The A Glimpse Between Memoirs exhibition at Sisonke Gallery shines a bright light on Cape Malay identity through colorful, powerful art. It mixes stories of memory, heritage, and strength, showing both personal and shared histories shaped by colonialism and resilience. Visitors can feel the vibrant spirit of the Bo-Kaap community and reflect on the deep roots and struggles behind these beautiful works. This unique show invites everyone to remember, celebrate, and imagine a future where all voices are heard and valued.
A Glimpse Between Memoirs explores Cape Malay identity through contemporary art, highlighting memory, heritage, and resilience. Featuring works by Shuanez Benting and Whaleed Ahjum, it blends personal and communal narratives, addressing history, cultural reclamation, and the ongoing impact of colonialism in Cape Town.
Tucked away in the lively heart of Cape Town, Sisonke Gallery offers more than just a venue for art – it embodies the city’s intricate past and present. With the arrival of Heritage Month this September, the gallery transforms into a center of both celebration and deep reflection. Here, contemporary art becomes a powerful means to question, affirm, and illuminate the multifaceted nature of Cape Malay identity. The latest exhibition, A Glimpse Between Memoirs, returns for a second edition, inviting visitors to engage with stories woven from both shared legacies and intimate recollections.
Curator Aaliyah Ahmed has shaped the exhibition through a meaningful collaboration with Our Cape Town Heritage (OCTH), a non-profit organization recognized for its commitment to preserving and broadcasting local narratives. This partnership brings together artists Shuanez Benting and Whaleed Ahjum, whose creative approaches intertwine research, memory, and imagination. After its earlier presentation at the Bo-Kaap Cultural Hub in 2024, the exhibition now reaches a broader audience at Sisonke Gallery, extending its impact within the city’s cultural landscape.
Situated inside the historic Cape Heritage Hotel on Bree Street, Sisonke Gallery’s environment echoes the themes at the heart of the exhibition. The neighborhood, alive with stories from generations past, becomes both backdrop and participant in the show. Sisonke thus operates as both a creative canvas and a living archive, where Cape Town’s dynamic history intersects with everyday experiences and artistic expression.
The exhibition’s name, A Glimpse Between Memoirs, signals its approach to storytelling; the works on display resist straightforward, chronological narratives. Instead, visitors encounter a rich tapestry – memories and realities overlap, forming a patchwork of moments that blur the boundaries between truth and remembrance, certainty and possibility. This method aligns with contemporary art’s embrace of multiple perspectives, rejecting the idea that history can be reduced to a single, authoritative account.
Benting’s pieces infuse the gallery with vibrancy and motion. Drawing inspiration from the overlooked corners of his upbringing, he constructs scenes where memory and dream merge seamlessly. His paintings function much like visual improvisations, each brushstroke recalling fragments of street life, family gatherings, or fleeting gestures. For Benting, these works do more than evoke nostalgia; they challenge the viewer to consider how spaces are both reclaimed and reimagined through the act of remembering.
One standout piece offers a bustling market scene awash in radiant colors. Even as the figures possess a gentle, dreamlike quality, individual character shines through – laughter, negotiation, and day-to-day resilience animate the canvas, evoking the enduring spirit of the Bo-Kaap community. Here, nostalgia acts as a tool for inquiry, prompting critical thought about which stories endure and which slip away with time.
In contrast, Whaleed Ahjum’s work takes a meticulous, research-driven approach to the question of Cape Malay identity. His oil paintings trace ancestral connections eastward, spotlighting the Southeast Asian roots often overshadowed in dominant versions of Cape Town’s history. The legacy of forced migration and enslavement during Dutch colonial rule forms a somber undercurrent – a foundational trauma that Ahjum’s art seeks to bring back into focus.
Ahjum’s portraits radiate a quiet, haunting dignity. Each subject, rendered with a luminous realism, seems to exist in a liminal space – caught between continents and centuries. In one painting, the gaze of an elderly woman, marked by years of endurance, drifts toward an imagined horizon, the background suggesting distant lands like Indonesia or Malaysia. Through these works, Ahjum forges a visual bridge between past and present, individual story and collective memory.
A dynamic conversation unfolds between Benting’s exuberant compositions and Ahjum’s more contemplative studies. Together, their works offer not just personal testimony but a communal narrative, reflecting the collaborative manner in which cultures remember and record their histories. Visitors encounter the echo of shared experience – a legacy shaped by resilience in the face of displacement, misrepresentation, and erasure.
Themes of endurance and resistance run through the exhibition, both in subject matter and the very act of making art. For generations, the Cape Malay community has used creative expression – whether through painting, music, or storytelling – as a means to withstand and respond to the injuries of colonialism and apartheid. By foregrounding themes of misrepresentation and reclaiming marginalized narratives, both artists engage in an ongoing dialogue of resistance, asserting a right to memory and an imagination unbound by imposed limits.
Within the context of South African art, A Glimpse Between Memoirs situates itself at the intersection of social realism, postcolonial critique, and broader artistic traditions such as Surrealism and magical realism. Especially in Benting’s work, the line between real and imagined blurs, encouraging viewers to question the veracity and authority of established histories. This artistic strategy opens space for alternative futures – possibilities that exist beyond the sanctioned narratives of the past.
The exhibition’s collaboration with OCTH further reinforces its educational mandate, especially pertinent during Heritage Month. Organizations like OCTH play a vital role in countering institutional forgetfulness, ensuring that the stories of historically marginalized communities remain visible and accessible. Through initiatives like A Glimpse Between Memoirs, heritage is not just preserved but revitalized, becoming an active, evolving part of contemporary life.
South Africa’s Heritage Month encourages citizens to reflect on identity, memory, and transformation – a process that is as difficult as it is necessary. Within this charged cultural atmosphere, A Glimpse Between Memoirs provides a timely and essential intervention. Rather than simply commemorating the past, the exhibition invites viewers to reconsider how historical events continue to resonate today. Questions arise: who shapes collective memory, which voices are heard, and which experiences risk being forgotten?
Support from House Union Block (HUB), a respected patron of the arts, ensures the exhibition reaches a diverse range of attendees. Their involvement highlights the significance of both private and public partnerships in cultivating a thriving arts scene in Cape Town. The exhibition’s reach and impact, bolstered by such backing, demonstrate the power of collaboration in nurturing local culture.
The show also enters larger debates about representation in South African art. For decades, artists of color have contended with the challenge of reclaiming their images and narratives from stereotypes and erasure. The works on display at Sisonke continue this important conversation, offering depictions that are nuanced, specific, and deeply rooted in lived experience – yet capable of resonating far beyond the gallery.
Interactivity plays a notable role in the exhibition, with one installation inviting visitors to contribute their own memories. On slips of paper pinned to a community board, audience members join the artists in a shared act of remembrance. This participatory element draws from both African and Southeast Asian artistic traditions, where creativity serves communal as much as individual purposes.
Immersing oneself in the gallery becomes a sensory journey. The scent of spices wafts from nearby street stalls, while the distant call to prayer from Bo-Kaap mosques mingles with the hum of city life. The art on the walls forms just one strand of a vast, interconnected tapestry – one woven from food, music, language, and the indelible traditions of Cape Malay heritage.
Through its thoughtful curation, dynamic artworks, and commitment to community engagement, the exhibition stands as both celebration and challenge. It asks us all to consider the power of memory, the necessity of representation, and the ongoing work of imagining more inclusive futures. In doing so, Sisonke Gallery reaffirms its role at the forefront of Cape Town’s cultural conversation, ensuring that the stories of the Cape Malay community continue to inspire and endure.
A Glimpse Between Memoirs explores Cape Malay identity through contemporary art, focusing on themes of memory, heritage, resilience, and colonial history. Featuring artists Shuanez Benting and Whaleed Ahjum, the exhibition blends personal and communal narratives to reflect on colonialism’s impact and the community’s ongoing cultural reclamation within Cape Town.
The exhibition showcases works by Shuanez Benting and Whaleed Ahjum. Benting’s vibrant, dynamic paintings invoke memory and dream-like scenes inspired by everyday life in Bo-Kaap, blending nostalgia with imaginative reimaginings of space. Ahjum’s meticulous oil portraits trace ancestral Southeast Asian roots, highlighting the legacy of forced migration and colonial trauma with a dignified, haunting realism.
Through a rich tapestry of overlapping memories and perspectives, the exhibition resists singular historical narratives. It foregrounds themes of resilience, resistance, and cultural survival, addressing the community’s experiences under colonialism and apartheid. It also connects Cape Malay heritage to Southeast Asian origins, emphasizing the importance of reclaiming marginalized stories and identities.
Located in the historic Cape Heritage Hotel on Bree Street, Sisonke Gallery serves as both a creative venue and a living archive that reflects Cape Town’s complex history and present-day cultural diversity. The gallery transforms into a sanctuary for reflection and dialogue during Heritage Month, providing a platform for contemporary art that challenges and enriches conversations about identity and memory.
A Glimpse Between Memoirs includes interactive elements inviting visitors to share their own memories on a community board, fostering a collective act of remembrance. The exhibition’s collaboration with organizations like Our Cape Town Heritage (OCTH) and support from patrons like House Union Block (HUB) emphasize education, inclusivity, and cultural sustainability, encouraging visitors to engage deeply with Cape Malay heritage.
The exhibition runs at Sisonke Gallery through 28 September 2025. Visitors can immerse themselves in an environment layered with sensory and cultural connections – from the artwork and community stories to the sounds and scents of Bo-Kaap nearby – making each visit a unique journey into the rich and evolving identity of the Cape Malay community.
South Africa is making big changes to keep a close eye on its top leaders!…
Cape Town is bursting with sports action from December 5th to 7th, 2025! You can…
South African cheesemakers dazzled at the 2025 World Cheese Awards in Switzerland! They won many…
Mozambique and South Africa just held their 4th big meeting, the BiNational Commission, in Maputo.…
South Africa and Mozambique are like old friends, working together to make things better. They…
South Africa's water system is a mess! Almost half of its drinking water isn't safe,…