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With a background in architecture and history and time spent working for an award-winning architectural studio, Rebecca Potterton now makes her living as an artist and freelance illustrator. "I realised I wanted to bring my inner worlds and the city to life through my illustration," says Potterton, who spends her days drawing the things she comes across in Joburg, and in her daydreams. "When I am not drawing you can find me taking my rather needy dogs for a walk or drinking tea and chatting nonsense in the pottery studio," she says.
We're long-time fans of Potterton's work; in her Joburg alphabet of miniature watercolours, "J" was for jacaranda – an obvious key to our hearts. From these impossibly small illustrations to a larger-than-life mural, a whimsical artwork of Potterton's opens the Joburg Contemporary Art Foundation's (JCAF) spellbinding curatorial project for 2024, Ecospheres. The exhibition explores the natural world and our place in it through works by an all-star cast of artists from the Global South. Potterton's sweeping mural merges water, air, and land-based ecosystems in unexpected harmony – as is the poetic license afforded to art.
We chat to the talented 20-something about creating this monumental work, why community matters, and the surprising architecture of Brakpan.
"Joburg's many layers are always moving, growing, and changing. This city is kinetic!"
Your work opens Joburg Contemporary Art Foundation's (JCAF) annual exhibition for 2024, Ecospheres. How did this come about?
I have previously worked with JCAF while working at Counterspace [an interdisciplinary architectural studio led by Sumayya Vally] and I have continued to share my illustration work on my social media. This led to our collaboration. It has been incredible to work with JCAF in my own right.
This larger-than-life illustration is the first thing visitors see upon entering the exhibition space. What does that feel like?
It is incredibly exciting and amazing to be able to share my work at this scale, and also a little bit scary and overwhelming to have my work introducing the brilliant Ecospheres artists.
In the illustration, you've depicted creatures and plant life that wouldn't normally exist in the same ecosystems, yet there's a sense of harmony?
The biggest source of inspiration for the illustration was the Ecospheres theme and the broader concept of "worldmaking". I was lucky enough to be in conversation with the fantastic team at JCAF, and we came up with the idea of having different ecosystems merge into one illustration to highlight the atmospheres of air, earth, and water that are central to the exhibition. I spent a lot of time looking at the work of the artists involved in the exhibition and this illustration becomes a sort of response to their work. An example of this is the orange flowers dotted through the illustration alluding to the flowers in Rithika Merchant's work.
You previously illustrated a Johannesburg alphabet in miniatures. What's your favourite letter and why?
Oh, that's a hard one! I think one of my favourites was the NikNaks packet. It was so fun to paint with the bright colours and the patterns. I felt so nostalgic painting it as it immediately took me back to being on the side of a sports field in primary school, under the warm Joburg winter sun, fingers covered in a combination of orange NikNak powder and red Joburg dust.
From these impossibly small works to one that's wall size, what was different about the process?
The scale of these two projects couldn't be more different but the focus was the same, and that was packing in as much detail as possible. The JCAF illustration really allowed me to look at things extremely closely and capture the tiniest details, for example, the hairs on the legs of a bee. The scale of the illustration also encouraged me to mix different media and leave the watercolours behind a bit to work more digitally. Working in this format also allowed me to start layering the subject matter, which created a very textural and vivid piece.
Much of your work focuses on the city. What makes Joburg such an enduring source of inspiration?
Joburg's many layers are always moving, growing, and changing. This city is kinetic!
Home is...
A good cup of tea, my sweet pets, and a sketchbook.
"There are few places where so many cultures collide and thrive like they do in Joburg."
Your favourite Joburg suburb, and why you choose it?
Brixton! It is a suburb alive with arts and culture and I love the passionate community that looks after it.
What is a surprising thing people might learn about Joburg by having a conversation with you?
Probably a weird architectural history fact! I'm sure I can be quite annoying when I go on about the Brazilian Modernist influence on the architecture of Joburg buildings, or the fact that Brakpan is the Art Deco capital outside Miami, and maybe Mumbai!
What three things should a visitor not leave Joburg without seeing or experiencing?
A Joburg sunset, a walk in Emmarentia Botanical Gardens, and a visit to JCAF (wink wink).
The most memorable meal you have eaten in Joburg?
The mushroom bánh mì from GloryBird (Yardbird Deli x Glory). It's so smoky, tangy, and delicious! [Editor's note: Glory's bánh mì bar pops up every Fri – Sun from 10:00 – 13:00 at Yardbird in Parktown North].
Your favourite Joburg author or favourite Joburg book?
Oh, I can spend hours and hours buried in Johannesburg Style: Architecture & Society, 1880s-1960s by Clive Chipkin.
One song on your Joburg soundtrack that either is about Joburg or makes you think about this city?
Oh Yeh Soweto by Teaspoon & the Waves.
If you could buy one Joburg building which would it be?
I would buy the Circa Gallery and turn it into a giant camera obscura, how cool would that be?
If you were the Joburg mayor for one day (average tenure) what would you change?
For one day? That's not very much time! I think I would start community initiatives in every neighbourhood... successful cities are built by communities, and we need to really harness the power of community in creating better spaces.
Favourite Joburg label, and why?
Do ceramics count? I absolutely love Kilnhouse Design Studio and aim to fill my shelves with everything they make.
What makes someone a Joburger?
Grit!
What do you love most about Joburg?
This city feels alive. It has an energy that very few cities have. It's fast, it's loud, and it's bold! There are few places where so many cultures collide and thrive like they do in Joburg.
What do you least like about Joburg?
Joburg can be a very unforgiving place. From the ongoing xenophobia and failing infrastructure to the polluted air, it certainly can be cruel.
"Successful cities are built by communities, and we need to really harness the power of community in creating better spaces."
Your number-one tip for a first-time visitor to Joburg?
Walk in the inner city! To really experience the best of Joburg I would highly recommend going on a walking tour of the city. There is so much to see, taste, and smell in the inner city and I think it should not be overlooked.
One Joburg personality whom you would honour with the freedom of the city if you could, and why?
Helen Sebidi (not originally from Johannesburg but I believe she lives and works in Joburg). Sebidi is an institution in South African art, and her contribution to art in the Global South should be championed and honoured.
The perfect weekend in Joburg includes...
A morning walk in The Wilds, brunch at Breezeblock Café in Brixton, pottery class at the Mudroom in Melville, and dinner at Little Addis Café.
Three words that describe this city.
Kinetic, tenacious, and anxious.
Ecospheres is showing at JCAF in Forest Town until Sat, Dec 7. It's free to attend but RSVPs are essential; book your guided tour here.
Check out some of our previous #MyJoburg interviews for more insights into the city:
#MyJoburg with Alastair Meredith, art specialist and auctioneer at Strauss & Co
#MyJoburg with Ricci Kalish Liedeman, fashionista and founder of Big Bad Batch
#MyJoburg with David Mann, writer and arts journalist
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