• Unstitching Rex Trueform: The Story of an African Factory

A book that follows the story of a Cape Town building that housed a clothing manufacturer, Rex Trueform, received its second prestigious award. Unstitching Rex Trueform: The Story of an African Factory, by Ilze Wolff and published by L’Erma di Bretschneider, recently received a grant from the Cape Institute for Architecture (CIfA). This book also won the LERMAC Prize for first editions in 2016. The publisher, L’Erma di Bretschneider, is known for its publications of scientific works on archaeology, classical studies, Roman law and the history of art as well as its associations with leading museums and universities.

Unstitching Rex Trueform explored the history of the Salt River factory from 1938 until the owners converted the building into an office park in 2013. The book unravels layers of meaning that shows how constructions of race, class and gender were part of the architectural space of the factory site.

• Dine with locals: Stellenbosch

Dine with locals, a new book that celebrates local Stellenbosch cuisine and art from Xhosa, Cape Malay, Khoisan and Cape Dutch cultures, was published earlier this year to establish cultural tourism as a vehicle for socio-economic empowerment. Accordingly, the readers are invited to “come and meet the Stellenbosch locals and explore our lifestyle, customs and traditions” by booking a Dine with Locals experience. The book contains excellent photographs of local people and cultural events, as well as recipes. Professor Elmarie Costandius from the University of Stellenbosch Department of Art (co-publisher) explains that the book is also partially a product of a project that aims to document the culture of the Stellenbosch communities marginalised under apartheid. Online at art.sun.ac.za visitors have access to a user-friendly map and more extended version of the book’s list of artists that include locally recorded poetry, literature, architecture, fine art, craft, music and dance to name but a few. The book is available at the Stellenbosch Tourism office.

Steve Watt’s Book Collection

The Steve Watt’s Book Collection, a rare collection of books that covers topics such as South African history, architecture, sociology and art, is for sale. The Talana Museum is organising the sale; contact the museum for a list of the books.

e-mail: info@talana.co.za