Exploring The Woodstock Street Art Scene In Cape Town

Want to explore some of the most amazing street art in South Africa? Visit Woodstock, a colorful community nestled near the heart of Cape Town, which offers the best and most vibrant street art, from both local and international artists. This former industrial city, and one that was a high-risk area due to crime and drugs, is transitioning into a center for creativity. The streets are alive with excellent artwork and murals, telling stories about the area and the struggles of the community.

One of the artists here, Maxwell Southgate, better known by his artist name Mak1one, was quoted saying, ‘Watching what is happening in the city is beautiful, it feels like watching all the flowers bloom in the veld. It is amazing to see the new art emerging.’

The best way to see the art of Woodstock is to take a tour with a local, but, with this guide, you can learn how to discover them on your own. Whichever you decide, make sure to leave time for a visit to Woodstock’s Old Biscuit Mill. This lively market offers a variety of food, galleries, and boutique shops. A great place to find clothes, jewelry, art and gifts made by locals and try foods from around the world.

Most visitors take a tour guided by locals to see the street art of Woodstock. And although I planned to take a tour, it was canceled before it started. Since that was the day I set aside for Woodstock, I decided to go anyway and found a ton of art on my own. I think even more than I would have see on the tour.

This post covers the top street art in Woodstock, where to find it, some background on the art, and details on the artists.

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If you prefer to take a tour, I recommend this one:

• Cape Town Woodstock Street Art Walking Tour – 90-minute tour guided by a local artist. It includes walking to various artworks and murals and time at the Old Biscuit Mill.

I just can’t promise they will cover the artwork I found below.

Woodstock Street Art

I’ve categorized the artwork below by portraits, animals, figurative art, and contemporary art. Some of the artists are local, some are local with international recognition, and some are artists living abroad.

I start with street art portraits as this first piece was my personal favorite.

Portrait Street Art

Strange Harvest 19 has some incredible murals in South Africa. This one was my absolute favorite as the colors are so vivid.

The artist, Murray Cowan, is a Cape Town artist with clients from around the world. His work features strong, vibrant colors, and dynamic compositions, often with people and animals as the subject matter. I think the work of this woman and the bird are stunning.

It’s even more striking in real life, with Table Mountain at the end of the street, and the worn buildings beside it, but I preferred this photo as I felt it showcased his work best.

Lauren YS created the vibrant street art in the parking lot on the corner of Albert Road and Frere Street. She is a California-based, Asian-American artist known for her very colorful, imaginative illustrations and fine art.

This is one of several murals she created on a visit to Cape Town to participate in artwork based on themes related to ocean conservancy and community activism.

Animal Street Art

Animals are a very common theme in Woodstock. Especially endangered or threatened species (or sub species), but also because of the connection we feel with some of these majestic creatures.

This artwork below was created by Story Room Creatives. Their mission is to create inspirational murals to raise awareness for social problems.

This artwork focuses on the endangered Rothschild Giraffe. Less than 2,000 of them remain. Their decline is mostly due to deforestation, but also due to poaching.

The Blue Crane below was created by Mac1one to raise awareness of the fact that this bird, which is the national bird of South Africa, is now classified as vulnerable. The note at the bottom of the artwork says, “Blue Crane vulnerably declining since 1980”.

Mac1one’s real name is Maxwell Southgate. He’s a Cape Town artist that also works internationally.

Mike Makatron, an Australian-based artist that is also international, often creates art with animals in nature. He does this to remind people of their connection to nature and to raise awareness of ecological issues.

His elephant below, has been here on Gympie street since around 2012. It dates back to the time when Gympie Street was dangerous.

Figurative Street Art

This colorful mural was created as a collaboration between Marti Macfly (or Marty Lund), who is an artist and art teacher in Cape Town, and Awe Migo (or Garth Wareley), another Cape Town artist that is inspired by nature.

The parrot above is a trademark element of Awe Migo’s work, like the groups of parrots below on Gympie Street. They are, in fact, Migo Parrots.

The artwork of the colorful yellow parrots was also a collaboration between Awe Migo and Marty Lund, but also with Crnkyfrnk (although I could not find much information on him).

Awe Migo is quoted as saying, “Migo/ Migi (plural) is the species of bird that I’ve created. A group of parrots are called a pandemonium and are noisey, chaotic and sometimes manic. Funnily enough this reminded me of life on the cape flats, our taxi ranks, Our Celebrations and often our everyday hustle and bustle.”

The amazing eagle below, by Sonnysundancer, is on the front of the Side Street Studios building at 139 Albert Road. His real name is Sonny Behan. He’s a South African artist that is currently based in the USA, a contemporary artist inspired by nature.

His art, like this eagle, advocates for wildlife conservation and inspires people from around the world.

Contemporary Art

Elléna Lourens is a South African artist with international recognition. Her work is characterized by bold shapes with minimal contrast in signature colors. Because of this, her work has a more emotional dynamic.

This artwork is titled Cor Cordium, which means “Heart of Hearts” in Latin.

This work is a collaboration between Elléna Lourens, Tyler B. Murphy, and Keya Tama.

Another collaborative work is this one, called No Known Home, by Black Koki, Tyler B. Murphy, Isolina Minjeong, Johnny Allison, and Keya Tama.

Location Of Woodstock Street Art

Most of the art above is located several blocks around the Woodstock Exchange (the red marker below), which is a creative space for businesses, shops, and cafes.

You can find the street art here located between Albert Road to the north (the street at the black line at the top) and Victoria Road to the south. There are, however, also a few located on Fareham Street, which is north of Albert, across from Frere.

From west to east, most of the street art is located between Gympie Street to the west and Frere Street to the east.

I created the map below to show the outline of the area.

Side Street Studios, is located at 48 Albert, which is west of the Woodstock Exchange (one block west). It offers studios space for artists, as well as galleries, shops, and cafes. There is more street art surrounding the Side Street Studios building. There is also a Side Street Studio building at 139 Albert (the one with the eagle on it) and 32 Albert.

The Biscuit Mill, which is the marketplace full of food options, art galleries, and boutique shops, is east of this area on Albert Road. It’s about a 20-minute walk. They are fully open on weekends, often with live music playing. Some shops and restaurants are open during the week. Make sure to stop here after your street art walk to sit and have something to eat.

Safety

I felt safe walking here on the sunny day I had in the middle of the afternoon. But as always, pay attention to your surroundings as you walk around. If you get a bad feeling, pay attention to it and move somewhere else. This used to be a dangerous area, but with the artwork, the conversion of the Old Biscuit Mill, as well as galleries and shops, it is much safer.

I still would probably not carry expensive camera equipment or wear flashy clothes or jewelry here. Especially walking by myself.

It’s a good idea to downloaded a map like Google maps or maps.me before you set out. This way, if you do feel uncomfortable, you know which way to move to get back to your starting point.

Want More Of Cape Town?

Some of my other favorite spots in Cape Town.

• South Africa Travel Guide
• Top 25 Things To Do In Cape Town | Beaches, Mountains, Wine, & Adventure
• Discovering Llandudno Beach | A Hidden Gem In Cape Town
• Hiking Lions Head | A Scenic Ascent To A Breathtaking Summit
• Secret Sunset Rock | Cape Town’s Hidden Gem For Spectacular Sunsets
• South Africa Wine Country | Constantia, Stellenbosch, Paarl, and Franschhoek
• Hiking The Majestic Jonkershoek Nature Reserve
• Inside Robben Island Museum | Walk In Nelson Mandela’s Footsteps
• Penguins, Cliffs, & Coastal Views | Tour To The Cape Of Good Hope
• Castle Of Good Hope Museum | Unveiling Cape Town’s Rich History
• Skydiving In Cape Town | Soaring Above The Cape
• Cool Creative Places | The Old Biscuit Mill In Woodstock

Safe Travels!

Julie