[Please note this tour has been postponed. Apologies for any inconvenience] How often have I heard a Joburger say: “I worked here and walked these streets, and didn’t notice these details!” Perhaps our preoccupation with traffic and busy pavements prevents us from looking up. A great pity, because so much of our City’s beauty lies on its skin – in the form of sculptural details, friezes and reliefs on its buildings. 

In Skin Deep, Ted Botha and Brett McDougall will explore the beauty and richness of these sculptural elements, which have been used by architects to proclaim the function of a building, link owners with an (often imagined) glorious past, elevate tawdry surroundings, or simply provide a gift to the street. 

In this exploration we will encounter a remarkable group of artists: Carlos Marega, Italian by birth and training, and who would later have a distinguished career in Canada, but not before he adorned the Standard Bank Chambers with a dignified set of the classical figures representing Industry and Agriculture.

René Shapshak, born in Paris, educated at the École des Beaux-Arts, and whose creations would become the epitome of the Art Deco City’s modernity and sophistication.

Willem de Sandere Hendrikz, who was commissioned by Volkskas to establish a visual connection between the past and the ideal of the economic empowerment of Afrikaners at their Market Square head office, but who chose to teach in the English, liberal environment of Wits.

This is a tour not to be missed! Contact Eira to book - mail@joburgheritage.co.za

• Time: 14h00
• Park at the Carlton Centre. Meet at the newspaper seller sculpture on Fox Street between Kruis and Von Brandis
• Cost: R100 for members and R170 for non-members 
• Duration Approximately 3 hours

Absa Building Beyers Naude Square - Old Photo - Source Unknown.jpg

Old photo of the Volkskas / ABSA Building