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The Absa Towers West project on Absa Campus is
taking ‘green building’ in the city centre to
a new level.
The R1,2-billion project in Marshalltown
covers three city blocks and includes new
buildings and upgrades to eight buildings, as
well as the development of the surrounding
environment.
An initial sustainability review was carried
out in 2007 by a consortium consisting of PJC
Carew Consulting, Green by Design, and the
CSIR. This study reviewed the design and
suggested changes to improve the
sustainability performance of the campus.
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The stand-off between the City and taximen has
not yet been resolved, even though the Bus
Rapid Transport (BRT) system, also known as
Rea Vaya (let’s go), has already been
launched.
Rea Vaya’s Starter Service commenced at last
on 30 August, and to mark this historic moment
the public had the opportunity to use the
system free of charge on the first day.
Photo: Will
the City continue to be gridlocked, as taxi
operators clash with the authorities over the
new bus system?
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Read more |
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Arts Alive moves into a dynamic new era
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 The
annual Arts Alive Festival is hard at work creating
a programme for the September 3rd to September 30th
event, and has appointed one of the leading South
African Brand Solutions companies, Zanusi, to manage
the event for the next three years.
Says Nomahlubi Simamane, Zanusi’s MD and founder:
“Arts Alive already has a very strong foundation and
we plan to build on that to create a month-long
programme of activities that draws on Arts Alive
specific events, as well as the many amazing arts
and culture activities that take place in Joburg
during the month.
Photo: There’s a
fantastic line-up this year at Arts Alive
Read more |
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Goethe on Main focuses on the Inner City |
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 If
you are interested in what’s happening in the inner
city and how artists perceive this, get down to
Goethe on Main this September. There are
photographs, plays, discussions, poems and
walkabouts.
- From 4 September to 3 October is the Red Ants
exhibition. The Red Ants are well known to South
Africans. The name evokes images of people being
kicked out of their homes: chairs, radios,
mattresses, kitchenware and other personal
belongings piling up on the street.
Photo: The infamous
Red Ants busy clearing a building of people and
their belongings
Read more |
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Joburg becomes a movie mecca |
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 Since
Jerusalema became a smash hit at the local box
office, things have been taking off big time on the
Joburg movie scene, also known as Jollywood or
Hollyveld.
Over the past year a number of major films have been
shot in the Gauteng area.
- The Bang-Bang Club is the story of four
photographers - Ken Oosterbroek, Joao Silva, Kevin
Carter and Greg Marinovich. The movie tells the true
story of the four men, recounting their
relationships with each other and the stresses,
tensions and moral dilemmas of working in situations
of extreme violence, pain and suffering.
- Invictus is a Clint Eastwood film about South
Africa’s first Rugby World Cup win in 1993, with
Morgan Freeman once again playing Nelson Mandela.
It’s based on John Carlin’s book Playing the Enemy.
- Tengers is this country’s first full-length
Claymation feature film, a dark social satire about
what it means to be a Gautenger. Completed in 2007,
it was written, directed and produced by Michael J.
Rix. Like Jerusalema, it covers the topic of crime
and ends in a huge shootout.
- District 9 is a science fiction about aliens
arriving in Joburg, from producer Peter Jackson
(Lord of the Rings) and director Neill Blomkamp. The
movie is a canny, violent blend of Independence Day
and Cronenberg’s The Fly, but with a dusty, jumpy
look that recalls documentary war footage.
Photo: Bang-Bang
Club photographer Greg Marinovitch is wounded while
filming unrest in the 1980s
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Craft Market on Main Street |
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 Main
Street Mall (section 21 company) awarded Frontline
Events the contract to assist in the co-ordination
and management of the Craft Market. Since December
2004 local artists and crafters have been given a
platform to market their products and artwork.
In turn this event has not only helped the crafters
but allowed the employees and employers in and
around Main Street to come and enjoy the new
environment within Main Street, which is a part of
the rejuvenation project.
Photo: Didi has
established his own brand ‘I Did It’ – catch him at
the Main Street Market
Read more |
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Barbican building restored |
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 A
historic Johannesburg building, which has been left
to decay for years, and fallen prey to vandals
recently, will soon get a R19-million facelift.
Owners Old Mutual have confirmed that the 11-storey
Barbican, which was the city’s first skyscraper when
it was built in 1929, will be restored in November.
Old Mutual’s property investor, Lindsay Butler,
said: “The funding was approved a week ago, so it’s
all systems go.”
Photo: This
delightful old building will soon be restored
Read more |
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The Johannesburg Art Gallery |
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 Looking
over the lawns and fountains of Joubert Park, and
tucked away behind street vendors and the hundreds
of taxis, the Johannesburg Art Gallery (JAG) is one
of the city’s less obvious treasures. I bet most
readers have never been there.
JAG apparently owes its existence to the vision and
passion of Lady Florence Phillips, wife of mining
magnate Sir Lionel Phillips. She became aware,
through her travels, of the cultural wealth of the
European capitals and the contrasting barrenness of
the Johannesburg mining town. She decided to make a
difference by giving it an art gallery.
Photo: JAG is a
rare treasure hidden in the heart of Joburg
Read more |
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JICBC