Art; Bus Factory Citichat 3 May 2002

CITICHAT 17/2002 - 3 May 2002


Art and the City – 2


I think I received more comment on the subject matter of last week’s Citichat than any previous issue! Art is clearly central in getting the city’s cultural juices flowing and, whilst JHB ART CITY is a project that is going to fire the imagination, there is much, much more happening on the local art scene!

Firstly, there is going to be a serious amount of visual art-related exhibitions mounted for the World Summit and also for the Arts Alive International Festival that follows it. Planned for instance are:

• an exhibition of works by Gladys Mgudlana and Historical and Contemporary South African Art at the Johannesburg Art Gallery (and yes, the Council will be pressing ahead with clearing the area around our city’s magnificent art gallery so that you’ll be able to visit it without fear for your safety – I must say I have never experienced any problems in this regard myself although it may be harrowing for some to weave through the phalanx of combi-taxis that surround the gallery area, but they are not there for much longer!);

• a refuse art and pottery exhibition at Museum Africa which will also host

• a photographic exhibition by Ronald Ngilma. Then there is

• a craft fair at the Bus Factory. The Bus Factory? Will provide some info on the recycling of this historic Newtown building at the end of this Citichat, so read on!.

Secondly, potential international coverage of South African art is enormous via

• A unique website that will be focusing on JHB ART CITY - I’ll provide more details as soon as it’s ready for viewing but it will really be great fun offering a lot of interactive features and

• The ‘Business of the Arts’ SUMMIT TV programme which can be viewed on DSTV, channel 55 – the first programme can be seen on Wednesday 8th May at 20h50 and on Thursday 9th at 19h45. The series which will run for 6 months, consists of 5 minute programmes aired a minimum of three times a week in varying time slots. Nicola Danby, CEO of Business and Arts South Africa – BASA – points out that supporting the arts and culture is all about smart business decisions and this series will focus on the world of arts, culture and business. It will introduce viewers to and profile the South African personalities and artists who are making their mark both locally and abroad; showcase and assess various initiatives that have been launched by the private sector and examine the central issues and points of debate that exist around business and its support of the arts and culture.

Thirdly, there are a number of inner city buildings under construction that are incorporating artsworks in the developments. Ludwig Hansen of Urban Solutions, the architects for the Metro Mall development, tells me that intensive discussions regarding the integration of artwork into important public buildings within the inner city have been under discussion since the start of this development and have resulted in a not unsubstantial allocation of funds towards artsworks within this particular project. “We have gone through an extensive programme whereby 20 artists have been selected, all of whom have never had the pleasure or opportunity to execute large scale public art. The artists in short were screened and selected out of Soweto, Alexandra and the inner city. The response to our initial proposal call has been tremendous, with over 90 applicants. The artsworks programme for Mertro Mall is nearing completion. The first mosaic mural has already been installed at the corner of Pim and Simmonds Streets as one crosses the Queen Elizabeth Bridge. The rest of the 25 pieces of art will be installed over the next 2 months as building work is concluded.”

Another well known city architect, Heather Dodd is looking for financial support for a mural to be incorporated in the Johannesburg Housing Company’s Elangeni project on the south-east of the inner city, now also nearing completion. The Massive Constitution Hill development – where the Constitutional Court is rapidly taking shape as construction emerges from underground - will showcase a unique art collection which I believe is being assembled under the eagle eye of Constitutional Court Judge Albie Sachs.

Such new artworks will complement substantial existing collections housed in various financial institutions’ headquarter buildings in the city - ABSA’s new building boasts a wonderful collection - Billiton’s head office complex, the Standard Bank Gallery and, of course, the wonderful collection in the Johannesburg Art Gallery. The Gauteng Legislature has quite an amazing collection of South African art.

We’re sitting on gold, hey guys, let’s have a city-wide Arts Route expanded from the one we are planning for JHB ART CITY so that the public can view these treasures and we can dazzle the 65 000 World Summit delegates with quality art every bit as good as if not better than can be found internationally!

But that’s not all! There also is the “Creative Inner City Initiative” (CICI) which is a poverty alleviation project focused on the upliftment of the Hillbrow, Berea and Joubert Park areas and communities through art and arts related enterprises. Funded by DACST (The Department of Arts, Culture, Sport and Tourism) this is a really innovative project being driven by Lapeng Child and Family Resource Service; The Greenhouse Project and the Joubert Park Public Art Project. CICI’s goals are

• Urban renewal through arts and cultural development by improving arts ,crafts and performance skills as well as related business skills and income generating opportunities particularly for youth and women.

• Engaging people in expressing their creative potential by providing ways and means for them to invest their own cultural meanings in the existing urban fabric, and thus to take pride in the neighbourhood and thereby invest in a sense of pride in themselves and their neighbourhood.

• Build on and enhance existing cultural initiatives.

• Revalue the cultural heritage and establish a renewed identity for this area (neighbourhood branding).

There is so much that this particular project embraces that I want to return to it in more detail in a future edition of Citichat.

Now back to the Bus Factory. . The building dates back to 1913 and was built to service and repair the city’s trams, the tram tracks can still be seen leading into the workshop bays. It was subsequently used to maintain the bus fleet that replaced the trams. It had however been derelict for many years, the corrugated iron roofing substantially rusted away or stolen, and the building invaded by illegal squatters. It has now been beautifully refurbished to accommodate a ‘creative product design, related skills development and manufacturing project’. Leslie Musikavanhu, whose name is increasingly popping up relative to inner city projects, is the Architect. The refurbishment was funded by the Gauteng Department of Arts, Culture, Sports and Recreation. What the Bus Factory seeks to achieve is to nurture and develop creative project design and manufacturing talent to a greater production scale than individual artists can achieve and market the products locally and internationally. The Bus Factory will also provide craft skills training in pottery, paper-making, spinning, weaving, caneware, candle-making, fabric printing and millinery, metal work, welding, blacksmith and carpentry trades and furniture making. The President Street fence and gateway is striking and worth a visit on its own. It was hand-crafted from scrap metal salvaged from a nearby demolition and is repeated as balustrading to the interior staircases. A detailed report on the building is contained in the March/April edition of that excellent publication “Urban Green File”.

Trust you have a ‘cultural weekend’, regards, neil.