Arts

Who Was Counted, Who Was Carried at Cape Town’s Desmond and Leah Tutu House brings contemporary art and archival research together to explore the overlooked histories of sailors, enslaved people and migrants, and asks whose stories endure. By YASEEN BARDIEN AND ANWAR OMAR Dozens of visitors explored...

In Languages of Care, artist Vikisha Ranchod uses stitched prayer mats, date-pit pigments and hand-rolled beads to explore how worship, remembrance and compassion extend through Muslim life, art and solidarity with Palestine. By WIDAD SIRKHOTTE When Zimbabwean student Vikisha Ranchod began studying Visual Art at Stellenbosch University...

Cape Town musicians and poets performed at Rondebosch United Church for ‘Notes from Exile’, a Mandela Day tribute to Palestinian composer Mahmoud Abuwarda. The concert celebrated his music, highlighted Gaza’s cultural resilience and raised funds to help him rebuild his life in Istanbul. By ANWAR OMAR On...

The Maghrebi Calligraphy Exhibition in Cape Town brings Islamic art, history and community into conversation, highlighting the living tradition of Maghrebi script in South Africa. By WIDAD SIRKHOTTE Visual arts are, sadly, not commonly pursued as a full-time career within the South African Muslim community. For many,...

Handwriting is more than a skill — it is a cognitive, spiritual and cultural practice. As digital tools dominate education, protecting Islamic calligraphy and writing traditions has never been more urgent. By WIDAD SIRKHOTTE In the digital era in which we find ourselves, handwriting is slipping quietly...

How Islamic art and faith-based design, as espoused by Mahmudah Begum Jaffer, can engage fynbos, biodiversity, and belonging in the Cape Floristic Region beyond science and policy. By ZAITOON EBRAHIM The Cape Floristic Region Partnership (CFRP) Knowledge Exchange, held on Thursday, December 5, 2025, at the West...

His canvas was immense: medicine, writing, painting, teaching, community service. And on every part of that canvas, he left strokes of compassion, courage and creativity. By FARID SAYED This is the keynote address which was delivered on Saturday November 15 at the opening of the Arts for...

Mahmudah Begum Jaffer’s Janubi Zakhrafa breaks new ground in Islamic manuscript illumination, blending sacred geometry with South African flora and identity. By SHAFIQ MORTON One of humankind’s most basic impulses has always been the urge to visually communicate meaning. From the 73 000-year-old San cross-hatches in the...

As Islamic calligraphy continues to awaken hearts and minds across the country, the return of Hafidh Muhammad Hobe stands as a powerful reminder of what is possible when passion meets purpose, and when knowledge is passed on with love, discipline, and integrity. His presence was more than...

A poem by Hassen Lorgat   The young ones, sitting on sidewalk Started to play quote a revolutionary Call and response of a special type Malcolm X Brother Malcolm once said Do nothing unto anyone / that you would not like/ to have done unto yourself/ Seek...