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The Mother City’s street-art scene has never been particularly shy. Now, its colour is spilling beyond walls and onto sports fields, libraries, parks and other public spaces.
Over the past year, eight public art projects commissioned through the City of Cape Town’s Arts and Culture Development Branch have given emerging artists a chance to leave their mark across the city. Their work is also giving some decidedly ordinary pieces of infrastructure a visual upgrade.
“These artworks show what public art can do when artists and communities are given the opportunity to create something together,” said Mayoral Committee Member for Community Services and Health, Councillor Francine Higham.
The projects, completed during the 2025/26 financial year, brought together eight lead artists and more than 20 emerging and assisting artists. From murals celebrating sport and biodiversity to a first-of-its-kind community mosaic, the work shows how public art can turn familiar spaces into something people stop and look at.
And in a city where graffiti and street art have become an increasingly visible part of the urban landscape, that’s a win-win.
From sports fields to libraries
At Gordon’s Bay Sportsfield, artists Angelo Waterloo, Marquin van Aarde and Xolisile Sitwayi created a mural celebrating sport and the role recreational spaces play in bringing communities together.
The nearby Gustrouw Sportsfield in Strand received a mural focused on youth development, sporting culture and community connections, with Waterloo working alongside Sydney Shem Lewis and Patricia Abrahams.
At Blackheath Community Hall, lead artist Rizah Potgieter, aka Prefix66, worked with Nathan Jason and Quinton Doman on a mural shaped by local voices, memories and identity. The finished artwork was followed by a mural activation programme that brought residents into the creative space rather than having them admire it from a distance.
Elsewhere, nature gets plenty of wall space.
Virginia Park in Gardens features work by Zeenat Isaacs, Thakier Adams, Charlene Bruiners, Nadine Apollis and Zain Mosaval, exploring biodiversity and the relationship between people and the environment.
At Kloof Street Park, Potgieter, Cherry Lee Harris and Shalane-Rae Cloete turned the walls into a colourful celebration of indigenous birds, plants and urban biodiversity.
A Bo-Kaap story in colour
At Bryant Street Park in the Bo-Kaap, Isaacs, Abdul Malik and Muaath Omar created a mural celebrating the neighbourhood’s cultural and religious character, with themes of coexistence, resilience and mutual respect at its heart.
Southfield Library takes a different approach, bringing reading, coding, chess, music, drama, art and community programmes into its visual identity. Potgieter led the project alongside Willow Wicomb, Wesley Segers, Alicia Langley, Léa Nomodoe, Xara Heuvel and Tazneem Newman.
Then there’s Sir Lowry’s Pass.
The library’s facade now features the programme’s first commissioned mosaic, created through a community co-design process.
Lead artist Kerry Atherstone worked with Charlie Vettori and emerging artists Shannon Davids, Johen Adendorf and Iman Daniels on a large-scale piece reflecting the area’s landscape, people and natural beauty.
It’s a notable milestone for the programme, but perhaps more importantly, it puts emerging artists directly into the city’s visual conversation.
“I want to thank the artists and communities who contributed their ideas and helped bring these projects to life,” concluded Councillor Higham.
That is the real value of projects like these. Public art creates paid opportunities, puts young and emerging creatives alongside established artists, and gives communities a hand in deciding what their neighbourhoods look like.
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