Iziko Museums of South Africa is set to host the highly anticipated return of the national treasure, Arab Priest. The iconic Irma Stern artwork will be a focal point of the new exhibition entitled: ‘Modernism and its Discontents’ 1925-2025: South African Art from the Permanent Collection of the Iziko South African National Gallery.
Irma Stern’s Arab Priest stands as a landmark of South African Modernist painting. The return of this iconic work offers an opportunity to explore not only Stern’s achievement, but also the work of her contemporaries and the generations that followed. Some artists were influenced by her vision, while others challenged the conventions of European-style Modernism, forging new artistic directions of their own.
“The return of Arab Priest gives South Africans a rare opportunity to reconnect with an artwork that forms part of our shared cultural legacy,” said Dr Bongani Ndhlovu, Acting Chief Executive Officer of Iziko Museums of South Africa. “Its homecoming during the in_herit FESTIVAL is a reminder of the importance of preserving and celebrating our artistic heritage for future generations.”
The arrival of Irma Stern’s 1945 masterpiece anchors national Heritage Month celebrations and marks the painting’s scheduled return to Cape Town under a historic international cultural agreement. The landmark artwork returns to Iziko following the first leg of its South African tour at the University of Pretoria Museums.
Acquired by the Qatar Museums in 2011, the painting returns to South Africa under a groundbreaking agreement facilitated by the South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA). The accord stipulates that the owner grants South Africans public access to the national treasure once every five years.
Thousands of visitors last viewed the painting at the Iziko South African National Gallery in 2019. For many young visitors and emerging artists, this will be their first opportunity to experience one of Africa’s most important works in person.
Painted during Stern’s travels to Zanzibar, the portrait presents a critical lens for exploring mid-century expressionism, cross-cultural representation, and colonial-era Orientalist subtexts within African art history. The works included in this exhibition highlight some of the most significant South African artworks produced between 1925 to 2025. Together, they reveal the rich and diverse ways in which artists responded to their social and cultural environments, as well as to emerging international artistic movements. In doing so, they helped shape a distinctive South African visual language whose influence continues to be felt today.
Expected to attract visitors from across South Africa and abroad, the exhibition reinforces Cape Town’s position as a leading cultural destination during Heritage Month. The exhibition will be accompanied by a series of educational and public programming.
NEWS FLASH! Listen to Curator Andrew Lamprecht on Friday 25 September on the Arts Round Up on Fine Music Radio at around 12:45. He will walk you through ‘Modernism and its Discontents’. A podcast will be available on mapmyway.co.za.Â
WHAT: Irma Stern – Arab Priest & Modernism’ and its Discontents
WHERE: IZIKO South African National Gallery, Company’s Gardens, Cape Town 8001
WHEN: open to the public from Heritage Day 24 September 2026
INFO:Â VISIT
IZIKO SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL GALLERY [A]
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