Art Blooms Inside Johannesburg's Drill Hall

27 July 2023

A few days ago I walked into the Drill Hall, in the frenetic center of downtown Joburg, and went through a wormhole into an alternate universe.

Art work outside the Drill Hall
Outside the Drill Hall – a hint of what’s to come.
Hallway inside the Drill Hall in downtown Johannesburg
Inside the Hall, where every found object – a chunk of carpet padding, a cracked toilet, a rubber boot, a plastic bottle, an avocado pit, a discarded wallet, a dead palm frond, a mannequin leg, a sheep skull, or any other thrown-away thing – becomes art and/or a vessel for life.
The back of the Drill Hall. I didn’t get a photo of the front of the building; it’s across the street from one of Joburg’s largest taxi ranks and rather chaotic on that side.
Midday traffic at the Noord Street taxi rank.
This is normal, midday traffic (not even rush-hour) at the Noord Taxi Rank – shot from the Drill Hall’s first floor balcony.

I’ve spent the last three days pondering this one-hour visit and how to present it on the blog. I wasn’t at the Drill Hall long enough to take it all in – I would need to hang out there for at least a week to properly document this place and what’s happening there. But I’m impatient and I really want to share my pictures now, so here is a quick summary.

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Jozi Fashion Designer for a Day

12 July 2023

Last Saturday, to celebrate 49 years on earth, I gave myself a gift: I booked an Airbnb experience with Caraci Clothing and pretended to be a fashion designer for the day.

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A Staycation in Kensington

05 July 2023

I’ve always been intrigued by Kensington, a suburb just east of downtown Joburg. Kensington is similar in many ways to Melville, where I used to live, and Brixton, where I live now: An older neighborhood, filled with big trees and houses with pressed-steel ceilings, populated by lots of quirky artists and other creative types. Kensington is only about 20 minutes’ drive away but I feel like I haven’t spent enough time there over the years to really get to know it.

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The National Arts Festival: It Changed Me.

29 June 2023

I recently returned from a weekend at the National Arts Festival in Makhanda (formerly Grahamstown), where I was invited to participate in the Standard Bank Art “Be Part of the Arts” social media campaign. The National Arts Festival (NAF) has been running since 1974 – it was born the same year (and the same month!) as me – and it’s a rite of passage for South Africans who love theatre, music, dance, and art of any kind. People have been raving for years about how fabulous NAF is; I have no idea why I’d never gone before.

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Youth Day Warmup for the Brixton Light Festival

21 June 2023

After last year’s Brixton Light Festival, lots of people read my blog post and were sad they missed the festival and asked how they could be sure not to miss the next one. So consider yourselves warned: The next Brixton Light Festival takes place on Saturday, September 2nd, 2023. I have every reason to believe it will be even more spectacular than last year’s festival. Mark your calendars and follow @BrixtonLightFestival on Instagram for updates.

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A Winter Explosion of Aloes at the Aloe Farm

13 June 2023

Joburg winters are harsh. Temperatures often drop below freezing at night but our houses aren’t insulated, windows don’t close, and central heating doesn’t exist. The air is punishingly dry. Our weather is close to perfect for ten months a year, but the other two months are cold and we hate it. There are a few upsides to Joburg winters, though: bright blue skies, warm sun in the afternoon, and – best of all – blooming aloes.

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