Greatmore Studios

Greatmore Studios was established in 1988 but only registered as an NPO in 2007. It is an artist residency and centre with studios and exhibition space in Woodstock, and is one of the few active non-commercial spaces in Cape Town.

The Triangle Arts Trust, which was founded in 1982 as an organized network of artists, visual art organizations and artist-led workshops, held the very first international artists workshop in New York City. This initiated and facilitated an international network of workshops and residencies hosted by various artists around the world. These workshops were then brought to South Africa by British project initiator and current Board Member of Greatmore and Co-Founder of the Bag Factory, Robert Loder who soon after opened the Thupelo Workshop in Johannesburg. In the late 1980’s, with the help of Jill Trappler, Garth Erasmus, Lionel Davis and Velile Soha, Thupelo Cape Town was established. There was a great need for a permanent working space for the artists and in 1988, with the assistance of Loder and South African veteran artist, David Nthubu Kolaone, Greatmore Studios was created in its current location.&

Greatmore Studios is known as a place that thrives on artists’ creativity and believes in supporting artists through assisting them in their career development. The studio makes the arts accessible to new audiences in various communities and focuses on building capacity through innovative practice and skills to overcome poverty. Greatmore Studios was directed by Mark O’Donovan with the assistance of Zipho Dayile as program manager, until the end of 2016. It has 12 studios, an event/exhibition space, a digital arts facility, offices as well as a social courtyard space. Greatmore also hosts out of town participants of their various artist programs at their house in Observatory.