I love seeing a genuine appetite for art — and that is exactly what I felt at the Investec Cape Town Art Fair. The fair was busy every day: collectors in conversation, curators in debate, artists present and engaged. There was movement, curiosity, and a sense of expectation.
Yet appetite does not always translate into sales. From what I observed, South African galleries with established collector bases were operating from a position of confidence. They had relationships already in place, and those relationships matter. The rest gained visibility — which is valuable — but consistent selling is built over time, not generated by foot traffic alone.
What the fair does particularly well is curation. Beyond the main exhibitors, there are dedicated sections — SOLO, Generations and Tomorrows/Today — each designed to frame dialogue rather than simply occupy space. Not every presentation in the main section lands with equal strength, but that is inevitable. What matters is the ambition. You feel the depth of the African market: an extraordinary range of artists, mediums, histories and experimentation. That density is precisely what makes the fair compelling.
One artist who stopped me was Tsepisho Moropa at THK Gallery. Her practice moves between photography, collage and folk storytelling, yet it resists easy categorisation. Moropa constructs intimate visual narratives drawn from oral histories, personal memory and inherited cultural knowledge. Her compositions feel both archival and immediate — as if fragments of the past are being carefully reassembled to question the present.
There is a quiet authority in her work. Figures emerge from layered surfaces; textures overlap; stories feel partially revealed and partially protected. You sense the weight of generational memory — particularly female memory — carried through image and text. Then there is the wall writing. It reads like poetry: direct, human, unfiltered. In a setting that can easily become transactional, her words demanded pause. They created space for reflection. That interruption — that insistence on emotional presence — is rare within the compressed atmosphere of an art fair. Moropa’s strength lies precisely there: she resists spectacle and instead builds intimacy. Her work does not shout; it resonates.
Some highlights were more familiar, yet no less powerful. Zanele Muholi at Southern Guild remains a magnetic force, commanding space with images that continue to redefine portraiture and visibility. Bonolo Kavula’s Shweshwe-based sculptural works were refined and thoughtful, translating textile tradition into contemporary abstraction with clarity, vibrancy and sensitivity.
The fair’s international dimension extended well beyond the African continent. Chinese-born, London-based artist Wen Wu — winner of the BP Portrait Award at the National Portrait Gallery — presented exquisitely executed portraits of Asian women that felt both poetic and spiritually intense. Her classical training is evident in the precision of her technique, yet her works move beyond realism, offering psychological depth and quiet resilience.
Equally compelling was Tja Ling Hu, presented by Namuso Gallery. Recently exhibited at the Amsterdam Museum, Hu portrays women immersed in natural landscapes — standing in rivers, eyes closed, bodies moving together. Her compositions evoke communion and collective presence, suggesting a poetic union between figure and environment. There is vulnerability in these scenes, but also strength.
Of course, in any crowded fair, some artists become lost in the density. Even with curated sections, not every stand feels equally resolved. That, too, is part of the reality. Yet the energy never dropped. People kept moving. They kept looking. They asked questions. That sustained curiosity is what carries a fair beyond commerce.
Overall, it was a strong experience as a visitor. Not flawless, not overly polished — but real, layered and alive. Each time I walked through the aisles, I discovered something new. And that, ultimately, is what keeps the appetite alive.
Virginia Damtsa is curator, gallerist, cultural strategist @virginia_damtsa
Investec Cape Town Art Fair ran 20th -22nd February at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) @investeccapetownartfair
