Norval Foundation, situated in the Tokai region of Cape Town, is a haven for both South African and African artwork. The gallery, founded in 2018, aims to nurture understanding and appreciation of African art. It strives to position African artists within the global art historical canon, fostering awareness and elevating the discourse around their contributions. Here’s everything happening at Norval this month.

Upcoming Events at Norval Foundation

Norval Student Art Prize

Earlier this year, Norval Foundation invited young people across Cape Town to share their voices and showcase their work. Using the theme DREAM, students in Grades 1 to 12 were encouraged to submit artworks exploring their thoughts, hopes, and dreams for the future of South Africa.

The winning artworks have been chosen and are being showcased in an exhibition at Norval Foundation, which opens to the public on 17 June 2026 (after Youth Day) after a private opening.

When: From 17 June 2026 | 10am – 5pm (Wed – Sat) | 10am – 4pm (Sun)

Holiday Art Club

During the school holidays, Norval is giving young artists the opportunity to explore their creativity and imagination at an acclaimed institution. There are daily workshops during this time, ranging from watercolour lessons to oil pastel classes, led by professional artists and teachers. Each workshop is designed to teach kids new techniques, boost their confidence, and allow them to express themselves within a social, supportive environment.

By empowering the next generation with new skills, Norval Foundation encourages students to learn, experiment, and play with artistic ideas. Spaces at each workshop are limited and sold separately, and pre-booking is encouraged. Participants must be between the ages of 7 and 12. For more information, visit the website.

Cost: R320 per child. Book now on Webtickets.
When: 29 June – 3 July 2026 | 10am – 12.30pm

Current Exhibitions at Norval Foundation

Norval Foundation has 9 gallery spaces available for exhibitions, as well as the atrium space, which hosts large-scale display pieces. Here are the current exhibitions on display at Norval Foundation.

Githan Coopoo: Tears Now But Heaven Tomorrow

This exhibition honours the legacy of South African artist Githan Coopoo (1994–2025), whose singular voice redefined the possibilities of clay in contemporary art.

A self-taught sculptor, Coopoo transformed clay into a medium of adornment, critique, and storytelling. His innovative practice blurred the boundaries between craft and fine art, shaping fragile material into both intimate jewellery and commanding sculptural forms. His work carried tenderness, humour, and defiance, revealing the strength in vulnerability and the beauty in fragility.

Drawing inspiration from mythology, ancient civilisations, and his queer, South African and diasporic heritage, Coopoo created works that resonated with both personal and universal meaning. Playful yet profound, his sculptures invite us to consider how bodies and spaces hold memory, desire, and history, while questioning value, permanence, and identity.

When: Until 4 October 2026
Where: The Atrium, Norval Foundation,4 Steenberg Rd, Tokai, Cape Town

All About Githan Coopoo’s Tears Now But Heaven Tomorrow Exhibition

Wild Life by Brett Murray

Norval Foundation presents Brett Murray: Wild Life, a major solo exhibition by one of South Africa’s most acclaimed artists. Curated by Karel Nel, the exhibition brings together more than eighty sculptures spanning four decades of Murray’s celebrated and sometimes controversial career. 

Artist Brett Murray has long been recognised for his sharp wit and fearless social commentary. In Wild Life, he uses the animal world as a mirror for our own – blending humour, satire and empathy to explore human behaviour.

The exhibition includes a fascinating assortment of creatures: primates, elephants, bulls, pigs and imagined hybrids. Each sculpture captures the contradictions of modern life – the comic, the tragic and the deeply human. Behind the polished bronze and marble surfaces lies a sharp observation of society’s foibles.

When: Until 22 November 2026
Where: Norval Foundation, 4 Steenberg Rd, Tokai, Cape Town

All About Brett Murray’s Wild Life Exhibition

Tanda rima by Portia Zvavahera

Harare-based artist Portia Zvavahera is internationally recognised for her deeply expressive, rhythmic paintings that move fluidly between the physical and the spiritual worlds. Her works give visual form to her dreams, memories and lived experiences, creating richly layered works infused with colour, symbolism and emotional intensity.

The title of the exhibition, Tanda rima, translates loosely from Shona as “Chase away the darkness”, which builds on the artist’s 2023 Cape Town exhibition Pane rima rakakomba (“There’s too much darkness”). Rooted in the language in which the artist lives, thinks and dreams, the exhibition reflects an intimate and vulnerable narrative shaped by themes of motherhood, care, spirituality and transition.

When: Until 6 September 2026
Where: Norval Foundation, 4 Steenberg Rd, Tokai, Cape Town

More About Tanda rima

A life of displacement by Irma Stern

The Norval Foundation is proud to announce the opening of Irma Stern: A life of displacement, a landmark series of exhibitions tracing the extraordinary life, journeys, and artistic legacy of one of South Africa’s most celebrated modernists, Irma Stern. Drawing on material from her extensive archive and Collection, this exhibition forms part of a new unique multiyear collaboration between the Norval Foundation, the Irma Stern Trust and Nedbank.

This partnership emerges at a pivotal moment for Stern’s legacy, following the temporary closure of the Irma Stern Museum at The Firs in 2025, the historic home where Stern lived and worked for almost four decades. It ensures that Stern’s work remains available to view during the course of the Irma Stern Museum’s closure.

When: Until 17 August 2026
Where: Norval Foundation, 4 Steenberg Rd, Tokai, Cape Town

About A life of displacement

Private guided tours

Guests can enjoy a personalised experience led by one of Norval’s in-house guides to gain a deeper understanding of the artworks, artists, and stories shaping their bold exhibitions. Each tour is a 45-60-minute deep dive into the exhibitions listed above, where up to 10 adults can engage more closely with the art on display and the museum itself.

Each private tour costs R3850 per group and includes general admission to the Norval Foundation for the day. Bookings for these tours can be done through email.

Explore Norval Foundation’s Sculpture Garden

The Sculpture Garden at the Norval Foundation features three-dimensional installations by artists from South Africa and the rest of Africa. The unique site, split by a protected Cape lowland freshwater wetland and surrounded by the natural beauty of the Western Cape, features flora indigenous to the area. The placement of artwork takes the site into account, using the garden’s contours to hide and reveal the work, creating an experience of discovery for the viewer.

The building has been designed so that the western side opens onto the Sculpture Garden at multiple points, allowing visitors to access the Sculpture Garden from the galleries and creating connections between exhibitions taking place both inside and outside. The exhibition programme in the Sculpture Garden aims to represent a plurality of practices currently taking place in the region, including artists working with the figure, narrative and mythology, abstraction and post-minimalism, and craft.

The Norval Foundation Learning Centre

Norval Foundation’s Learning Centre is an investment in the South African youth, aiming to educate young people through art. The Centre fosters the development of creative thinking, interpretation, and problem-solving skills, which, in turn, enable learners to make better life decisions. The Centre is open to all, and more information can be found on the website.

Primary School Learners

Norval Foundations offers children the chance to engage with art while developing and supporting creativity and problem-solving skills. The objective is to expose children to art, a museum environment and world-class curated art exhibitions.

The educational tour includes a museum tour, a Sculpture Garden tour, exploring the world of sculpture art and an art history lesson and art-making activity, which the children then take home. The tour also integrates the CAPS curriculum into by teaching skills such as comprehension, visual literacy, creativity, critical thinking and problem-solving.

The cost of the Educational Tour is R60 per child, with accompanying teachers free. For an additional R90 per person, each child will receive a copy of the Making Art History book, the first children’s book published about African Art.

High School and Tertiary Student Tours

A guided tour at Norval Foundation offers opportunities for your students to experience and interact with art first-hand. Led by the exhibition curators and museum-trained educators, the tours engage young people in topical and lively discussions to further their understanding of art, encourage critical thinking, and deepen their knowledge. Tours are customised to suit various educational levels and curricula, and have been developed for grades 9 -12, as well as tertiary education levels.

The tour includes a museum tour of all of the exhibitions on show, or a dedicated tour of one exhibition in particular. Students also experience a Sculpture Garden tour, discussions and interactions with art curators, and guidance on the different careers that exist within the art industry, and the educational routes available.

The tour costs R60 per student with an accompanying teacher’s fee. The Norval Foundation also hosts Youth Access Days, where young people between the ages of 18 and 24 enter the museum for free.

Bookings for these tours can be done through email.

Hire the Norval Foundation

The Norval Foundation offers a variety of event spaces, each with its own unique appeal. The Sculpture Garden provides an outdoor setting perfect for garden parties or receptions, surrounded by large-scale sculptures and beautiful landscapes. The Atrium is a bright, open indoor space suitable for larger gatherings, product launches, or exhibitions. The nine state-of-the-art galleries offer flexible spaces for art exhibitions, private events, or corporate functions. Lastly, the library provides a more intimate setting for smaller, quieter events like book launches or private meetings. These diverse venues cater to a wide range of events and can be tailored to suit different needs.

Enquire about booking the Norval Foundation for a function via email.

How to Visit Norval Foundation

Norval Foundation offers an annual, affordable membership for single, double and group tickets with special perks such as invitations to exhibition openings and special discounts on guided tours. All pensioners pay half price every Thursday, and African Nationals may need to present their passports to access the special entry fee. See more info here.

Cost: Day Pass – R220pp for African Nationals | R330pp for Internationals | R110pp for young adults aged 18 to 24 years | Kids under 18 enter free. Book via Webtickets

When: 10am to 5pm (Wed to Sat) | 10am to 4pm (Sun) | Closed on Mon & Tues
Where: Norval Foundation, 4 Steenberg Road, Tokai

Website: norvalfoundation.org
Email: [email protected]
Tel: 087 654 5900
Instagram: @norvalfoundation
Facebook: @NorvalFoundation

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