The City’s Community, Arts and Culture Development Department recently hosted a Sculpting Nature programme at Zandvlei Nature Reserve. 

The pilot programme is designed to bring art, nature and community participation together while strengthening community connections with Cape Town’s unique biodiversity through creative participation.

Developed by the City’s Community, Arts and Culture Development Department in partnership with the Biodiversity Management Branch, the programme combines environmental education, youth development and public art and is being delivered through three interconnected phases.

‘Cape Town’s unique and irreplaceable biodiversity is an integral part of every Capetonian’s identity and heritage.  This Sculpting Nature programme creates a wonderful partnership approach to highlight this fact with our younger generation, while encouraging reflection and creativity in celebrating the special environment we live in,’ said the City’s Deputy Mayor and Mayoral Committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Alderman Eddie Andrews.

The first phase kicked off on 29 September 2026 at Zandvlei Nature Reserve, with a five-day Arts and Nature Holiday Programme involving 60 learners between the ages of 10 and 14 from surrounding communities.

Participants explored the natural environment through guided nature walks, environmental education and creating clay artwork inspired by indigenous flora and fauna as seen within the nature reserve.

The learners’ creative work will form part of the next phase of the programme, where an established sculptor, emerging artists, biodiversity specialists, and City officials will collaborate to develop the concept for a medium-scale public sculpture inspired by the participating learners and the biodiversity of the selected nature reserve.

The programme will ultimately end in the creation and installation of the sculpture within the selected City Nature Reserve.

‘The Sculpting Nature programme demonstrates how art can create meaningful connections between young people and the natural environment. It gives participants an opportunity to learn about biodiversity while expressing their experiences creatively, with their ideas contributing to a lasting public artwork. The event celebrates the creative achievements by learners while creating awareness and a better understanding of the important role of nature’, said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Community Services and Health, Cllr Francine Higham.

The programme also creates opportunities for emerging artists to gain practical experience through mentorship and collaboration with established artists and environmental practitioners.

Through Sculpting Nature, the City aims to encourage environmental stewardship, increase appreciation of our unique indigenous biodiversity and demonstrate how creative expression can contribute to vibrant, engaging and educational public spaces.