Cape of Creativity takes the V&A Waterfront by storm: A festival of Cape Town arts and culture

Cape of Creativity took place under sunny skies on Saturday, July 1st at the V&A Waterfront and brought a fitting end to a nine-month project that has benefited over 1,000 creatives.

Performers from areas including Mitchell’s Plain, Delft, Khayelitsha and Langa descended on the V&A Amphitheatre to showcase their talents to large crowds, while over at the neighbouring Watershed, artists displayed their art and crafts to interested shoppers.

The programme went smoothly, says Erica Elk, Group CEO of the Craft and Design Institute (CDI), and brilliantly showcased the abundance of talent across the Cape. “For the past nine months we’ve been working with community organisations across underprivileged areas of the city to help artists in these areas earn a living and explore their talents. We’ve worked with over 1,000 creatives and this event was designed to showcase a selection of the incredible local talent.” 

The project is part of the national government’s Social Employment Fund (SEF), which aims to promote “work for the common good” by creating partnerships between informal grassroots networks and larger civil society organisations. The SEF is administered by the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) under the Presidential Employment Stimulus. It creates “work for the common good” by optimising partnerships between larger civil society organisations and informal grassroots networks. The CDI project worked closely with 17 community arts organisations in areas across the City, and enabled the artists to provide for their own and their family’s basic needs. It also created the emotional and creative space for the investment of time and imagination in collaboration, culture and creation activities.

Performers did themselves proud

Artists from Mitchells Plain’s Blaqpearl Foundation performed on stage on the day. Janine Overmeyer, Executive Director of the Blaqpearl Foundation, was in attendance, and says the artists did themselves proud. “They brought their A game. The event was professional and electrifying and the audience appreciated our immense talent. We could show off as creative artists from Mitchell’s Plain on a global stage! It was a spectacular event overall thanks to the CDI.” 

Sisa Makuala of the Makuala Foundation was similarly enthused. Based in Delft, Makuala works with local artists in the area, and he brought three of his best DJs to the Ampitheatre: Ayanda Nogqala (Eyelar Worldwide), Sibabalwe Jonas (Shmore) and Wanele Selela (Captain KG). “The Waterfront event was a great platform for our artists to display their art and expose their talent on a big stage,” Makuala says. “The event will bring them more gigs in the future.”

Pam Zokufa of Zokufa Media Productions (Khayelitsha) says that her artists were truly “grateful for the experience” and immensely proud and honoured to have been invited to perform. “It has always been a goal that we looked forward to accomplishing.” 

One of Pam’s opera singers, Lisakhanya Hoza, echoed these sentiments. “It was a great opportunity for me; a great honour to be there. The V&A Waterfront is a huge platform and the stage took me internationally – to many countries without even leaving Cape Town.”

The project has opened new pathways to support young creatives, adds the CDI’s Elk. “We understand the unique needs of creative people and will keep trying to open up opportunities. This project has surfaced incredible talent that was previously hidden in Cape Town and shown what is possible when you give these young people a platform to showcase that talent,” she says. 

“We’d like to thank the SEF for supporting these creatives, for giving them work opportunities, and for helping make this showcase possible – it has brought dignity and hope, it has built confidence, and we hope it will give rise to further new creative works and income for the artists.”