The 10 days of the Future Curators Programme were jam-packed with workshops, gallery visits, and talks, with the final component seeing the students present their own exhibitions as groups. After sorting through some 45 entries from high school students in Gauteng, 15 were selected by UJ and MTN to participate. We visited the UJ Art Gallery and caught up with the team behind this initiative, and were left feeling a bit jealous that we couldn't be one of the participants.
"Through this programme, we aim to [create] meaningful opportunities for young people to learn, grow, and imagine new possibilities for the future of art and culture." – UJ Art Gallery Curator, Dineke Orton
Opening doors for young creatives
The MTN x UJ Future Curators Programme has its roots in the first iteration of the MTN New Contemporaries Award in 2001, as the Awards walkabout and workshop programme evolved into what was then dubbed the 'Young Curators Programme'. While it could only be supported until 2002, MTN's partnership with UJ Art Gallery has allowed them to renew and revitalise the programme, adding more expertise, focus, and purpose to its mission.
The MTN x UJ New Contemporaries Award is unique in its focus on curators and the practice of curating – an essential but often overlooked aspect of how the public experiences art. What the Future Curators Programme highlights is just how much the practice of curation entails, be it knowledge generation, having an understanding of how the art is made, and creating new dialogues between different artworks, as well as more practical tasks such as managing schedules, budgets, and marketing.
What struck us when we saw the itinerary for the programme and workshops is how far-reaching they managed to make the content in such a short space of time. Dineke Orton, UJ Art Gallery's Curator, says, "Through this programme, we aim to open doors we wish had existed for us when we were starting out, creating meaningful opportunities for young people to learn, grow, and imagine new possibilities for the future of art and culture."
One thing that became clear as we spoke to the mentors is how important it is to have more educational programmes such as these if the art scene in Johannesburg is to grow and become more open. "The art world can often feel like an exclusive space, shrouded in mystery and tradition. In our local context, it’s vital to break down those barriers and show young creatives what really happens behind the scenes," says Orton.
Art is also under-represented and not taken seriously at schools, something which became more apparent to UJ mentor and gallery assistant Erin Domingo after the application process. By focusing on students still in high school, Domingo says the future curators programme allows young creatives who might not otherwise have the space to "deepen their creative side and to learn and gain further knowledge of the arts as a subject and as a career."
"The art world can often feel like an exclusive space, shrouded in mystery and tradition. It’s vital to break down those barriers and show young creatives what really happens behind the scenes." – Dineke Orton
An art crash course
Knowing the background and purpose of the Future Curators Programme, we wanted to see it in action by meeting the students at UJ Art Gallery midway through their 10-day experience. With a blustery July wind outside, it was a relief to step into the smooth concrete interior of the gallery, and even more so to see the gas heaters that the groups were planning around.
For the students, split into three groups of five, the programme provides a broad overview of both the art world in Johannesburg, as well as the many facets of curating. Some days the morning might be taken up by an excursion before completing an activity in the afternoon. We joined as they were planning their final component, a group exhibition, and it was wonderful to see how engaged the students were. Observing how they interacted with the mentors, and vice versa, you could tell UJ had created a space in which they not only felt safe to share their ideas, but that these would be taken seriously.
Visiting Joburg's top art spaces
As we spoke with Aneesah Girie, one of the programme's mentors, she highlighted how they "are not just giving these future curators theory, but also exposing and providing networks to spaces and art professionals that they might not have had the opportunity to engage with." A core component of the experience is excursions to a variety of different art spaces in Joburg. If you're looking for an itinerary to emulate, we were taken by the depth the chosen visits brought.
At Bag Factory Artist Studios the students got to engage with Daneel Thumbiran and his solo exhibition, and experience what it feels like to be a working artist in a studio. At the MTN Offices, MTN's art collection manager took them through how corporate art collections work. David Krut Workshop exposed them to the collaborative printmaking process, and the students were thrilled by a visit from the iconic Mary Sibande. Workhorse Bronze Foundry introduced them to casting and sculpture, while viewing Joburg Contemporary Art Foundation's annual exhibition Structures illustrated the importance of research and knowledge creation in curation. Wilhelm van Rensburg from Strauss & Co shared his vast knowledge of art history, curating, and selling, and Goodman Gallery brought a more traditional white-cube experience.
Various speakers also came to present Masterclasses on different facets of curating with Orton saying, "I’m also inspired. It’s truly heartening to witness how generous art professionals are with their time, knowledge, and experience."
By introducing the next generation of creatives to a wide spectrum of careers and avenues, the tour impressively brought to light the broad scope of the art world.
Putting theory into practice
The Future Curators Programme culminated in exhibitions curated by the students and displayed at UJ Art Gallery on the final day. This offered an interesting opportunity for students to put into practice their various experiences and theories they had engaged with by actually setting up an exhibition, allowing them to see how the process unfolded. Each group member took on a specific role, from research and budget to design and framing, with Orton highlighting how these mirror real-world curatorial practice.
It is safe to say that we were blown away by the quality of the exhibitions that the students put up, and were sad to hear that they wouldn't get a longer run in the gallery. The students engaged with works from Orton's own curatorial research, and the final exhibitions, considering the time they had, were wonderfully fresh and exciting. Their work demonstrated the different ways curation can change how the art pieces work in dialogue with one another.
Salt of the earth was the winning exhibit, and trails of salt on the floor guided the viewer through a series of works examining the experiences of women in society. Bourne Identities looked into the different meanings of home and identity, while The in-between explored the liminal space where humanity, the natural world, and the spiritual realm intersect. Aside from the practical polish on display, the students demonstrated how complex their thought processes and opinions are, with the UJ Art Gallery team saying how their own perspectives changed and grew as a result of their participation with the students.
a group of high-school students were the curators. Photo: Kane Lucas.
In reflection, some of the participants expressed surprise at how many aspects need to come together behind the scenes to make an exhibition happen. The manager of the MTN Art Collection, Niel Nortje touches on the breadth of the creative sector, saying, "There is a need for young creatives to understand that a career in the arts does not only mean producing enough sellable art to become rich and famous, but that there are so many different opportunities within the sector that have been supported by corporates, creative networks, institutions, academia, and government for decades. The creative industry does not only need artists and creators."
While a programme such as this risks feeling gimmicky, the decision of MTN and UJ to give these high-schoolers space for their ideas to shine allowed the coming together of a meaningful and ultimately gratifying experience.
The future is bright
What the MTN x UJ Future Curator Programme makes clear is that the art ecosystem in Johannesburg is vibrant and diverse, but what they add is another avenue to nurture and support those who are just starting their artistic journey. Nortje tells us, "Both the UJ Art Gallery and MTN Foundation share a development-focused goal to offer opportunities where young creatives and professionals are prepared for careers that not only support the visual arts, curatorial practice, and collection management, but also how digital technology and telecommunications can contribute towards the sector."
"The creative industry does not only need artists and creators." – Neil Nortje, MTN Art Collection Manager
As MTN and UJ continue their partnership with the New Contemporaries Award and Futures Curator Programme, respectively, we're looking forward to seeing how they continue to make art more accessible to both students and the public. The Future Curators Programme is particularly exciting, with Girie highlighting how "initiatives like these are essential because they democratise knowledge, create new pathways into the industry, and help shift the centre of cultural production."
In the students' Masterclass by Amogelang Maledu, winner of the 2025–2026 New Contemporaries Award, she spoke about "the afterlife of exhibitions" and "thinking about the longevity of art and creativity outside of the exhibition."
The MTN x UJ Future Curators Programme exposes young people to the full reach that art has and sets them up to develop and expand their own visions and practices.
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