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South African National Gallery Review

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South African National Gallery

Address: Government Ave., Gardens, Cape Town
Phone: 021/467-4660
www.museums.org.za/sang

Category: Museums/Galleries
Location: Gardens

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Fodor's Review:

This museum houses a good collection of 19th- and 20th-century European art, but its most interesting exhibits are the South African works, many of which reflect the country's traumatic history. An excellent example of contemporary South African art is the ghoulish sculpture The Butcher Boys, by Jane Alexander. Walk around these three sitting figures with an air of foreboding and menace about them, and you'll be shocked to discover their exposed spines. This is the stuff of nightmares, recalling the torture activists suffered at the hands of the security police during the height of apartheid. The gallery owns an enormous body of work, so exhibitions change regularly, but there's always something provocative—whether it's documentary photographs or a multimedia exhibit chronicling South Africa's struggles with HIV and AIDS. The director, Marilyn Martin, is known for innovative, brave, and sometimes controversial exhibitions and her outspoken stance on art policy and development. Free guided tours on Tuesday and Thursday take about an hour.

Cost: R10
Open: Tues.-Sun. 10-5; tours Tues. and Thurs. at 11 and 1

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