World-renowned sculptor Anton Smit is a strong advocate of the profound role art plays in communal environments.

In one of Umdloti-based Rainmaker Marketing’s latest podcasts, he emphasised the positive impact art has on property developments and open public spaces.

“My favourite exhibition in a public space is a more recent one in Century City, Cape Town, namely “Landscape of the Soul”, spanning 33 metres.

“It can be found underneath a bridge under the main road in the precinct named the Subway. This installation was unveiled in September last year and consists of 500 mask-like faces,” Smit said.

“I have also done public exhibitions at Menlyn Maine in Pretoria, Nelson Mandela Square in Johannesburg, Leonardslee Lakes and Gardens in England, and Genk in Belgium. Most of these places have sculpture parks.”

His artistic philosophy and creative inspiration is centred around the human form, which he believe is the crown of God’s creation.

“It really is just the most beautiful form on Earth for me – from exploring the complexities of the human psyche reflected in a series called “Facets of Personality”, to celebrating the pure essence of humanity.

My latest works titled “In-Moment” use sculptures as reflections of life’s beauty and intricacies.

“I’m passionate about making art accessible to all, and prefer to showcase sculptures in public spaces rather than confining them to gallery walls. Art brings life to spaces. It gives people something to look at and come back to.

“The pity is that usually when people undertake a big property development, the art budget is the last consideration.

So we’ve come up with an idea of putting up a lot of sculptures and renting them out for a small amount per month, and it’s worked brilliantly.”

Smit said he also likes to use mixed mediums and different art forms to enhance his work.

Original music was composed by Graeme Lees to accompany “Landscape of the Soul” and triggered by a motion sensor, every person who passes listens to one of five music scores, each a minute long.

Looking ahead in 2024, Smit said he was really excited about the exhibitions at Sandton Square and Grand-Provence in Franschhoek, which opened on 17 February.

“I take great joy in integrating art into urban landscapes, which hopefully offers a glimpse into a future where cities evolve into vibrant cultural hubs and enriching environments.

Rainmaker Marketing’s podcast series covers various topics by experts in different fields on trends and insights that impact development and the property sector in general.

To listen to the full episode go to the Rainmaker Marketing podcast on Spotify.

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