A Young Cultural Entrepreneur at 2025 FNB Joburg Art Fair and Art Week

By Mazwi Dzapasi

Johannesburg in late August and early September always seems to pulse with a creative energy that spreads far beyond the walls of its official art fair. This year’s edition of FNB Art Joburg, along with the wider constellation of events that orbit it, confirmed the city’s place as one of the continent’s most vital cultural stages. For me, a young cultural entrepreneur, the journey through these weeks of openings, studio visits, markets, and fair booths was as much about discovery as it was about reflection on what it means to participate in Africa’s growing art economy.

The experience began on 23 August at the Johannesburg Art Gallery, where Gresham Nyaude’s exhibition Sugar Coats opened weeks before the fair’s official dates. The show, which earned him the 2024 FNB Joburg Art Fair Prize, immediately set the tone for the days ahead. Nyaude’s works sparkled on the surface yet carried a deep fatigue beneath, pointing to the contradictions of aspiration in the face of constrained choices and moral compromise. His exploration of colonial legacies, disempowerment, and the culture of “saving face” was both satirical and compassionate, reminding viewers that these struggles, while rooted in Zimbabwe’s context, are deeply human and universal. It was a fitting opening act that already placed questions of truth and façade at the centre of this year’s art week.

Beyond the fair, Johannesburg’s creative energy spilled into spaces like 27 Boxes, the artist market that buzzed with live music, workshops, and interactive installations. Here art was lived communally, reminding me that the city’s creativity thrives not only in the institutional sphere but in everyday encounters between artists and the public. On 30 August, the Open City programme opened further doors, inviting visitors into studios and independent spaces across the city. At the Bag Factory, I interacted closely with artists Levy Pooe and Smiso Cele, seeing their works in the intimacy of their studios. At Asisebenze Art Gallery, curated by Tanya Krain, I encountered a powerful group show featuring Mbali Tshabalala, Zamami Xaba, Lebohang Sithole, Themba Shabalala, Lloyd Maluleke, Stephen Langa, Mummy Khumalo, and Sifiso Makabela. Each artist brought a different inflection of South Africa’s contemporary voice.

At the historic Rand Club, Dustin August’s exhibition Gentleman unfolded in a setting that highlighted the continued dialogue between art and Johannesburg’s layered history. These moments felt less like formal exhibitions and more like personal exchanges, offering a perspective on the city’s creative scene that the fair itself could never fully contain.

By 4 September, the official opening of the art fair had arrived, followed by the Untitled Basement party where “That Tuesday Funk” brought musicians and DJs into conversation with art audiences. Here, art and nightlife collapsed into one another in a spirit of improvisation, a reminder that African art culture is never confined to galleries and that its ecosystem is expansive, social, and deeply interconnected. The following day was when I plunged fully into the fair itself. Booths from across the continent and beyond offered a diverse mix, but I was especially drawn to galleries from neighbouring countries. Modzi Arts from Zambia stood out with the works of Mapopa Hussein Manda, vibrant and provocative pieces. Ora Loapi presented striking works from artists such as Lerado Lodi, while Wunika Mukan Gallery offered Musa Ganny’s playful Chop Life Avenue, which captured everyday life with humour and social bite. Kianda Contemporary devoted its space to a solo from Levy Pooe, whose work I have long admired, while Eclectica Gallery brought strong presences from Akinola Ebenezer and Thando Phenyane. At BKHZ, Zandile Tshabalala’s exhibition Mother’s Bloom fascinated me for its experimentation with glitter and shiny materials, a departure from what one might expect in painting, and a reminder that innovation often lies in risk.

The larger galleries such as Goodman and Everard Read maintained a presence of well-known artists, though I couldn’t help but wonder whether the predictability of these selections left less room for surprise. Yet one thing that did surprise me was the number of young people present, especially school children. Whether a deliberate effort by the fair or not, this struck me as vital. To see children being introduced to art at this level is to glimpse a future where the next generation understands its transformative potential. 

On 6 September I returned to the fair with a friend, revisiting the booths I had been most taken by and introducing them to my discoveries. Kalashnikov, which I heard is closing, stood out as a space of loss but also of memory, while First Floor Gallery and Blank Projects reaffirmed their positions as significant players. At Fresco Gallery, I met the artist Falida, whose printmaking practice fascinated me for its technical precision and imaginative depth. Encounters like this—unexpected, personal, and full of possibility, are what kept me engaged even after the initial spectacle of the fair had passed.

Looking back, the FNB Joburg Art Fair and Art Week was not simply about what was on sale, though the market dimension is always present. It was a layered journey through different worlds of artmaking in Johannesburg: the institutional recognition of Nyaude’s Sugar Coats, the communal spirit of 27 Boxes, the intimacy of Open City studios, the spectacle of the fair, and the improvisational energy of music and nightlife that surrounded it. For me, as a collector and entrepreneur, it was also a way of situating myself within a broader continental conversation.

This experience highlighted the importance of art education on the continent—not only for creators but also for consumers. I believe that cultivating a deeper appreciation for the arts among our young population is essential. While it was encouraging to see strong attendance and enthusiasm from young middle-class Africans, the critical question remains: how many are moving beyond appreciation to actually investing in the arts? For the sector to thrive, more middle- to upper-income Africans must not only enjoy art but also recognise it as something worth supporting, spending on, and most importantly, investing in. This requires more innovative approaches to showcasing and exposing people to the arts—through dynamic spaces, creative platforms, and diverse experiences that inspire both appreciation and investment.