Cheetah Plains to Launch Private Art Gallery and Debut New Collection of African Contemporary Art in Partnership with Goodman Gallery in January 2024

Innovating the safari experience while celebrating Africa’s prominent contemporary artists from South Africa’s Sabi Sand Nature Reserve

Sabi Sand, South Africa (November 1, 2023): In January 2024, Cheetah Plains, South Africa’s leading carbon-negative luxury lodge in the Sabi Sand Nature Reserve in partnership with Goodman Gallery, will debut their own private gallery space, and a new collection of nearly 100 highly collectible works curated for their three exclusive villas. Redefining the ultimate notion of a sustainable luxury safari, Cheetah Plains once again is reimagining the guest experience with an art program that celebrates Africa’s rich cultural heritage and allows one to experience the creative talents of such notable and emerging artists. The Cheetah Plains Gallery and Art Collection will be the most contemporary display of African art housed in the bush and available for purchase with white glove delivery service. Leading the curation and installation is Goodman Gallery, an international contemporary art gallery with locations in Johannesburg, Cape Town, London, and New York.

“Cheetah Plains is all about providing luxurious, memorable moments for its guests. For almost 60 years Goodman Gallery has been at the forefront taking the continent’s artistic voices to international platforms. We are excited to partner with them to offer an exclusive, top tier cultural experience for our visitors that is set within and enhances our timeless contemporary architecture,” shares Japie van Niekerk, Cheetah Plains owner.

The  645 sq. ft. Cheetah Plains Gallery will house rotating solo exhibitions to showcase both pre-eminent and emerging contemporary artists changing the narrative of Africa through their own stories. This exciting new collaboration with Goodman Gallery will add a visually enticing, new cultural experience to the guest stay and include a private art tour of the curated pieces in their private villa and a walking tour of the bespoke Art Collection found throughout Cheetah Plains. A rotating presentation of new and historically significant work from the 70s to the present is hung across all three villas and is a collection of hanging art, mixed media, sculptures, and freestanding pieces. Significant South African artists from the late 20th century are on view, including David Koloane and Sam Nhlengethwa who reflect on city life in Johannesburg. Emerging and rising international voices such as ruby onyinyechi amanze, Misheck Masamvu, and Marsi van de Heuvel are also on show. The flora and fauna of the area are reflected in the art, offering a direct connection to wildlife and in intimate reading of the symbolic use of elements from the natural world. This can be seen in work by William Kentridge, South Africa’s most globally recognizable artist, as well as Walter Oltmann and David Goldblatt. Thematic explorations consider identity politics, colonial and postcolonial histories, and landscapes as both beautiful and witnesses to human intervention. This is articulated in Yinka Shonibare CBE RA’s quilt Modern Magic I (2022) which considers how African aesthetics have shaped Western Modernist expression; Kiluanji Kia Henda’s print Restless Landscape #3 (2017) that highlights the effect of the Angolan Civil War on the topography; and Dor Guez’s Letters from the Greater Maghreb (2020) series that present a personal engagement with the North African and Middle Eastern region. 

“When the opportunity arose to join forces with the preeminent wildlife experience in the country, we jumped at the chance. With international travelers often making their way to our Johannesburg or Cape Town galleries en route to their getaways in the bush, this partnership simply made sense. Goodman Gallery is proud to be a central figure in South Africa’s cultural landscape, representing globally recognizable prominent artists and rising international talent from the Global South. Both the gallery and Cheetah Plains are aligned in our commitment to high quality experiences and representing the beauty South Africa has to offer,” shares Liza Essers, Goodman Gallery Director and Owner.

The selected artists have work represented in collections of important cultural institutions including MoMA, New York; Tate Modern, London; Centre Pompidou, Paris; Haus der Kunst, Munich; Sharjah Art Foundation, Sharjah; National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto; Guggenheim, Abu Dhabi and Zeitz MoCAA, Cape Town.

About Cheetah Plains: 

Opened in 2018, Cheetah Plains is home to the exclusive-use luxury villa and sustainable safari experience nestled in South Africa’s most celebrated wildlife area, the Sabi Sand Nature Reserve. The eco-luxe experience includes three private villas with four guest suites that accommodate up to eight guests each with its own formal lounge, living and dining areas, expansive swimming pool, and outdoor deck that operates off-grid. Each villa comes with a complete hospitality team consisting of an accomplished host, butler, culinary team, and spa therapist, as well as an expert field guide and tracker dedicated to you for the duration of your stay. Families and children of all ages are welcome to experience their own personalized safari, guided bush walks, wellness offerings, fitness gym, and tailored activities for kids. Cheetah Plains sets the standard in South Africa for zero-emission game-viewing utilizing its own fleet of solar-charged Land Cruiser Electric Safari vehicles. A luxury sustainable safari that is beyond expectations.

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About Goodman Gallery:

Goodman Gallery is an international contemporary art gallery with locations in Johannesburg, Cape Town, London and New York. The gallery represents artists whose work confronts entrenched power structures and inspires social change. It has held the reputation as a pre-eminent art gallery on the African continent since 1966 and has been pivotal in shaping contemporary South African art, bringing Lisa Brice, David Goldblatt, William Kentridge, David Koloane, Sam Nhlengethwa and Sue Williamson to the world’s attention for the first time during the apartheid era. Since Liza Essers became owner and director in 2008, the gallery roster has grown by more than 30 international artists, with a focus on artists from the African Diaspora and beyond. Goodman Gallery has a global programme working with prominent and emerging international artists whose work engages in a dialogue with African and post-colonial contexts. Some of these artists include Ghada Amer, El Anatsui, Candice Breitz, Alfredo Jaar, Grada Kilomba, Kapwani Kiwanga, Shirin Neshat, Ernesto Neto, Tabita Rezaire, Yinka Shonibare CBE, Mikhael Subotzky and Hank Willis Thomas. Critical to this programme has been the introduction of two ongoing curatorial initiatives: “In Context”, which explores tensions of place and belonging; and “South-South”, which considers connections between artists from the “global south”. Goodman Gallery’s expansion to London and New York furthers its mission to confront dominant historical narratives and to contribute to contemporary art discourse and social repair. Goodman Gallery has a legacy of facilitating broader social access to art, serving in an institutional capacity through its public programming, publishing, and education. The gallery and its artists have a history of supporting NGOs in the healthcare sector and committed to advocating for human rights in South Africa. Since 2003 Goodman Gallery has raised R25 million (£1.4 million) for charities such as Orange Babies, Red Cross and most recently entering into a long-term partnership with the Witkoppen Health and Welfare Clinic.