Mary Fitzgerald Square; Apartheid Museum Citichat 11 January 2002

CITICHAT 1/2002 - 11 January 2002

Mary Fitzgerald Square; Apartheid Museum

Hi, and a happy and successful 2002 to y’all. May this new year be the “Year of the City”, not just for Johannesburg but for cities throughout the world and particularly for those in South Africa. As 2002 kicks into gear, I remain confident about ‘Joeys’ for we will continue to build off the real progress that took material form during 2001 - which in turn was rooted in the foundational work of the past five years.

December 2001 proved to be an exciting month (not just in terms of ‘more rand per pound’although that is more terrifying than exciting!) but with the opening of Mary Fitzgerald Square by President Thabo Mbeki as well as the Apartheid Museum at Gold Reef City. OK, the latter isn’t exactly in the city centre but is near enough to be viewed as a kissing cousin and certainly can become an important addition to the tourist trail. Plus, the announcement that the World Hockey championship will be staged in Randburg in February 2002 – the original venue was to have been Dubai and the move was occasioned for security reasons. Now there’s a first – Johannesburg chosen for its safety! Plus, the Earth Summit in September. This promises to be quite a year.

The Mary Fitzgerald opening was a fun event attracting a large, enthusiastic crowd and provided some great music, fireworks and the impressive lighting designed by French lighting expert Patrick Rimoux. The huge electronic - LED - screen was a practical addition and one looks forward to the building of the commemorative landmark tower and the final positioning of the screen. The occasion illustrated the potential that the area has for becoming a meaningful and well used urban space, a venue that will attract and enhance social interaction, something that the city greatly lacks. The criticism by the “artist, dramatist and town planner” in the Sunday Independent later that month (whom I think just also happened to be part of one of the unsuccessful design submissions!) under the banner “Tidy paving isn’t the heart of an ailing city” could have added to a useful debate if it wasn’t so pretentious! “The ‘science’ of removal and replacement has lodged itself arrogantly in our national pysche and seems to have led us, wittingly or unwittingly, to regard our cities as vacant lots for global prophylactics like the Victoria and Albert Waterfront.”

Ja, well, OK, fine!

As opposed to Mary Fitzgerald Square, a physical space to attract social interaction, The Apartheid Museum is a spiritual place aimed at creating a public memory of heinous crimes against humanity. It does so by telling a story which is forcefully conveyed to the viewer. Although there are numerous devices or imagery that are utilised to support the narrative, it was the black and white photography, particularly that of Ernest Cole, that I found chillingly emotive. The images hit me almost physically and one actually starts to feel quite numbed as one progresses through displays that illustrate fanatical implementation alongside determined and dramatic resistance. Unlike many such institutions, the museum building itself is part of the story. It is unostentatious and understated yet evocative and symbolic of the story it frames and the backdrops it provides. Pity then, that because it was a contractual obligation (it was a carrot offered to the authorities by the promoters of the now built adjacent casino!) it is situated where it is, what Alan Lipman described as “an inauspicious suburban, and architecturally crass, location.” It will clearly be on the tourist agenda, but it should be made compulsory viewing for locals.

Undoubtedly, two more assets adding to the progress, this is going to be a great year!