
• Sanell Aggenbach
• Antonia Steyn
• Reem Aljeally
• Sera Holland
• Sharday Swanepoel
• Sundus Saad
• Zimkhitha Mabonga

From established names to emerging voices, the roster reflects a generation of Cape Town-based practitioners redefining what feminine creativity looks like on their own terms and in their own media.

The collaboration brings together three forces with a shared investment in South Africa’s creative future. ORMS has anchored the creative retail landscape for more than 30 years, serving photographers, filmmakers and artists with equipment, fine art printing and educational initiatives such as the Cape Town School of Photography. Art School Africa, a registered non-profit, equips the next generation of artists, curators and writers with the skills to build sustainable careers through education and mentorship. Buchanan & Co., founded by Julia Buchanan, whose background spans Zeitz MOCAA, Norval Foundation and the Harvard University Center for African Studies, guides the project’s curation and production with research and relationships at its core. Together, they have made the Women’s Month exhibition an annual fixture on the Cape Town art calendar.

Pretty Serious is on view until August 2026 at ORMS School of Photography. ormsdirect.co.za | @ormsctsp

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WORDS Palesa Mohola PHOTOS Supplied

Sasol New Signatures continues to be South Africa’s longest-running platform for emerging visual artists to showcase their talents and gain recognition and exposure within the art world. This September, 2025 Sasol New Signatures winner Juandré van Eck is exhibiting a new body of work built on the ideas explored in his winning work, Cycles of the Mind – sculptures that invite visitors to interact with them directly, to give the work its breath and, in doing so, discover its voice within the valley.

“Winning Sasol New Signatures has given me the opportunity to push my practice further and realise my ideas on a much larger scale,” says Juandré. “Die Vallei van Adem asks people not simply to look at the work, but to activate it. Every interaction gives the sculptures breath and voice, making each visitor part of the artwork itself.”

Die Vallei van Adem is a fascinating collection of ceramic sound vessels that challenge the traditional relationship between artwork and audience. Each vessel is constructed from two connected chambers, where the smaller works produce higher tones and the larger forms produce deeper sounds, creating something that feels closer to a choir than a collection of individual objects.

“Juandré’s work demonstrates a remarkable understanding of material, concept and audience engagement. He transforms ceramics into something that is not only visually compelling but also deeply experiential, inviting participation in ways that expand our understanding of contemporary sculpture. It is exciting to see how his practice has evolved since winning a Merit award in 2024 and then being crowned the winner last year,” says Cate Terblanche, Sasol Art Curator and Sasol New Signatures judge.

Alongside van Eck’s solo exhibition, this year’s broader Sasol New Signatures show features 123 selected artworks, including works by the Runner-up and Merit Award recipients.

Die Vallei van Adem and the 2026 Sasol New Signatures exhibition will open to the public on 10 September 2026 and run until 8 November 2026. | sasolsignatures.co.za

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WORDS AND PHOTOS Julia Franco

I am Brazilian, and I run a Brazilian design store in Cape Town. Although I left Brazil nearly 20 years ago and have since lived on three continents, some instincts never fade. I remain instinctively drawn to craft , to the human touch in objects and, inevitably, to colour. Distance has given me perspective, but it hasn’t diluted that connection. If anything, it’s clarified it. And the position I now occupy, between Brazil and Africa, sharpened that perspective. In South Africa, too, there is a profound respect for material, for land, for handwork. The dialogue between Brazilian and African craft feels less like import/export, and more like recognition. Both contexts understand scarcity, adaptation, and beauty born from process rather than polish.

So when I flew to São Paulo in February, invited by the Brazilian Association of Utilities and Gift Companies to visit its main fair, I went with curiosity and a long mental shopping list. I’d been before, but this edition felt different: bigger, busier, louder. Hundreds of exhibitors – Brazilian brands and international importers – all gathered in one place, offering a snapshot of what design looks like when industry and creativity share the room. Alongside long-time collaborators of NOSSO, I met a host of new designers and makers.

Some of the most exciting discoveries came from unexpected corners. Cleaning tools, for example – brooms ingeniously designed for pet hair, sponges capable of tackling everything from oil to paint. Even hotel china surprised me: porcelain dishes engineered to maintain the temperature of the food without burning your hands. It was proof that serious design can elevate ordinary objects. Aisle after aisle revealed the most random, inventive and captivating pieces. Walking through the halls, it struck me that Brazilian design mirrors its people– a little messy, theatrical, full of personality. Even the smallest objects seemed to pulse with life. It felt like coming home.

I also noticed an interesting shift: some designers are keeping their collections conceptually local while producing components abroad – in Peru, Turkey or China. It’s a curious but compelling mix, introducing new finishes and materials without losing that Brazilian soul.

Beyond the main fair, I made time to visit smaller, independent studios – the kinds of makers we’re drawn to at NOSSO. In these smaller spaces, work unfolds more slowly and thoughtfully. The visits offered a welcome counterpoint to the grandeur of the exhibition halls, with design revealing itself as a process rather than a product, deeply rooted in material knowledge and in the sheer joy of making.

I was particularly excited to visit an atelier I’d had my eye on for some time: Atelier Da Renata. Renata, a ceramics teacher, started making her own colourful jugs and plates almost as a hobby. Her passion project became something much bigger – so she hired some of her students and today runs a vibrant studio with nine younger artists. Every day at 11am, the kiln is opened and everyone gathers around to see what’s come from the firing, cheering one another’s pieces as they come out. It was genuinely special to witness this ritual; a small daily moment that captures the collaborative spirit of the atelier. Later in the afternoon, at 3pm, they pause again for cake and conversation – an informal for cake and conversation – an informal break dedicated to chatting about studio life. Sadly, I had to miss that, although I suspect it might be just as important to the creative process as the kiln itself.

The trip concluded with a second event, organised by the Brazilian Association of High-End Decor Furniture Industries. Here, ideas that I had seen quietly brewing over the past few years finally emerged, bold and self-assured. It felt like witnessing a creative language that was coming fully into its own.

Comfort, Craft, Materials, Curves, Retro…

I feel the Latino world has been trending, and there’s a special comfort in seeing this world up close. There’s a rhythm, a warmth and a bit of chaos that somehow makes sense. Bad Bunny’s success (yes, I’m a bit obsessed with him right now!) reminds us there’s so much happening in Latin America – music, art, design; an entire world that’s full of personality. With everything else feeling uncertain, it’s grounding to see the beauty in that little mess, that organised chaos, and how it translates into strong colours and organic forms.

Comfort and warmth are in. Everywhere I looked, deep, earthy tones were making interiors feel cosy instead of stiff. They aren’t only used on furniture and details, but on walls and flooring too, making the homes look like a safe space to live in. Fabrics that you want to touch – linen, bouclé, suede, leather – were everywhere, reminders of the idea that a home should be enjoyed and not just looked at.

Handcrafted pieces were presented on a strong setting. They aren’t nostalgic; they are current, confident. Natural materials were a highlight, especially wood mixed with stone or other organic touches. One of my favourite pieces is from a collection that adds natural stone to porcelain, giving an imperfect shape to vases.

I loved seeing materials play off each other: wood, metal, textiles, all working together in balanced ways. Curves are still everywhere, but they are sharper and more precise: it’s structure tempered by softness. Retro elements are also quietly coming back: straw, wicker and outdoor furniture reimagined, giving that familiar feel to new shapes. Upholstered pieces are generous and inviting, quietly waiting for someone to rest on them.

Between Factories and Craft

One of the trip’s biggest takeaways was seeing the industrial and the handmade worlds coexist. On one side, factories are producing with consistency; on the other, small studios are shaping clay, fibres and pigments by hand, with irregularity part of their charm. Rather than competing, these two worlds seem to strengthen each other.

Functional objects are no longer satisfied with efficiency alone. They now aim to improve daily rituals – sleeping, cooking, organising – with a sense of individuality. Even the most practical tools seem to carry a dose of poetry. One cutlery supplier, for example, presented an affordable set with plastic handles that perfectly mimicked leather; the illusion was so convincing you almost couldn’t tell the difference.

Playful, Thoughtful, Human

There was also a strong presence of responsible and thoughtful design – products built to last that are beautiful and comfortable. Authorial design and artistic ceramics are getting more attention in big Brazilian platforms, with an honest connection to materials, usage and time.

But alongside that seriousness, there’s playfulness. Figurative objects – ice buckets shaped like fruit, tables that looked like puzzles, tiny sculptural containers – show that humour and elegance can coexist. Interiors no longer have to be neutral; they’re a reflection of the people who live in them. Colour is a statement. Form tells a story. The tactile and the playful live side by side with confidence, suggesting layered interiors full of intention and character, where every element speaks of time: time devoted to making, time spent composing each layer, time invested in collecting and shaping a space. It felt, instantly, that this young, jovial Brazil is maturing – carrying its history and references with greater depth without losing its spirit.

The Streets in São Paulo

Walking the streets between appointments, I noticed that the city itself feels like a design laboratory. Graffiti, hand-painted signs, street stalls, bold tiles on building facades… all of it feels curated and chaotic at the same time. There’s something comforting about it, actually, because it feels familiar. It’s life in motion: messy, sure – but the chaos has rhythm.

Even small objects can tell a story. A handmade bowl at a fancy restaurant, a brightly coloured chair at the barber, a tiny sculpture hiding in a corner of a shop – they are calling your attention to the moment. It’s as if the makers are saying, “Slow down and look!” And in a world that can feel too fast, the message is comforting.

I also realised that even the shortest trip can change your gaze. I saw familiar colours and textures, but the combinations were new. There’s joy in seeing something traditional, like a straw chair or a clay vase, reinterpreted in a way that feels fresh. That tension between heritage and invention is exactly what makes Brazilian design so alive right now.

Brazilian Design in Transition

Across fairs and studios, the picture is clear: Brazilian design is evolving. It’s rooted in heritage, but open to technology, collaboration and new ways of telling stories. Shape and colour matter – but so does meaning and emotional connection.

For me as the curator at NOSSO, this trip is already shaping what we will bring in next. We don’t chase trends; we listen to makers and the direction design is taking, so we can translate this energy into objects that can live in different contexts while keeping their character intact.

The future looks playful and strong in identity, making even the most practical objects a little surprising. And through it all runs that Latino heartbeat: colourful, imperfect, joyful, reassuring. It’s a reminder that chaos and beauty are not opposites – sometimes, they’re the same thing. | nosso.co.za

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WORDS Steve Smith PHOTOS Inge Prins

Positioned as the city’s first curated private members’ club, the new venue aims to bring together entrepreneurs, creatives, investors and cultural leaders in a setting designed to encourage conversation, collaboration and community.

While exclusivity is inherent to the private members’ club model, Maison Grace places equal emphasis on cultural exchange and meaningful connection. The club has been conceived as a place where members can meet over breakfast, work through the day, entertain clients, or attend an evolving calendar of dinners, wine tastings, talks, literary evenings and live performances.

“Maison Grace was born from a simple observation: when people with shared curiosity and purpose come together in the right setting, something quietly extraordinary happens,” says Development Director Samantha Wallace. “Our ambition was to create a place where people don’t simply visit, but genuinely feel they belong.”

The Art

Art and design are central to that vision. In collaboration with Southern Guild, Maison Grace has assembled a museum-quality collection of contemporary African art that transforms the club into a de facto satellite gallery for the Cape Town gallery, with every work available for purchase. Rather than serving as decoration, the collection has been curated to encourage reflection and conversation, introducing members to some of the continent’s most compelling artistic voices.

Among the highlights are Moroccan artist Amine El Gotaibi’s sculptural steel panel exploring Africa’s natural resources, Terence Maluleke’s evocative A Love Letter to Joburg paintings, and photographs from Zanele Muholi’s acclaimed Somnyama Ngonyama (Hail the Dark Lioness) self-portrait series. Iranian-born, Cape Town-based Kamyar Bineshtarigh’s distinctive glue-transfer works animate the staircase and dining spaces, while additional pieces by Patrick Bongoy, Jesse Ede, Alexandra Karakashian, Daniel Levi, Chuma Maweni, Nandipha Mntambo and Dominique Zinkpè further reinforce the club’s commitment to contemporary African creativity.

The Interiors

The interiors echo the same philosophy. Warm, tactile materials, intimate lounges and carefully considered detailing create spaces that are elegant without feeling formal, with works of art woven seamlessly into the architecture and daily experience of the club rather than confined to gallery walls.

The Food

The culinary offering has been developed in collaboration with Paris Society Consulting, the team behind Parisian restaurants LouLou, Gigi and Coco, balancing international sophistication with a distinctly South African identity. Local produce and wines sit alongside a globally inspired menu, reinforcing the club’s position as both a destination and a gathering place.

Maison Grace is backed by Kasada, the hospitality investment platform behind the neighbouring Cape Grace, a Fairmont Managed Hotel, bringing with it a strong emphasis on attentive service and discreet hospitality.

With membership intentionally limited and by referral, Maison Grace is less about exclusivity for its own sake than creating a community of people who actively contribute to Cape Town’s cultural and entrepreneurial landscape. As the city continues to establish itself as a global creative capital, Maison Grace hopes to become one of its most compelling new addresses – one where hospitality, art and design intersect as naturally as the conversations taking place within its walls. maisongraceclub.com | @maisongraceclub

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WORDS Palesa Mohola PHOTOS Supplied

A new platform for KZN’s creative economy makes its debut at the Hilton Arts Festival. With its ever-evolving cultural influence, KwaZulu-Natal becomes firm ground for the KZN Art Fair, an independent, professionally curated exposition, co-founded by Lungelo Mkhize and Angela Shaw to form strong roots in the province.

The Making Ground exhibition serves as a spotlight for the excellence and ingenuity of KZN practitioners shaping contemporary South African material culture. Taking its name from the poem Dunes by A. R. Ammons, a meditation on the act of building something of value in uncertain conditions, the exhibition, created in partnership with Belgotex, is arranged across four curatorial themes: industrial, mythic, earthen and geometric exploration. The showcase includes pieces by The Ninevites, Siviwe Jali, Astrid Dahl, Studio Kalki, ifa crafted by the KZNSA Gallery, Mess by Kevin Boyd, Crooks Goods, Belgotex’s Pietermaritzburg-based YUDU brand, and others.

Belgotex, a proudly South African flooring manufacturer with more than 40 years of experience in the commercial and residential carpet industry, committed to circular design principles and environmental responsibility, brings to life a collaboration curated by Lauren Lockhart-Barker, design strategist of The Forgotten Flexible, and Angela Shaw, co-founder of the inaugural KZN Art Fair.

“They get it; Belgotex understands the connection between high-capacity production, creative innovation and the design sustainability that emerges when the two are brought together,” says Angela, describing why Belgotex is a logical partner for this collaboration. “South Africa has extraordinary creative talent, but talent alone is not enough; it needs a manufacturing base that can bring it to life at scale, with quality, and on home soil,” adds Lauren Lockhart-Barker.

This landmark exhibition can be viewed at the Memorial Hall at Hilton College for free from 7-9 August 2026. | kznartfair.com

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WORDS Palesa Mohola PHOTOS Supplied

Artist Proof Studio is one of South Africa’s leading centres for printmaking, combining professional printmaking facilities with an internationally recognised educational programme. For 35 years, APS has played a pivotal role in developing generations of South African artists while promoting printmaking as a powerful and accessible contemporary art form.

“Our exhibition in KwaZulu-Natal earlier this year was an encouraging experience, and returning for the KZN Art Fair allows us to continue those conversations. We are excited to share the breadth of South African printmaking while learning more about how collectors and audiences in the region engage with the work,” says Nathi Simelane, APS Chief Operating Officer.

Established in 1991 by Kim Berman and the late Nhlanhla Xaba, the renowned Johannesburg-based printmaking centre features the work of 22 artists in a display centred around dialogue. The display includes works by different generations of artists, creating conversations about the different techniques and evolving approaches to printmaking – from archive prints by celebrated South African artists to newly released editions by emerging voices redefining the medium – all to be seen at the annual Hilton Arts Festival.

“Printmaking offers remarkable diversity – not only in artistic expression but also in technique, scale and accessibility. We want visitors to discover work that surprises them and artists they may encounter for the first time, while recognising many of the established names that have shaped South African contemporary art,” says Simelane.

This exhibition is set to reveal an unexpected combination of techniques – including lithography and screen printing — as well as varying scales and materials, demonstrating how printmaking continues to expand beyond its traditional boundaries and highlighting its enduring relevance within South Africa’s visual arts landscape.

Featured artists include

Bambo Sibiya • Cassius Khumalo • Jan Tshikhuthula • Kagiso Diale • Kim Berman • Lebohang Motaung • Lehlogonolo Masoabi • Mashir Kresenshun • Mary Sibande • Moloko Mabota • Mongezi Ncaphayi • Nathi Ndlandla • Nelson Makamo • Norman Catherine • Phillemon Hlungwani • Ramarutha Makoba • Raymond Fuyana • Sue Martin • Thabang Lehobye • Themba Khumalo • Walter Oltmann • William Kentridge

The collaboration between The Hilton Arts Festival, a mosaic of experiences with over 25 000 visitors and a platform for both established and emerging talent; the inaugural KZN Art Fair, which aims to create new opportunities for artists, galleries, designers and collectors; and APS, which has a long-standing commitment to nurturing artistic talent and advancing printmaking as one of the country’s most dynamic creative disciplines, promises long-lasting relationships with collectors, galleries and audiences in the region.

Visitors will not only see beautiful artworks, but will also learn more about the Studio’s internationally respected training programme, which has produced generations of leading South African artists. artistproofstudio.co.za | kznartfair.com

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PHOTOS Thea Cogil/Courtesy of Curación Collection

Sourcing clay from the land around him, South African clay artist Mick Haigh forms each vessel by hand before firing it in a long wood-fired kiln. Each piece carries the marks of flame, ash and chance, shaped as much by nature as by the maker.

His Kiln IV collection speaks to ritual and slowness, offering vessels made to be held, used and lived with.

Curación Collection shares this focus on process, material and intention: a commitment to the quiet beauty of everyday ritual. Here, Mick tells us about his practice and current body of work.

What do you hope people feel or carry with them after encountering your work in this space?

“Connection, that humans are not just visitors but part of this living planet. Finding your place at home here in this wild world changes a lot.”

Your work is shaped by earth, fire and time. How do these forces influence your approach to making?

“My approach is not cerebral; clay comes from the earth, not a plastic bag. Wood comes from trees and time from the sun. All these raw elements speak for themselves; I connect the conversation. My approach is counterintuitive: what can this clay around me do, what temperature will it vitrify at, how thick does the vessel wall have to be to stand up to fire, and how long will the fire heat take to vitrify the clay? So materials influence the making as much as my ideas about what to make.”

Can you speak to the role of slowness and process in your practice?

“Slowness and process intertwine through materials. Clay air dries at its own rate based on airflow and humidity, and wood burns at the rate of oxygen supply. My practice is governed by how my materials behave, and how much I can modify them.

“The sun and moon cycles happen independent of how busy we are. Our minds bend time. Natural materials like clay and wood behave outside of time. My practice captures this time, recording the slow process of turning malleable clay born of eroded rock over millions of years into hard, enduring rock again. Bending time through material provenance.”

What inspired you to create this body of work?

“My inspiration comes from knowing that living with meaningful objects can create meaning in our lives. How objects make you feel enhances your quality of life. Do we need more objects in this world? I think we need more feeling in this world.”

How does your current body of work explore a sense of place?

“Provenance is very powerful, connecting humans to source. Being rooted in the familiar warmth of earth, the non-challenging warmth of things made by hand for human comfort gives a sense of I am part of this place, not a superior observer but part of this living world which I affect and which affects me. Connection.”

What values do you feel you share with the Curación Collection, and the body of work you’re creating?

“Human living/leisure environment can only be as good as the evolved thought put into its creation. I create pieces which I feel are not available. I have thought about how I can supply vessels, artworks, pieces to enhance living spaces and quality of life. I feel much goes into the building and designing of structures, and not enough attention goes into how they feel because of what we put in them and how we use them. What we choose to live with. After decades of designing and making tabletop ceramics, I am now using my clay knowledge and skill to explore vessels as art pieces as feelings of expression. I strongly feel the living/workspace edit is long overdue. The values we have in common lie in the quality of feeling and expression, no more average to get the job done.” curacion-collection.co.za | mickhaigh.com

Mick Haigh’s work will be on display at Curación – 9 Orphan Street, Cape Town – from 6th August until the 30th August.

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PHOTOS Courtesy of RK Contemporary

Innovative Threads II returns to RK Contemporary from 2–30 August 2026, with an exhibition spotlighting eight South African contemporary fibre artists.

Originally founded by Margie Garratt in 1996, Innovative Threads championed contemporary fibre art long before the medium gained the widespread recognition it enjoys today. The exhibition established an international reputation over a decade of touring exhibitions in the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Japan and New Zealand. With Margie’s blessing, Astrid McLeod, owner and curator of RK Contemporary, has revived the exhibition that helped shape her own journey into the contemporary art world, with the aim of re-establishing it as an annual celebration of innovation, creativity and contemporary fibre art.

“What excites me most about this exhibition is the individuality of the artists. Although they all work with fibre, no two approach the medium in the same way, creating work that reflects distinctly different perspectives and challenges traditional perceptions of textile art. Each artist brings a completely different perspective, making this an exhibition full of discovery, conversation and unexpected connections,” says Astrid McLeod, owner and curator of RK Contemporary.

From deconstructed protea fibres and meditative patchwork to sculptural felt vessels and hand-woven wool works, the exhibition features works by Katja Abbott, Willemien de Villiers, Dineo Ponde Mafora, Leah Johnson, Leila Walter, Nina Kruger, Virginia McKenny & Margaret Courtney-Clarke and Berdine van der Mescht.

More than a showcase of exceptional textile practice, Innovative Threads II demonstrates how contemporary artists are redefining the possibilities of fibre.

Innovative Threads II is showing at RK Contemporary, 32 Main Street, Riebeek-Kasteel from 2–30 August 2026. | rkcontemporary.com

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