Working on websites for diverse clients at Flow is always interesting, but especially when I get the chance to experience new adventures. The Gauteng Tourism website affords many opportunities to explore Johannesburg and other parts of the province and this took me to the streets of Newtown recently.
On Saturday 9 July, warmly dressed, I joined the Joburg Photowalkers on their Painting with Light photowalk, armed with my camera, tripod and pockets full of LED laser lights and a small torch.
Having lived overseas for a few years, I had experienced the freedom of walking the streets of big cities at nighttime and this is something I have really missed since coming back to South Africa. At nighttime, Johannesburg feels colder; the shadows created by concrete structures are darker and this contrasts starkly with the glowing city lights, which makes for a liberating, but slightly terrifying experience.
We started at an old abandoned warehouse where more than 40 people danced around with lasers to write words and paint pictures with light. We then moved onto to exploring the graffiti-covered concrete pylons under the M1 freeway. Exploring Johannesburg at night and on foot was exhilarating; I felt alive and part of the city that has become my home in the last 18 months.