City Desired was a large-scale exhibition profiling ten residents from diverse backgrounds to provide insights into life in Cape Town, South Africa. Based on in-depth journalistic research, it utilised photography, film, and interactive media to showcase the experiences of these residents, which included a domestic worker, a taxi (informal transport) boss, a psychiatrist, an urban farmer, an environmental officer, a spaza shop owner, an anti-gang activist, an architect, a school principal, and an artist twin-brother duo. By mapping the biographies of these protagonists and their diverse, sometimes unequal and deeply conflicted experiences of the city, the exhibition explored the complex challenges and changes shaping Cape Town, a city of deep inequality whose spatial geography—codified during South Africa’s apartheid era—remains a key challenge, making it one of the world’s most unequal. The exhibition was structured around ten themes affecting the city’s present and future: Well-Being, Education, Mobility, Shelter, Work, Food Systems, Land, Diversity, Vulnerability and Climate Change. City Desired was a collaboration between Cityscapes, the African Centre for Cities and various partner institutions. It was curated by Tau Tavengwa and Edgar Pieterse with exhibition design by Caroline Sohie. The project was made possible through the support of sponsors including the City of Cape Town, the Max Planck Institute, the Ford Foundation, the National Research Foundation, and the University of Cape Town.
