American World Traveler Summer 2017 Issue

26
The Urban Renaissance of Johannesburg
Article & Photography by Olivia Balsinger
After about two decades of considerable
setbacks in it economy and
socio-politics, Johannesburg, the
capital of South Africa, has been experiencing
a rapid progress akin to a new age
urban renaissance. This rebirth is the result
of its post-apartheid initiatives, focused on
forming a new and loquacious unity among
all of its people, leading to developments in
its urban planning, economic structure,
artistic scene, and its proactive measures to
promote tourism.
Its success cannot be understated, and it
has assumed the role as the heart of the
South African nation. A visit to
Johannesburg is an eclectic experience, as
it offers the chance to discover its vast and
varied culture. You will learn about its controversial
past, celebrate its inspiring transition
and relish experiencing its new identity
as a rather chic and progressive urban hub.
The key to Johannesburg's impressive
progress is perhaps its hyper awareness to
illuminate its past. The approach itself is
rather optimistic, highlighting the heroes of
apartheid, without detracting from the realities
of its heinousness. The best place to get
an overview is the renowned Apartheid
Museum, which condenses the narrative to
its core timeline from its veritable beginnings
in 1948 to its triumphant end in
1994, when Nelson Mandela was elected
president of the republic.
Its comprehensive program delves into the
catalysts and consequences of this dark era,
emitting a beacon of hope by illustrating its
gradual ascent to liberation -- a modern
example of triumph in the arena of human
rights. For a more curated experience on
the liberation movement, tourists are also
enjoined to visit the Mandela Museum,
which was converted from the house where
Mandela’s family lived from 1946 to 1962.
Perhaps the most emotive excursion for history
buffs, however is Constitution Hill,
where once the Old Fort Prison Complex
stood, which housed revolutionary heroes,
such as Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi,
when they were incarcerated.
The city’s rich history echoes with numinous
vibrations, which have over the years motivated
a movement that seeks to replace the
air of a repressed past with an open an
honest art scene. Looking to the world’s
more metropolitan cities like as Berlin, New
York, and Paris as models of thriving urban
hubs, Johannesburg has found its own
voice in reimagining its cultural landscape
by implementing conscious and focused
redevelopment of its inner city neighborhoods.
This reinvigoration of Newtown and
Braamfontein, for example, has been
extremely successful in cultivating a hip and
thriving artistic climate, becoming home to
some of the world’s most famous street art,
such as The Shadow Boxer.
Of particular note in transitioning the concrete
jungle of Johannesburg’s inner city
precincts is the neighborhood of
Maboneng. Like the rest of the precincts in
the inner city, Maboneng was once a no-go
area. It in fact was plagued with particular
danger at the end of apartheid in 1994,
due to the uncertainty and anxiety that the
transition would inevitably incur: It faced
crime waves as businesses relocated to the
northern suburbs, leaving vacancy for
squatters to move in to buildings and dangerous
conditions. With all of this in consideration,
it may seem like a high stakes bet
for property developer Jonathan Liebmann
to have the vision to convert this ghost town
into a bustling artistic community.
With his company, Propertuity, Liebmann
sought to attract artists and professionals
back to the precinct, drawing parallels
between derelict industrial spaces to those
in other gentrified cities such as
Williamsburg, Brooklyn, for example,
where chic boutiques and art galleries now
occupy disused warehouses. Speaking of
warehouses, the nucleus of this buzzing
urban destination is Arts on Main, operating
out of a bonded warehouse dates back
to 1911, and expands four blocks in diameter.
Shops, galleries, vendors, and restaurants
line the white-wash, high-ceilinged
interior. Meanwhile, messages and testaments
to Maboneng’s new identity are literally
written on the walls, which is splayed
with graffiti of lines such as “Love your
work,’ adjacent to images executed by
some of the cities most talented new residents.
In order to attract more artists, the
precinct offers discounted studios and
apartments to up-and-coming creatives,
with the most renowned being the multimedia
giant William Kentridge.
Propertuity has truly given new meaning to
Maboneng, which itself is translated to
“Place of Light.” It has indeed brought it out
of the shadows of a darker era to shine with
the potential to change the future of the city,
country, and the world by becoming the
headquarters for artistic expression and discourse.
When you visit this truly incredible
neighborhood, be sure to stay in the boutique
hotel Hallmark House, which is owned
and developed by Propertuity. A landmark
of a new chapter in African architecture,
The Hallmark Hotel is a luxurious, curated
living spaces (penthouses, apartments, and
hotel rooms) for visitors and permanent residents
alike. It captures the constantly elevating
ambiance of Maboneng main streets
to an indoor venue, converting an intangible
culture into veritable lifestyle, where art
and progressive thinking pervades.
American World Traveler Summer 2017