The 7 best lesser-known art galleries in Cape Town

Cape Town’s original non-profit art space dates back to 1850.

Reflecting South Africa’s social, political, and cultural changes, the gallery is committed to being the most accessible professional space for emerging and independent artists.

What sets the AVA apart from other galleries is its online digital archive, allowing people to access decades of information for research purposes.

And it’s not only visual art that the gallery displays. Some projects include performance, fashion, graphic design, film, and video. Current exhibitions are Drawing the Line by Adelheid Frackiewicz and A Home Called Vogue by Yazeed Kamaldien. The latter is a short documentary film exploring the vogue ball scene in Cape Town. Kamaldien also spotlights choreographer Kirvan Fortuin, who was murdered in a 2020 hate crime. Both exhibitions run until 25 September 2025.

Address: 35 Church Street, Cape Town

Cost: An annual general membership fee applies.

Opened in April 2023, 16 on Lerotholi showcases Langa’s burgeoning art scene. Founded by childhood friends Milo Ngcukana and Thulani Fesi, the goal was to introduce a world-class gallery experience into the community.

“While our platform puts a focus on works by artists and cultural practitioners who are from Langa, we also showcase talent from other parts of the country and across the continent,” explains Ngcukana. 

Emphasizing the effects of apartheid and colonialism, Ngcukana believes that exposing people to a diversity of artistic expressions allows us to celebrate commonalities and shared values. Some established creatives, such as Lady Skollie and Falko Fantastic, have had their works on display at 16 on Lerotholi.

The area around the building will be transformed into a care-free public walking space for Open Streets Day on 26 October 2025.

Address: 16 Lerotholi Avenue, Langa, Cape Town

Entrance fee dependent on exhibition or event

Cloudigital Art is a visceral exploration of contemporary, digital, and physical art. Instead of shunning technology, the gallery embraces digital artistic assets with an emphasis on socio-political underpinnings. 

The gallery curates works from diverse global talents. Unlike the conventional gallery model, it has partnered with charities that share the same socio-economic, political, and environmental activism.

Gallery by day and a hub of creative engagement by night, Cloudigital hosts movie screenings, a 0% alcohol bar, and live music. “Visitors are encouraged to experience the future of art and the journey from what was to what can be,” says Cloudigital Art.

Address: The Old Foundry, 74 Cardiff Street, Cape Town

Entrance fee dependent on exhibition or event, bookings via Quicket

Not a gallery in a conventional sense, The Sea is in our Blood is a photographic narrative curated by storyteller, historian, and conservation activist Traci Kwaai.

The public exhibition can be found on the wall outside Kalk Bay’s Olympia Cafe. Serpia-tinted photos, some as old as the 1920s, tell the stories of families who lived in the area for several generations and relied on the ocean for their livelihood.

An immortalised wall of remembrance, Kwaai describes it as a powerful and painful reminder of the “erased, silenced, and displaced memories of intersectional Indigenous ocean communities of False Bay”. 

134 Main Rd, Kalk Bay

The Wall of Remembrance is free

Located on the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) upper campus, the CAS Gallery is a must-see for those who prefer their art alive and moving. The multi-use space hosts regular exhibitions, film screenings, seminars, workshops, and conferences.

Initially envisioned as a public engagement and learning space, the CSA Gallery places significant focus on visual culture and performance in its graduate programme.

Address: Harry Oppenheimer Institute Building, Level 3. Engineering Mall Road, UCT Upper Campus, Rondebosc 

Entrance fee is free

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With three spaces in Cape Town and Franschhoek, EBONY/CURATED is known for nurturing emerging talent. The gallery focuses on conversations from the continent and the wider African diaspora.

Specialising in contemporary art, EBONY/CURATED has a reputation for being a regular participant in local and international art fairs.

The current exhibition, Evidence of Things Not Seen, is a group showcase by three artists: Abdesslem Ayed, Nada Baraka, and Balekane Legoabe at the Cape Town space. 

Their practices embrace the speculative not as a genre, but as a mode of belief, a creative faith in that which lies beyond the tangible.

Address: 67 Loop Street, Cape Town

Free entry

Also on Kalk Bay main road, Artvark Gallery grew from its humble beginnings as an artist studio into an eclectic art gallery. Today, it’s a favourite for locals and tourists.

The pieces showcased in the gallery represent cultural diversity, intermingled with classic and contemporary Southern African art. Artvark aims to establish, promote, and develop a visual literacy for everyone to explore.

As part of the Cape Town Photography Festival, photography by Margaret Courtney-Clarke, curated by Virginia MacKenn, will be on show at Artvark till 30 September 2025.

48 Main Road, Kalk Bay

Entrance fee dependent on exhibition or event