CAP COMMUNITY

CAP Community | The Beach

This on-going, collaborative work explores Durban’s expansive and diverse coastline, spanning Blue Lagoon to Amanzimtoti from 2019 – present. Paulo Menezes and Niamh Walsh-Vorster have an interest in the Anthropological theory of space and place, which holds that “studies of space and place recognise that landscape, space and the body represent important sites for cultural meaning, social and political memory, and public discourse. Space can be used to carry social meanings that are culturally and historically constructed, as well as contested.”

The selection of photographs present quiet and still, to the colourful and loud moments as experienced by the photographers in response to the people or places they photograph. Forming the city’s easternmost boundary, Durban’s beachfront is an intriguing space: one of  recreation and ritualisation. It is a melting pot of ethnicity, class and culture, yet still a space of division in its diversity.

This work is an observation, an ongoing archive of an ever-changing environment. Through this body of work, in the context of the Contemporary Archive Project, the photographers aim to present a document of Durban’s most dynamic, fluid spaces, at a specific point in time: an important addition to a growing contemporary archive.

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2020-01-01 New Years day at Addington Beach public kiddy pools, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Niamh Walsh-Vorster
2019-12-09 Fisherman waits for a catch, Laguna Beach, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Paulo Menezes
2022-01-07 Riverside Hotel seen across the Umgeni River from Blue Lagoon, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Paulo Menezes
2022-01-07 A kayaker prepares for a paddle on the Umgeni River, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Paulo Menezes
2020-01-01 A beachgoer poses at Addington Beach, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Niamh Walsh-Vorster
Zama and friend, Brighton Beach, Bluff, South Africa. Brighton beach is considered a blue flag beach.
A total of 12 beaches have been awarded blue flag status for the 2020/2021 season in Durban.
Of this, 5 were awarded full status while 7 received blue flag pilot status. Niamh Walsh-Vorster
2021-09-02 North Beach, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Paulo Menezes
2021-09-02 North Beach, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Paulo Menezes
2019-12-09 Crowd-control barriers restrict access to the beach, Laguna Beach, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Paulo Menezes
2020-01-01 Two women sunbathe on Vetchies Beach, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Niamh Walsh-Vorster
2022-01-15 An Ola Ice-Cream seller, North Beach, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Niamh Walsh-Vorster
2021-09-24 A lifeguard waits for his lift home, North Beach, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal.
The beaches were closed due to sewage spills in the ocean, and lifeguards experienced push
back from bathers who insisted on still swimming. Niamh Walsh-Vorster
2020-01-07 Old establishments settle in on the newly developed Durban Point Promenade, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Paulo Menezes
2021-09-02 Blue Lagoon, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Paulo Menezes
2022-01-15 Portrait of a beach-goer at Addington Beach, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Niamh Walsh-Vorster
2021-09-02 Blue Lagoon, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Paulo Menezes

Hi There, my name is Mandisa

Mandisa Buthelezi is a photographer and film director/producer who was raised in Durban and is currently based in Johannesburg, South Africa. With a vast portfolio that communicates the rural voice, and an appreciation and respect for the culture that has informed her perspective, she is keen on providing photographic and film content that is culturally centered and explores notions of identity and spirituality.

Cataloguing and documenting African culture through visual art has become an important component of her work through assignments.

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Hi There, my name is Lindo

Photographer

Growing up in the township of KwaMashu in KwaZulu-Natal and attending primary school in the same town is one of the strongest memories I have about my neighbourhood. The times I spent with my late grandmother Miss Dombi Chiliza and the people I shared my life with at that moment in time in my early childhood, influence the work I create. “I can’t imagine a world without photography – capturing a unique moment in time that will never be repeated” (Gigi Williams).

Hi There, my name is Niamh

Co-Founder & Programme Director

Niamh Walsh-Vorster is a Durban-based writer, independent photographer, and creative producer. She graduated in 2014 with a BJourn from Rhodes University in Makhanda, South Africa.
Niamh is co-founder and editor of the award-winning e-zine, Ja. Magazine. She has exhibited photographic work in group shows at galleries, and independently in various public spaces. In 2016, Niamh was the recipient of a BASA Arts Journalism Award for her review in Ja. Magazine. She has worked with the Durban Center for Photography under the leadership of legendary AfraPix photographer, Peter McKenzie. She was part of the third Incubator Programme at The Market Photo Workshop, 2017 – 2018 in Johannesburg, mentored by Angela Buckland. More recently, Niamh was project manager of the ARTLAB Mentorship programme, which worked with 30 KZN-based creatives in photography, design, and fashion. She was mentor to 10 emerging photographers.