Indaba 2019 teams up with local street artists in Durban

17 Apr 2019

South African Tourism (SA Tourism) has partnered with three acclaimed Durban artists to paint a 22-metre wall mural inside the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre (ICC) that will be unveiled during Africa's Travel Indaba taking place from 2-4 May 2019.

Image via @DAMN__magazine - Mural by Faith47

This is part of a legacy project that SA Tourism would like to showcase as the hosts of Africa’s Travel Indaba.

Africa has a rich vibrant history of story-telling and culture narration. The 2019 Africa’s Travel Indaba presents is an opportunity to tell the world of Africa’s successes, to change the narrative and stereotype of Africa into a positive one.

Art in Africa has always been strongly represented on international stages, with artists such as Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela, Fela Kuti, Yvonne Chaka Chaka and painter Cheri Samba, who have paved the way for African storytelling through the arts. Over the last four years, there’s been a resurgence of Africanism through the arts all over the world, the music world has flown the flag for Africa with genres such as Afrobeat and Qgom music which have taken the world by storm over the last two years.

Amplifying destination history and culture

"We know that travellers from all over the world are keen to learn about the history and culture of any destination they visit. This wall mural is the creative expression of our culture and beautiful landscapes. It is also a celebration of South Africa’s talent," says Sthembiso Dlamini acting chief executive officer at South African Tourism.

The wall mural is a representation of KwaZulu-Natal’s lifestyle, showcasing the culture in the region, from the world-famous beaches to landmarks that have played a part in promoting the region.

"This mural we are painting is a celebration of Durban as a beautiful destination with vibrant people from many different cultures. The art piece will have a street art aesthetic that is very engaging and exciting for people to look at. We want to tell this story through the mural and giving life to a place that we love by showcasing the Durban beachfront where a lot of different people coexist and share that space," says Samora Chapman, one of the artists.

The wall mural is intended to be a catalyst for starting more conversations on the importance of storytelling through the arts.