Art Blog

New art abound at the Investec Cape Town Art Fair 2024

The eleventh edition of Investec Cape Town Art Fair, Africa's largest art fair, takes place from 16 - 18 February 2024 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

The curatorial theme for the 2024 edition is Unbound focusing on emerging and 'unbound' voices. Art becomes a compelling catalyst amid global challenges. It offers individuals a platform for expression, a space where diverse voices can be heard. Unbound serves as a conduit for exploring alternative possibilities and breaking free from constrictive narratives.

This edition of Investec Cape Town Art Fair sees the city of Cape Town play a far more significant role in foregrounding the Art Fair's activities and artists for its local and international audience of collectors and institutions. As Fair director Laura Vincenti puts it, "The city's geography is an integral part of Investec Cape Town Art Fair's success. Cape Town is a vibrant cultural hub, with a supportive community. It is very attractive to international collectors, with the great combination of diverse, cutting-edge art and a favourable exchange rate. This year the Fair continues its work of providing an annual platform for artists, galleries, curators, museums, cultural institutions, collectors, and art enthusiasts to connect and interact in the name of art. The Fair is also becoming known for facilitating meaningful dialogue, education and far-reaching interaction around contemporary African (and global) art."

Growing a contemporary art ecosystem on the continent

Having celebrated its first decade this year, Investec Cape Town Art Fair is now well established as one of Cape Town's key international attractions. The Fair is strategically positioned as the leading art event on the African continent, connecting contemporary art from Africa to the markets in Europe, the US, and the rest of the world. This means that the Fair offers a unique platform for emerging contemporary galleries, artists and ideas from markets outside of the traditional centres of art power and those from the African continent, to interact on an equal footing. With significant and growing international participation, the Fair is an important forum for setting curatorial and collecting trends to understand the African art market's direction and growth.

The 2024 edition of Investec Cape Town Art Fair will again bring together Africa's leading galleries as well as cutting-edge galleries from Europe and the USA, offering an unparalleled opportunity to view and acquire high-quality, contemporary artworks. Visitors to the Fair can expect an extensive public programme both at the Fair as well as in and around the City of Cape Town.

Architectural and conceptual design for the Fair layout

The physical layout of the Fair takes advantage of Fair Director's Laura Vincenti's experience and expertise as an architect. It is laid out in blocks related to the curatorial concepts and thematics of the Fair and the artists being showcased, rather than in the more conventional rows of exhibiting booths. Each curated section that is of interest to visitors will therefore be in the same space for ease of access.

Extending the Fair's reach into the city

Watch out too for Investec Cape Town Art Fair-related programming from all the leading Cape Town-based galleries, museums and institutions, who will open thought-provoking shows and host engaging programmes throughout the city over the period of the Fair. Among other events, there will be a major public art and urban intervention in the scenic inner-city area of the Bo-Kaap, as the city truly becomes one of the most attractive and interesting art destinations anywhere in the world.

Visit www.investeccapetownartfair.co.za for more information.

Photographs by Stephanie Veldman