The first Thursday in Joburg – and other firsts

06 May 2026

Become your own artist at Artwave Studio at 44 Stanley. Photo: Artwave via Instagram.

Jazz at The Bioscope. Photo: The Bioscope via Instagram.

The Eyethu Franco Xchange at Eyethu Heritage Hall highlights the best of French Cinema every first Thursday. Photo: Eyethu Heritage Hall via Instagram.

The first week of the month is always a busy one in Joburg, and several places have recurring events to help you spend that salary in style. Here are all the events you can add to your calendar to make sure you're starting May right.

What to do on Thu, May 7, 2026

From 16:00 – Wander the Melville Art Mile as First Thursdays lights up 4th Avenue, 7th Street and more with exhibitions, a night market, celebrations as Tinsel Gallery turns 20, a Talk + Rave at Smoking Kills, art demos and that unmistakable Melville spirit.
From 17:00 – Lights down, energy up at here's Night Market in Rosebank, where after-dark shopping, food and music set the tone for the evening.
From 17:00 – Roam through galleries, catch new exhibitions and settle in for dinner and cocktails as Keyes Art Mile brings a Keyes Art Night filled with art, food and easy evening energy to Rosebank.
From 17:00 – In Colour Before Image at 223 Jan Smuts Creative Hub, artist Maja Maljević lets colour lead and form follow in work shaped by memory and lived experience. For one night only, Be Kind Tattooing adds a bold twist with curated flash tattoos in the gallery – bookings essential.
From 18:00 – Film, ideas and conversation come together at the Eyethu Franco Xchange at Eyethu Heritage Hall, Soweto, with The Architecture of Myth and a screening of The Sacred Cave – a visually immersive animated journey through memory, identity and imagined worlds, bringing Francophone Africa into dialogue with Soweto.
From 18:00 – Become an artist with a social still-life drawing session at Artwave, 44 Stanley in Milpark.
From 18:00 – Sip your way around the world at Le Vin Wine Bar’s Unlimited Wine Festival at Rosebank Quarter, with global tastings, live music and DJs.
From 18:00 – Explore memory, identity and belonging at The Day I Last Saw Home at Weed Lovers Market in Marshalltown for first Thursdays, with a powerful duo exhibition by Melusi Njabulo Hadebe and Matla Kheola, set to live music and shared reflection.
From 20:00 – Layered, genre-bending soundscapes with Mpumi Dhlamini at Jazz at The Bioscope at 44 Stanley, where jazz, African indigenous rhythms and global influences merge in a richly textured, immersive live performance.