Winelands Art: Take in the sips and sights of Stellenbosch
While Stellenbosch is best known for its sweeping vineyards, award-winning wine and fascinating history, it is also home to some of South Africa’s most celebrated artists, galleries, studios and installations.
Join a Winelands Art tour and take in the sips and sights of Stellenbosch as you explore the cellars, sculpture gardens, museums and art studios of the Cape Winelands.
You’ll meet local artists and winemakers alike as you discover and celebrate their unique creativity and crafts in the company of a knowledgeable guide. Safe transport between venues is provided and the tours include all wine/gin tastings, bubbly/lemonade and coffee/tea on arrival. It excludes lunch and gratuity.
Package 1:
Rupert Museum – Spier Wine Estate – Dylan Lewis Sculpture Garden OR Lionel Smith Studio
Starting and ending at the Rupert Museum, package 1 offers visits to the glorious Spier Wine Estate and the incredible Dylan Lewis Sculpture Garden (October – April).
During low season (May – Sept) you’ll visit the Lionel Smit Studio, where there is the opportunity to meet this amazing artist, view his workspace and appreciate his work.
Rupert Museum
This stunning space houses the private art collection of the late South African industrialist Dr Anton Rupert and his wife Huberte, which they collected and curated between 1940 and 2006.
A highlight for most art lovers is the exhibition of JH Pierneef’s Johannesburg Station Panels – a public commission (1929 – 1932) considered to mark the highpoint of his career. Since 2002, the complete set of thirty-two panels is on long term loan from the TRANSNET Foundation to the Rupert Art Foundation and it’s well worth a visit.
Spier Wine Estate
From Spier’s Cellar Door to their Elemental Garden and Artisan Studio (a mosaic and ceramic workshop where master artisans collaborate with visual artists), a visit to Spier is a feast for the senses!
Dylan Lewis Sculpture Garden
A visit to this serene and peaceful indigenous garden is an absolute must as you take in the sips and sights of Stellenbosch. Dylan Lewis is widely recognised as one of the world’s foremost sculptors and the garden, bordering both the manicured suburbs of Stellenbosch and rugged mountain wilderness where leopard still roam, features more than 60 pieces from inspiring body of work. Stroll along winding pathways, past pools and streams, as you gaze on his collection of birds, wild cats, torsos and figures.
Lionel Smith Studio
Lionel Smit is considered one of South Africa’s most talented artists, best known for his contemporary portraiture executed through giant canvases and sculptures. From May to September you can visit Lionel Smit’s Stellenbosch studio, where he pursues his craft in all manner of media with areas dedicated to sculpture, painting and printmaking.
Package 2:
Rupert Museum – Glenelly Estate – Rustenberg Wines OR Delaire Graff
Once again, package 2 begins and ends at the Rupert Museum in Stellentia Road, Stellenbosch. But this time your sips and sights of Stellenbosch tour takes you to Glenelly Estate and Rustenberg Wines or Delaire Graff.
Glenelly Estate
Glenelly Estate promises South African wine with a decidedly French touch, but you will also be able to visit estate-owner, May de Lencquesaing’s spectacular glass gallery.
This glass collection, one of the largest in the world, pays tribute to her life-long passion for rare and contemporary glass. Visitors are taken on a voyage of discovery through the 2000-year history of glassmaking, with each of the gallery’s 500 beautifully-illuminated creations telling a story!
Rustenberg Wines
You’ll love the abundant gardens, vineyards, and historic buildings of the Rustenberg Estate. Most of the buildings are in the traditional Cape Dutch style, with beautiful gables and homely thatch roofs.
Some of the earliest dates shown on the gables around the estate are 1800, 1812 and 1815, although often the gables were added on later, and many of the buildings have been dated into the 1780s and 1790s. The Winery, Tasting Centre, bottling line and Schoongezicht Manor House, also enclose a traditional “werf” area, where visitors can enjoy the peace and tranquillity of the estate – and a glimpse of history under the oak trees.
Another highlight? Visitors will make a stop at the Brampton Bull Pens Art Studio, where residing artist, Maritza Breitenbach, is available to engage with guests and showcase her work.
Delaire Graff
In low season from May to September, your sips and sights of Stellenbosch experience will include a guided walk through one of the region’s most spectacular gardens – a botanical paradise nestled on Delaire Graff Wine Estate.
Planted so that it is in bloom every day of the year, the garden acts as both a living canvas (and a celebration of Stellenbosch’s changing seasons) and an incredible backdrop for some of South Africa’s finest contemporary artists. Soak up Laurence Graff’s personal art collection as you breathe in the wonder of the Cape Winelands.
Each tour is 7 hours long, including travelling time – and includes added touches like gin tastings, bubbly or homemade lemonade, wine tasting and more!
For a full itinerary visit: www.sipsandsights.co.za
