An Oranjemund art walk through murals and sculptures

An art walk with a local story

In Oranjemund, an oryx made from old car parts stands in a town where the real animals sometimes walk the streets. Public art also tells stories about diamond mining, the opening of the town and the Bom Jesus shipwreck. Pick a few stops and leave time to look closely at the materials and subjects. OMDis's tourism booklet describes a walking map for the artworks. Ask at the Art Centre for a copy and directions to the pieces you'd like to see.

Ask about Nicky Marais's three murals from the Art Can Transform project if you have time to see more. In an interview about the work, Marais described the theme as opening up. The murals date to the years after Oranjemund went from a restricted mining town to one anyone could visit.

Start at Jasper House Museum on 7th Avenue

Begin at Jasper House Museum, opposite SPAR on 7th Avenue. Inside, look for Hercules Viljoen's 2021 installations about early mining and the Bom Jesus, and Saima Iita's work carved from a tree trunk. Ask at the museum which rooms are open and whether photography is allowed. The museum lists shorter hours on weekends and public holidays, so make this the first stop if your walk falls on one of those days.

Find the scrap-metal oryx and ask about the Hub mural

Look for Ismael Shivute's oryx sculpture in the park on 8th Street. Shivute made the three-metre figure from car parts. Step back to see the long, straight horns in silhouette, then get closer to spot the individual pieces of metal that form the body. If you see a living oryx nearby, give it plenty of space and take the photograph from a distance.

If you want a mural with a community story, ask OMD 2030 about the Hub mural. The organisation unveiled it in 2019 after running a competition with local schools. The final artwork incorporates designs by two pupils, Linus Shivolo and Pombili Shimbeta. Giovanni van Rensburg completed the mural with Gabriel Muteka. The community association lists its contact address as 18 7th Avenue. Ask which wall to look for and whether the mural is currently visible.

Make time for the Oranjemund Art Centre

The OMDis Art Centre lists its location at the corner of 9th Street and 1st Avenue and its phone number as +264 81 462 0071. Its gallery hosts exhibitions and sells work by local makers. Ask what is on before visiting, especially if you are travelling with children or want to join a particular workshop. If you buy a piece, ask who made it and where they found the materials.

Fit the walk into a day in town

With an hour, choose two stops and confirm that any indoor venue will be open. With a morning to spare, visit the museum first and ask for directions to the works you want to see. Save the gallery for later if its opening hours suit your visit. For a wider plan that pairs art and history with time on the coast, use the Oranjemund itinerary.

Related Oranjemund guides

• Jasper House Museum and the Bom Jesus Shipwreck
• Oranjemund’s History as a Closed Diamond Mining Town
• Things to do in Oranjemund in two days

Sources and visitor information

• OMDis tourism booklet
• Interviews with Ismael Shivute and Nicky Marais in The Namibian
• Museum room guide
• Museum hours
• Photographer's location record
• OMD 2030 newsletter, page 4
• OMD 2030 contact listing
• Art Centre visitor listing
• OMDis gallery and programmes

Cover photo Oranjemund, Namibia (2019) by Chtrede · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia thumbnail, resized without cropping.