Touching Base with The Most Innovative Artist-Run Spaces in Cape Town
Amidst the exclusive, and often elitist, nature of the art world, a growing number of artists are embracing the role of curatorship for themselves. We caught up with the founders of two of the most forward-thinking artist-run spaces in CT to find out about their triumphs, challenges, future plans and hopes for the city’s creative landscape going forward.
The unwaveringly resilient Cape Town art scene has seen its fair share of post-Covid changes, and at the heart of this transformation are two pockets of artistic activity taking root in the urban fabric. Diverse in form and function, these incubators challenge traditional art institutions while fostering a vibrant culture of collaboration and serving as integral testing grounds for the local art scene.
Under Projects and The Ice Factory, two recently opened artist-run spaces in Cape Town have garnered a reputation for successfully hosting everything from collective exhibitions to sound installations and music events. Under Projects even had a booth at this year’s Investec Cape Town Art Fair which displayed an archive of the 11 shows they’ve put on so far.
Both spaces emerged as a response to the lack of experimental and non-commercial galleries in the city and, of course, gaps left unfilled by established institutions.
“I couldn’t show my work anywhere. So, I thought, ‘I’ve got my own space, I’m just gonna host my exhibition here’”, Stuart Dods of The Ice Factory reveals. Under Projects echoes this sentiment: “We just wanted a space to exhibit, experiment and play, and Under Projects grew from that.”
Stuart, a practising artist and former bassist for CT-psych stalwarts Retro Dizzy, also lived there at a point, which partly inspired the name of his studio, gallery and events space.
“I moved in when I was 21. At the time, I was painting for a gallery in Hermanus and they set me up with the space, which was one of my favourite artists, Bastiaan Van Steenis’, studio.
“It looked completely different. The whole roof was mosaiced with porn magazines, there was a lot of turquoise. Downstairs was an ice factory called Pure Ice. The second floor was like a refrigerator graveyard and often you’d have to climb over these things to get upstairs. People started calling it the ice factory and that stuck.”
What sets the spaces apart is their multifaceted nature, showcasing art as well as offering space for collaboration and learning. At The Ice Factory’s recent Sound & Vision event five artists got to work on a huge sheet of paper rolled out on the floor while the musician CJ Bergh played the sounds of the marks being made. “It was almost like a conversation in a way,” Stuart explains.
Under Projects have hosted a number of unconventional exhibitions this year, such as the mural-based Just Visiting, where artists created works directly on the walls. Other exhibitions include Paintings of Horses and Sculptures of Cars, where newcomers to the scene and art world heavyweights alike were invited to put their regular mediums aside and create, well, paintings of horses and sculptures of cars.
“We don’t sell any work and rely on donations to keep the space running, and the continual support of patrons throughout our first year of running has been a boon,” says the group. “We get a lot of energy and excitement from the community that’s gathered around the space. We also get great support from visitors and friends who consistently show up to see our projects.”
The spaces have kickstarted a cycle of cultural growth fuelling the city's broader creative ecosystem, a fact made all the more impressive considering the severe lack of state support for the arts.
“There is more grant-based and government funding in Europe. It means a lot of spaces in South Africa rely on commission-based and commercial models which shifts the types of exhibitions produced,” Under Projects reflects. “It can be hard to make space for experimental work when you are trying to sell.”
Still, it's clear that the community engagement has been the real highlight for both parties, something they hope will incentivise more people to cross-pollinate and make things happen.
“Seeing the people it’s attracting, the new ideas that it’s conjuring up and never really knowing what’s going to happen has been incredible,” Stuart says. “It’s amazing that there’s such a strong desire to create, even though one can’t necessarily survive off of it. People are creating their own infrastructure and I find it very inspiring to be in a place like that.”
Credits:
Stuart Dods from The Ice Factory
Luca Evans, Mitchell Gilbert Messina, Guy Simpson & Brett Seiler from Under Projects.
Words by Neil Büchner Jr for Letterhead