“One of the largest philanthropic ventures aimed at promoting the arts and cultural heritage in South Africa” – SABC News. 

UP Campus Tours (UPCT) guides added art facilitation to their repertoire by facilitating guided tours for both school groups and members of the public at the opening of the Javett Art Centre at UP.

The students attended in-depth training sessions during the week preceding the event - with Kutlwano Mokgajwa (Curatorial Assistant and Logistics Manager Javett-UP), Gabi Ngcobo (Curator Javett Collection) and Puleng Plessie (Education Officer Javett-UP) to prepare for the opening. Dr. Leigh Bregman (Director Javett Foundation) and Christopher Till (Director and Curator of Javett-UP) spoke to the students about the Javett Foundation and the Javett UP and both institutions’ role in demystifying art and the museum experience to make both a more accessible educational experience for the public. 

The Javett Art Centre at UP opened to the public on Heritage Day, 24 September 2019, with three opening exhibitions entitled: “101 Collecting Conversations: Signature Works of a Century”; “All in a Day’s Eye: The Politics of Innocence in the Javett Collection” and “National Treasures”, gold artifacts from the Mapungubwe Gold Collection and the AngloGold Ashanti Barbier-Mueller Gold of Africa collection. Hundreds of invited guests and members of the public attended the long-awaited grand opening of this exciting new arts centre in the Jacaranda City. Among the attendees were a group of 240 school children from various schools who were taken on guided tours of the Javett-UP. Specialist guided tours were also offered for those who wanted to know a bit more about the opening exhibitions. 

Prof Karen Harris, who co-ordinates UP Campus Tours, and lecturer in Heritage Studies, Hannes Engelbrecht,  said they were delighted by the opportunity afforded to  the guides, who take on the role as part of their honours degree in Heritage and Cultural Tourism in the Department of Historical and Heritage Studies. They believed it was a highlight for the UPCT students to be part of this momentous occasion. Not only was it an awesome experience for the students involved, but they stressed that it also added to their skill set. Prof Harris said she looked forward to building a lasting relationship between UPCT and the Javett-UP.