#Art

I recently participated in a public art bus tour hosted by the City of Johannesburg, honoring the legacy of Andrew (Drew) Lindsay. Drew died of a heart attack in October 2021 while sitting in his garden outside the Spaza Art Gallery in Troyeville. He was 65. If you’d like to learn more about Drew’s life, please read this wonderful article by Joburg journalist Ufrieda Ho.

Last weekend I did something I used to do all the time but haven’t done for ages: An art and graffiti walk through downtown Joburg. The walk was hosted by Goethe-Institut Südafrika and a group of Joburg graffiti artists, led by Dr. Foodz.

I’ve never been to Burning Man or Afrika Burn. While I theoretically love the idea of hanging around in a remote desert for a week, living communally and photographing incredible art, I’m not keen on the meticulous planning and preparation such an expedition entails. So when I heard there would be a Brixton Burn – a mini burn, so to speak, in my soon-to-be home suburb of Brixton – I quickly signed up to attend.

For more than half a century, the Hong family ran a corner shop at 166 Caroline Street in Brixton, one of Joburg’s oldest residential suburbs. Immigrant-owned corner shops, much like spaza shops, are an iconic part of South African history and culture.

Last week I participated in a behind-the-scenes tour of historic Paterson Park, on the border of Norwood and Orange Grove, to check out the public art projects in progress there. The park is undergoing a huge renovation, expected to finish in the next few months.