South African National Art Gallery
It all started in 1871, with a first bequest of 45 paintings by Thomas Buttersworth Bayley. Since then, the SA National Art Gallery has grown to international stature, its white walls proudly gleaming in the Cape Town sun. The South African National Arts Gallery, a satellite museum, falls under the Southern Flagship which was renamed the Iziko Museums of Cape Town. Museums in Gauteng and Cape Town have been grouped together in these Flagship Institutions under the Cultural Institutions Act (Act 199 of 1998). Therefore, the South African National Art Gallery is considered a semi-independent museum in regard to their core functions, however, human resource management, financing and administration have been centralized.
The main building of the South African National Art Gallery was designed by a collaboration between Clelland & Mullens and FK Kendall. The Hyman Liberman Estate, the Government and the City Council funded this project, which led to the completion of the National Gallery in 1930. Over the years, improvements have been made and in 1991, the South African National Art Gallery upgraded their lighting and introduced a climate controlled environment.
The National Gallery of South Africa has a permanent collection of 20th century art from leading artists. The collections were purchased in the 1980’s, but due to prohibitive prices of Western Art, no significant additions have been made. Artists include John Walker, Micheal Porter, and more.
After the 1980’s, a shift in policy emerged at the South African National Arts Gallery. An amazing vitality was noted in the art being created in South Africa. The National Arts Gallery of South Africa recognized this change and now concentrates on breeching the gab that was created by apartheid in the past. From the 1990’s, a collection of art has been secured by the South African National Art Gallery that represents the rich African cultures and African continent.
The National Art Gallery changes their permanent collections regularly, and displays temporary exhibitions of paintings, photography, textiles, sculpture and beadwork.
The SA National Art Gallery also has a Library. This Library has a collection of newspaper cuttings, with references to South African Art, that date back to 1904.
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