On Thu, Jun 5 from 17:00 there's no better place to be than the vibrant Keyes Art Mile for Keyes Art Night.

At the May edition of Keyes Art Night ,  Origin Art 's group show  Motion and Expression: The Space In Between in collaboration with Crispy Skateboards continues its run. For budding art collectors, Unlocking Your Collection  is a treasure trove of budget-friendly masterpieces. In the  Atrium  you can join Sizwe Khoza on his journey with the solo,  The People and I, In Contemplation . 

As always, Keyes delivers when it comes to food and drinks with a variety of restaurants offering tasty meals, such as The Prawnery , Momo Kuro ,  Kanpai ,  Marble , and  BGR  and  Pantry  for yummy soft serve.   There'll be live music at Freshly Ground and, when all is seen and done, round the night off with DJ sets at Mix Cocktail Bar .

Keep reading for all the details.

Gallery 1 reopens with South African modernist masters

The newly renovated Gallery 1 space at Keyes Art Miles re-launches in style with Looking Back, Seeing Now – an exhibition of over 20 South African modernist masters. The lineup is spectacular, featuring work by the likes of Edoardo Villa ,  Gerard Sekoto , Walter Battiss , Irma Stern , JH Pierneef , and more. "Together, their works trace a vibrant, often defiant arc across the 20th century – through realism and abstraction, exile and resistance, sacred form and radical play," reads the exhibition text. 

Grow your art collection

Calling all budding collectors! If you're looking for budget-friendly masterpieces, head to Origin Art for the  Unlocking Your Collection  art sale. Including artworks that span various styles, media, and artists, no price exceeds R5,000. In the often intimidating world of art, this event is a deliberate and necessary step toward welcoming art lovers of all levels into the fold.

Sizwe Khoza, in contemplation

Motion and Expression – artists on deck at Origin Art

Over 40 artists explore the skateboard deck as their canvas in the group exhibition  Motion and Expression: The Space In Between  at Origin Art . The gallery worked with  Crispy Skateboards to bring this unusual show to fruition; a Joburg-based father and sons company known for bespoke decks and cool artist collabs. "Skateboarding is a language of motion – an act of balance, defiance, and improvisation. It is a culture built on self-expression, where style is everything, and creativity flourishes in the most unexpected spaces," reads the exhibition statement.

Motion and Expression features wide-ranging artistic voices, styles, and mediums, from graffiti to mixed media, fine art, and graphic design. The decks aren't simply hung on the walls as display objects, but activated as pieces to be ridden, collected, and lived with. "The idea is to bring the outside world into the gallery and also to take these stories back out beyond the gallery walls again." Love what you see? Look out for limited edition T-shirts inspired by the works on show, on sale at the gallery. 

Where to eat and drink

While art is front and centre at Keyes Art Night, you certainly won't be leaving hungry, given all that Keyes has to offer on the dining front. Enjoy beautifully crafted sushi at the Japanese-fusion restaurant Kanpai  or giant tiger prawns on the hibachi grill at  The Prawnery . Book via Dineplan . Freshly Ground has an expanded menu and now serves drinks. For a tried and true favourite, add tasty Asian street food to the line-up at Momo Kuro  on the top floor of the Trumpet building, or try the ramen at Momo's street-level store. Burger and fries? Keep it easy at BGR . Unwind with sunset drinks at Marble  (also in the swanky Trumpet building), and if soft serve is your thing, head down the parking lot stairs to Pantry . At just eighteen bucks a pop, you'll be glad we told you.

Easy beats at MIX Cocktail Bar

Once you've caught up with all the Keyes art offerings, head upstairs to MIX Cocktail Bar at MESH Club for something to sip on while you jam to live DJs.

Still in the mood for art? These are all the exhibitions you need to see in Joburg this week.