Pretoria's creative renaissance

Pretoria has always pulsed with artistic life, its movements shifting with each generation but always grounded in community, creativity, and cultural exchange.

- Rolland Simpi Motaung

Before the move to the South African State Theatre in 2023, Black Labone events were hosted down the road from the theatre at African Beer Emporium.

(Photo: Black Labone)

There was a time in my youth, when the week was a carefully crafted itinerary of inspiration with events hosted in libraries, university campuses and pavements. For instance, one had a choice to attend Uhuru wa Maisha, Penseed Poets, or Street Poetry sessions during the week or simply hang out with artists busking with their punchlines and enjoy live music at Hip Hop Nites and Capital Arts Revolution.

The No Camp Chairs Poetry sessions on Sundays on the lawns of the Union Buildings ended a highly art-filled week. These times were certainly an artist's delight, home to a generation of headwraps, dreads, chakra talks and dirty All-Stars with something to say.

"We can definitely confirm, Black Labone was inspired by sessions of old. Long before Black Labone was called a weekly festival, the program had come as an idea to establish a consistent and reliable creative safe space for young and seasoned artists," says convenor Izah Kutsh.

Founded in 2017, Black Labone has been at the helm of Pretoria's contemporary artistic renaissance. The word Labone, meaning Thursday in Sotho, signifies the weekly gatherings filled with live band showcases, arts-and-crafts exhibitions, DJ sets, and slam poetry performances.

Being an artist can come with isolation and being misunderstood by those around you, therefore being amongst like-minded peers brings a sense of belonging. At the centre of Black Labone's ethos, Kutsh states, is fostering a strong sense of community.