Photo: The University of Witwatersrand
The University of Witwatersrand (Wits) has announced the development of a R341 million cultural precinct which includes the university’s south-eastern edge in Braamfontein into an accessible lifestyle hub for arts, culture, performance and creative innovation. The project will expand, integrate and connect the university’s existing arts, performance and heritage facilities to create a vibrant cultural gateway between Wits and Johannesburg. The project will bring together new and upgraded academic facilities, theatres, exhibition and performance spaces.
The cultural precinct will be embedded in the Faculty of Humanities and Wits School of Arts. Restaurants, bookshops and other lifestyle spaces will be incorporated within the precinct. The project intends to connect Braamfontein, Wits University and Johannesburg CBD.
Vice Chancellor and Principal of Wits, Zeblon Vilakazi, expressed that “The University and the City of Johannesburg have grown together for more than a century. We cannot separate the future of the university from the future of this city. The cultural precinct is about opening Wits to Johannesburg and creating spaces where students, artists, scholars and the public can meet, create and exchange ideas.”
Photo: University of Witwatersrand
“Through the arts, we can help breathe new energy into Braamfontein and contribute to the renewal of this city, the financial and industrial hub of South Africa. The Wits Cultural Precinct is uniquely positioned to both advance the academic goals of the School of Arts and develop the cultural capital of Johannesburg.”
While Wits is co-funding the project, it received a major donation from South African businessman and Wits alumnus Chris Seabrooke. Seabrooke had this to say: “The arts have an extraordinary ability to bring people together and to change the character of a place. Our hope is that this investment will enable Wits to create a precinct that belongs not only to its students, staff and academics, but to Johannesburg. We want to help build a place that attracts people to Braamfontein, supports creativity and leaves a cultural legacy for generations to come.”
This project will bring academic disciplines and creative work together into the public. It will be an important contribution to the revitalisation of Johannesburg and will create an accessible space that brings together students, artists, and entrepreneurs.