Investec Cape Town Art Fair looks forward to welcoming you to its 13th edition, taking place from 20 — 22 February 2026 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC).
The fair promises a programme connecting contemporary art’s leading voices from around the world. Offering an innovative platform for intimate encounters, Investec Cape Town Art Fair offers opportunities for new, authentic modes of engagement under the upcoming edition’s curatorial concept, Listen.
A MESSAGE FROM OUR DIRECTOR, LAURA VINCENTI
“The fair’s 13th edition, with its expanded footprint, offers a line-up of familiar favourites enriched by inspiring new projects and programming. They collectively ensure that Investec Cape Town Art Fair 2026 promises an unprecedented experience of global discovery and creative connection.
Our upcoming edition welcomes Listen as its guiding curatorial concept, inviting us to be still for a moment to expand the ways we can connect with art. In 2026, we welcome the radical act of truly, deeply listening. To forge new ways of tuning into the silences, whispers and voices often gone unheard.”
Our programme offers unparalleled access to the heart of Cape Town’s vibrant art and cultural scene, inviting meaningful engagement with the city and its people through a carefully curated selection of in-depth encounters and experiences for which Investec Cape Town Art Fair is renowned.
An annual highlight of Investec Cape Town Art Fair is its offering of world-class opportunities to learn, and to listen, hosted by celebrated global cultural experts. Read below for more information on the fair's selection of a well-loved talks programme and art walks, now complemented by a debut selection of engaging workshops.
Discover the full 2026 VIP programme and Unbound City public programme by logging in to our digital platform using your email address.
Buy your tickets today.
TALKS PROGRAMME
Curated by Art School Africa
Supported by iTOO Artinsure
Now taking place in an auditorium in the heart of the fair, this year’s talks programme offers live, interactive conversations amongst an international selection of panellists and moderators. Guided by the 2026 edition’s curatorial concept, Listen, each talk promotes spontaneous exchange, shaped by curiosity, difference, and ideas in motion.
Our talks programme is included with your ticket, but seats are limited, so we strongly recommend you RSVP to secure your spot.
COLLECTING STORIES THAT MATTER
Saturday 21 February 2026 | 11:00 AM — 12:00 PM
This session considers how collecting practices can shift to acknowledge the deeper resonances of such work - emotional, political and communal. Bringing together voices from across the cultural landscape, including artists, collectors, gallerists and institutions, it asks how we might build more thoughtful, ethical systems of value that reflect the urgency and complexity of the work being made today.
Moderator:
Frank Kilbourn, South Africa (Chairperson, Strauss & Co)
Panellists:
Sue Williamson, United Kingdom/South Africa (Artist)
Danda Jaroljmek, United Kingdom (Founder, Circle Art Gallery)
Dr Julie Crooks, United Kingdom/Canada (Curator, Arts of Global Africa and the Diaspora at the Art Gallery of Ontario, Co-Founder of Black Artists Network in Dialogue)
Eileen Twum, United Kingdom (COO, Less Than Half)
RSVP
'AFRICA IS A COUNTRY': UNPACKING TENSIONS BETWEEN UNITY AND DIFFERENCE
Saturday 21 February 2026 | 1:00 — 2:00 PM
‘Africa Is a Country’, the editorial project and critical intervention initiated by Sean Jacobs, confronts the persistent tendency to treat the continent as a singular cultural entity. This talk embraces the phrase as both a critique and an opportunity: to challenge reductive continental generalisations while imagining forms of Pan-Africanism rooted in solidarity, not sameness. It is also a tribute to the curatorial legacy of Koyo Kouoh, whose work insists on rigour, regional specificity and epistemic freedom in the face of global systems of display.
Moderator:
Beata America, South Africa (Assistant Curator, Zeitz MOCAA)
Panellists:
Amogelang Maledu, South Africa (Interdisciplinary Art Practitioner)
Ethel-Ruth Tawe, Cameroon (Editor-in-Chief, C& Magazine)
RSVP
GROUNDED PRACTICE AND GLOBAL REACH: EMBRACING LOCAL KNOWLEDGE AND ECOLOGICAL RESPONSIBILITY THROUGH DESIGN
Saturday 21 February 2026 | 3:00 — 4:00 PM
This talk explores how designers across the globe are shaping a dynamic and pluralistic design language - one that is deeply connected to place yet globally resonant. By reinterpreting traditional techniques and embracing collaborative, material-conscious processes, these creatives are not only contributing to the global design dialogue - they’re actively redefining its future.
Moderator:
Bielle Bellingham, South Africa (Brand and Business Director, Chommies)
Panellists:
Francesca Lanzavecchia, Italy (Creative Director and Co-Founder, Lanzavecchia + Wai)
Frances van Hasselt, South Africa (Founder, Frances VH Mohair)
Star Shongwe, South Africa (Marketing Manager, V&A Waterfront)
Atang Tshikare, South Africa (Artist)
RSVP
LISTENING INWARD: INTUITION, SPIRITUALITY, AND THE UNSEEN IN CONTEMPORARY ART
Saturday 21 February 2026 | 5:00 — 6:00 PM
Beyond the political, formal, or material, many artists across the continent are creating from a deeply intuitive space - guided by dreams, spirituality, ancestral memory, or internal sensing. This talk explores the unseen forces that shape artistic practice and asks: What does it mean to listen inward in the act of making? How do artists navigate the metaphysical alongside the material? And how can we, as audiences, attune ourselves to works that are not always loud, literal, or linear?
In a fast-moving, hyper-visual world, this conversation proposes slowness, attentiveness, and inner attunement as radical tools - for both artists and viewers. It also considers how curators and institutions can hold space for practices rooted in the spiritual, symbolic, or ineffable.
Moderator:
Tandazani Dhlakama, Zimbabwe (Curator, Global Africa at Royal Ontario Museum)
Panellists:
Khanyisile Mbongwa, South Africa (Curator)
Manyaku Mashilo, South Africa (Artist)
Zohra Opoku, Germany/Ghana (Artist)
RSVP
MORE TALKS ON OFFER AT THE FAIR
In addition to the talks programme, Investec Cape Town Art Fair’s new talks auditorium hosts an impressive range of educational experiences, offering further opportunities to engage with art and the world.
Strauss & Co: The South African Secondary Market versus The World
Friday 20 February 2026 | 3:00 — 4:00 PM
Conducted by: Dr Alastair Meredith, South Africa (Director, Art Department Head, Senior Art Specialist and Senior Auctioneer at Strauss & Co)
Strauss & Co: ‘Collecting for Life’: A Roundtable Discussion
Friday 20 February | 4:30 — 5:30 PM
Facilitated by: Sean O’Toole, South Africa (Writer, Editor and Curator) with Frank Kilbourn, South Africa (Chairperson, Strauss & Co), Teresa Raposo, Portugal (Civil Engineer and Art Collector), Herman Steyn, South Africa (Art Collector and Businessperson, Founder Prescient Holdings Group and Scheryn Art Collection), Michael Silver, United States of America (Art Collector and Businessperson, Founder of American Elements and Director’s Council of J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles)
Strauss & Co: Legacy in Motion: The Impact of Modern Art on Today’s Artists
Friday 20 February | 6:00 — 7:00 PM
Conducted by: Wilhelm van Rensburg, South Africa (Senior Art Specialist and Head Curator at Strauss & Co)
RSVP
NIROX Foundation: Soil and Water Dialogues
Sunday 22 February 2026 | 2:00 — 4:00 PM
Featuring Johan Thom, South Africa (Artist), Ledelle Moe, South Africa (Artist), Diana Vives (Brazil/Switzerland), Artist, Douglas Gimberg, South Africa (Artist)
Exploded View: 21st-Century Sculpture
Sunday 22 February 2026 | 4:00 — 6:00 PM
Conducted by: Ashraf Jamal, South Africa (Art Writer) with Zahira Asmal, South Africa (Urbanist), Gerard de Kamper, South Africa (Curator, Edoardo Villa Collection at the University of Pretoria), Michelle de la Harpe, South Africa (Curator, Edoardo Villa Collection at the University of Pretoria)
RSVP
WORKSHOPS
Curated by Art School Africa
This upcoming edition sees the introduction of in-depth, interactive workshop sessions. Be inspired by globally recognised creatives at the forefront of contemporary culture, in masterclasses hosted by Zanele Muholi, Mary Sibande and Thebe Magugu and a discussion hosted by Dan Corder.
LOOKING INWARD: A SELF-PORTRAIT WORKSHOP
WITH ZANELE MUHOLI
Friday 20 February 2026 | 11:00 AM — 1:00 PM
Led by internationally celebrated artist and visual activist Zanele Muholi, this intimate, hands-on session invites participants to explore self-portraiture as a powerful tool for self-discovery and expression. With cameras provided in collaboration with ORMS, Muholi will guide attendees through both the conceptual and practical dimensions of image-making, offering rare insight into their acclaimed practice.
BOOK FOR THIS TICKETED WORKSHOP
WHAT ARE WE ALL DOING HERE?
WITH DAN CORDER
Friday 20 February 2026 | 1:00 — 3:00 PM
In the ongoing pursuit of the fair as a space for dialogue and exchange, and in line with Listen, this open-circle conversation examines the state and shifting role of art criticism today. Guided by noted journalist and political commentator Dan Corder, participants are invited to engage thoughtfully with diverse perspectives, unpack tensions around value, visibility and representation of voices, and consider how critical feedback sustains the vitality of art.
RSVP FOR THIS FREE WORKSHOP
TELLING STORIES THROUGH COLOUR AND MATERIALITY
WITH MARY SIBANDE AND THEBE MAGUGU
Sunday 22 February 2026 | 11:00 AM — 1:00 PM
Join renowned artist Mary Sibande and internationally acclaimed designer Thebe Magugu for a masterclass exploring how colour and material shape narrative. Drawing on their distinct yet interconnected practices, the session offers insight into cross-disciplinary thinking, storytelling and creative practice, with space for direct exchange and questions from participants.
BOOK FOR THIS TICKETED WORKSHOP
ART WALKS
Curated by Art School Africa
Offering deeper insight into the curation, artworks and galleries behind each booth, our guided art walks are complimentary with your ticket.
Spaces are limited, so we strongly recommend you RSVP to secure your spot.
Please arrive at the Art Walks meeting point within the fair at least 15 minutes before the start time to collect your headset.
FRIDAY 20 FEBRUARY 2026
1:30 — 2:30 PM
IN THE SECTION: TOMORROWS/TODAY
Led by Dr Mariella Franzoni, Italy/Spain (Curator of Tomorrows/Today)
3:00 — 4:00 PM
FROM THE FIELD: INTERIOR DESIGN
Led by Anna Weylandt, South Africa (Interior Designer)
4:30 — 5:30 PM
IN THE SECTION: SOLO
Led by Céline Seror, France/Netherlands (Curator of SOLO)
SATURDAY 21 FEBRUARY 2026
12:30 — 1:30 PM
FROM THE FIELD: ART MARKET
Led by Maria Adelaide Marchesoni, Italy (Journalist) and Guido Giachetti, Italy (Collector)
2:00 — 3:00 PM
IN THE SECTION: GENERATIONS
Led by Tandazani Dhlakama, Zimbabwe/Canada (Curator of Generations)
4:30 — 5:30 PM
FROM THE FIELD: ART MAKING
Led by Athi-Patra Ruga, South Africa (Artist)
SUNDAY 22 FEBRUARY 2026
1:30 — 2:30 PM
FROM THE FIELD: ARCHITECTURE
Led by Max Melvill, South Africa (Architect)
2:30 — 3:30 PM
IN THE SECTION: CABINET/RECORD
Led by Beata America, South Africa (Curator of Cabinet/Record)
Our Premium Insider Pass includes an exclusive additional curated art walk on either Saturday or Sunday, plus a complimentary glass of bubbles. This pass also grants access to the Vernissage, VIP Hour, and a Full Weekend Pass.
For more information on extensive programming on offer at Investec Cape Town Art Fair 2026, browse our digital platform here.A
