From Mak 1 to DALeast, we profile some graffiti artists in Cape Town on Instagram who use this social media tool to showcase their work and process, writes Debbie Loots.
“The most powerful community for outliers is online,” says Faith47, one of the Mother City’s most famous street art exports and a keen Instagrammer. Freddy Sam, Jack Fox, Nardstar, Falko and DALeast are just a few more of Cape Town’s prolific street artists sharing on Instagram.
Inspired by the walls of old buildings, derelict parking lots, and the abandoned homes of the city’s historical District Six and Woodstock suburbs, they all use this social media tool to showcase their ideas, work and process. And for those who don’t, other Instagram accounts do, like Cape Town Street Art for one.
But it was a different story during apartheid, when another sort of street art first gained momentum in Cape Town. Artistic expression was localised and about protesting the status quo. Then, the possibilities of catapulting into the global arena weren’t a couple of clicks away. Faced by strict censorship laws, street artists and their mostly text-based graffiti counterparts had political convictions to get off their chests.
All a far cry from today’s street art that, although political at times, is often seductive and features otherworldly creatures on wall works around town. Despite being illegal in Cape Town without a permit, street art is fast becoming a signifier of urban regeneration, a way of beautifying decaying city buildings and areas with inspiring images and messages. Just this week Future Cape Town, a non-governmental organisation forming part of Future Cities, reported that Parow station’s precinct is next in line for a colourful mural makeover.
And, in the city centre, similar urban upliftment projects have sprung up. One such is Harvest, an interactive work by Faith47 created under the auspices of the World Design Capital 2014. It physically lights up the wall of a block of council flats along De Waal Drive.
To view these and other impressive Cape Town street art works, a tangible experience is recommended. Here are eight of Mail & Guardian’s favourites on Instagram – a couple of clicks away.
PHOTO: Chris Auret’s In Memory mural of Cape Town rapper Bonzaya, which can be seen in Woodstock. (David Harrison)
