Welgemeend Art Month returns with a group exhibition exploring the journey from artistic idea to finished work

27 Jul 2026

CAPE TOWN – The exhibition From Concept to Object / Wanneer Idees GestalteKry provides the organising theme for the 2026 edition of Welgemeend Art Month (1–31 August 2026), Cape Town’s much-loved winter arts festival, now in its thirteenth year. Drawing on works from the Kilbourn Collection and other private collections, the group exhibition explores how artists transform ideas into tangible form. It also includes a special focus on Cecil Skotnes, a pivotal figure in the history of modern South African art. Coinciding with the centenary of Skotnes’s birth in 1926, the exhibition has particular significance for Strauss & Co Chairperson Frank Kilbourn. In 1981, while studying law at Rand Afrikaans University (now the University of Johannesburg), Kilbourn met Skotnes, together with fellow artists Walter Battiss and Edoardo Villa, at an exhibition on campus. The encounter sparked a lifelong passion for collecting South African art.

“Years later, when Frank turned forty, a group of friends who knew about his beginnings as a collector presented him with a painting by Cecil Skotnes,” says Lizelle Kilbourn, who met her future husband while they were both studying law at RAU. “Skotnes occupies a special place in our lives. Like him, we both studied and began our professional careers in Johannesburg and later lived in Oranjezicht after moving to Cape Town. It is a privilege to celebrate this remarkable artist at Welgemeend, just a short walk from his former home.”

Reflecting on the exhibition and the broader programme of events during Welgemeend Art Month, Frank Kilbourn says: “Every winter, the Kilbourn family, together with fellow collectors and the Friends of Welgemeend and Strauss & Co, combine their resources to present an intimate cultural event for Cape Town and its residents. Our aim is to share our collection in a way that celebrates our South African artistic heritage, and to inspire and educate a new generation of collectors while raising funds for the continued preservation of Welgemeend, the Boerneef Art Collection it houses and its historic gardens.”

Established on land first granted in 1693, Welgemeend is an elegant single-storey Cape house recognised by architectural historian Hans Fransen in The Old Buildings of the Cape (1965). Today it serves both as a heritage site and an active cultural venue. Funds raised through previous editions of Welgemeend Art Month have supported a range of conservation projects, including waterproofing, restoration of historic woodwork and the conservation of the property’s Bösendorfer grand piano. As in previous years, Frank Kilbourn has curated From Concept to Object / WanneerIdees Gestalte Kry in collaboration with Lizelle Kilbourn, who runs the lecture and social programme. In conjunction with the Skotnes family and a few friends and fellow collectors, they selected works that illuminate the exhibition’s central theme. 

The presentation brings together modern masters including Walter Battiss, J.H. Pierneef, Douglas Portway, Alexis Preller, Marianne Podlashuc and Lucky Sibiyawith contemporary artists Tom Cullberg, Conrad Botes, Alexandra Karakashian, Bella Knemeyer, Dale Lawrence, Senzeni Marasela and Buqaqawuli Nobakada. Painting has long occupied a central place in Welgemeend Art Month. This year’s exhibition places particular emphasis on contemporary painting, led by ambitious multi-panel works by Ruby Swinney and Strijdom van der Merwe. The exhibition also includes works by Sydney Kumalo, Ezrom Legae, Cecily Sash and Edoardo Villa, all members of the influential Amadlozi Group alongside Skotnes.

Best known for his painted and incised wooden panels, woodblock prints, public murals, tapestries and sculpture, Skotnes was also an influential mentor. Reflecting this legacy, the exhibition includes works by Bruce Arnott, Ledelle Moe, Brett Murray, Penny Siopis and Michael Taylor, artists who have themselves played significant roles as teachers and mentors to subsequent generations.

A lively programme of talks and musical performances accompanies the exhibition. Highlights include:

Tuesday, 4 August at 6.30–11pm: Gala dinner and auction

Saturday, 8 August at 12–2pm Exhibition walkabout with Frank Kilbourn (R300)

Wednesday, 12 August at 5.30pm: Public lecture by Amanda Botha on artist Maggie Laubser and art dealer Helmut Silberberg, titled “Hidden Stories: Maggie Laubser and the Art Dealer” (R300)

Saturday, 15 August at 10am: Public talk by Lizelle Kilbourn and Bina Genovese, titled “A Walk through the 2026 Venice Biennale” (R300), followed at 12pm by an exhibition walkabout with Frank Kilbourn (R300)

Tuesday, 25 August at 5.30pm: Book launch of Dieter Holm’s biography Elly Holm: Van Berlyn tot Hartbeespoort, followed by a musical performance featuring the Holm family (R300)

Sunday, 30 August at 12pm: Musical performance featuring Strydom Duo with the artist Paula du Bois (R300)

Full programme details: https://www.welgemeendart.co.za