If you have not walked around Newtown in a while, you will now be greeted by a sight to behold as brand new sculptures break the concrete monotony and add a creative buzz to the environment.
The new sculptures were unveiled on Saturday, 14 July, by Member of the Mayoral Committee for Community Development Cllr Nonhlanhla Sifumba. She said each hand-carved head is unique, representing a sea of faces from across the African continent.
Trees along the pedestrian walkway were wrapped in bright colours, and banners hanged light poles, old wooden heads groomed and polished to welcome the freshly-carved from a workshop in Soweto.
In her keynote address, MMC Sifumba said: “The process of refurbishing and adding new Newtown Heads is part of street art to assist in breathing new life into the cultural precinct. This rekindle Newtown’s creative spirit as part of revitalising the Inner City as part of the contribution spearheaded by City’s arts, culture and heritage.”
The City now has 196 new and refurbished heads lining up along a central walkway starting from Mary Fitzgerald Square and extending past the Newtown Park to Helen Joseph Street.
A number of the carvers have passed away, and the remaining sculptor Americo Guambe returned to the Newtown heads project in 2018 to head a team creating new sculptures and repairing many others.
Guambe said: “I wanted to show the different people of Johannesburg that it is a city of diverse cultures. And so the heads do that – people of all races, genders, ages and cultures adorn the plinths around Newtown and the city.”
He was sadden that some of the old heads that were installed were damaged and called for the protection of public artwork in the city and inability of young people to see the gap wood sculpting economic opportunities. The mood was lighten up by the melody of good music- old and young responded positively.
Over the years, many of the heads suffered wear and tear, some were damaged and others disappeared. The sculptors also suffered from neglect and poor maintenance practices, which compromised their beauty, and the beauty they bring to the city.
The Newtown Head Sculptures is an installation of over 500 carved wooden heads made from disused railway sleeper.
