“WE WANTED TO TAKE ART INTO THE STREETS”
Juma Mkwela The Graffiti Curator
CAPE TOWN, WESTERN CAPE
Can you tell us a bit about the neighbourhood? Woodstock
art from the studios into the streets. We wanted to inspire, to educate, and tell sto- ries that hadn’t been told. Today, we have more than 100 pieces here by local and international artists. In 2012, there was a demand from people to go and see the art- work and to know the stories behind them, and so I started doing the walking tours.
was historically an Eng-
lish neighbourhood of textile factories, but was hit hard when the Chinese market boomed and overtook local busi- ness. Artists moved into the empty build- ings and it started becoming trendy. More recently, the area has become gentrified. Woodstock now has one of the finest res- taurants in the world, The Test Kitchen. Places like Rosetta Roastery and Honest Chocolate are popular, plus the food and fashion at Neighbourgoods Market in The Old Biscuit Mill are world-class. And after a day checking out the street art, you can have a drink at the arty Casa Woodstock Bar. If you come for the tour, you want to end up somewhere with an artistic vibe.
What’s the story behind Woodstock’s murals? This movement was founded by a long- standing group of artists that were painting in Woodstock but who wanted to take their
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How did the local community respond to the street art? We had to go to house owners to get per- mission to paint on their property, and at the start only half said yes. But as we started to paint, more people started to allow the art. It wasn’t easy for people to understand what we were doing. They thought art could only be found in the galleries; that it was only for the rich to own. We explained that this would be art and it would belong to the people. We wanted it to inspire them everyday. Now, the local people love it. We encourage conversations between art- ists and residents: if there’s inclusion, then locals feel a sense of ownership over the artwork, and they will protect it.
townshiparttours.co.za
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CULTURE
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