This year, the Cape Town Art Fair theme is “Listen”, and Cape Town Furniture Week extends its 2026 festival theme, “Design as Craft.” Together, they invite the public into the quieter, more intimate layers of how things are made.
We’ll be part of the @furnitureweek.capetown booth at @investeccapetownartfair , taking place 21 - 23 February 2026, a space dedicated to conscious design and craft that brings together studios and makers defined by thoughtful process, material awareness, and strong expression.
On the stand, we’ll be presenting the @studiojohnmurray bench titled “Babble”, a new collaboration that sits at the intersection of art and functional design. We recently spent time in John’s studio, refining details and seeing the bench move into its final stages.
Artist collaborations have been part of our practice for over a decade and we’re excited to present this piece at the Art Fair and within our collectible furniture range.
We visited John Murray in his studio to talk through our upcoming collaboration and get a first look at the bench before it heads into the final stages of finishing.
Collaborating with artists has been part of our journey for 13 years and working with someone as thoughtful and talented as John gives us the opportunity to create pieces that sit at the meeting point of art and functional design.
John’s piece will be taking shape over the next few weeks and will join our collectable furniture range early next year.
We’re excited to see it unfold and to share the final result with you once it’s ready.
It is the final day to view John Murray's debut solo exhibition with Everard Read London.
JOHN MURRAY | RESURFACE
14 March - 16 April 2025
Work details:
Retreat II
acrylic on canvas
85 x 57 cm
DM to receive the exhibition catalogue, or visit the website via the link in bio to learn more.
Work Images, credit: Matt Slater
Install Images, credit: Damian Griffiths
It is the final week to view John Murray's debut solo exhibition with Everard Read London.
JOHN MURRAY | RESURFACE
14 March - 16 April 2025
Work details:
Cul-de-Sac
acrylic on board
70 x 60.5 cm
DM to receive the exhibition catalogue, or visit the website via the link in bio to learn more.
Work Images, credit: Matt Slater
Install Images, credit: Damian Griffiths
John Murray | Resurface
Everard Read London
14 March - 16 April 2025
Murray’s latest works, part of his first exhibition with Everard Read London, were originally inspired by the colours accumulating on the artist’s palette and allude to structures that are either in the process of forming, or perhaps simultaneously dissolving.
“I think my work illustrates my fractured way of looking at things,” notes Murray. “I like the idea of sifting through various objects, shards and images in search of something tangible, but unlike the archaeologist, my work doesn’t reach a conclusion."
His practice leans toward abstraction, not in its purest form, but in ways that suggest representational shapes just beneath the surface.
Only two days remain to view ‘Resurface’ in person.
Work Images: Matt Slater
Install Images: Damian Griffiths
#EverardRead #EverardReadLondon #EverardReadGallery #ArtExhibition #SouthAfricanArt #Sculptures #Art #AfricanArt #Artwork
JOHN MURRAY | RESURFACE
14 March - 16 April 2025
Work details:
Unpack VI
acrylic on canvas board
30 x 21.5 cm
DM to receive the exhibition catalogue, or visit the website via the link in bio to learn more.
Work Images, credit: Matt Slater
Install Images, credit: Damian Griffiths
JOHN MURRAY | RESURFACE
14 March - 16 April 2025
Work details:
Curtail
acrylic on canvas
80 x 60.5 cm
DM to receive the exhibition catalogue, or visit the website via the link in bio to learn more.
Work Images, credit: Matt Slater
Install Images, credit: Damian Griffiths
JOHN MURRAY | RESURFACE
14 March - 16 April 2025
John Murray is a South African painter living and working in Cape Town South Africa.
Work details:
Parts Revealed
acrylic on canvas
80 x 60 cm
DM to receive the exhibition catalogue, or visit the website via the link in bio to learn more.
Work Images, credit: Matt Slater
Install Images, credit: Damian Griffiths
JOHN MURRAY | RESURFACE
14 March - 16 April 2025
These works that constitute 'Resurface', originally inspired by the different colours that accumulate on the artist’s palette, allude to structures that are in the process of forming, or perhaps simultaneously disintegrating.
Work details:
Retreat I
acrylic on canvas
85 x 57 cm
DM to receive the exhibition catalogue, or visit the website via the link in bio to learn more.
Work Images, credit: Matt Slater
Install Images, credit: Damian Griffiths
JOHN MURRAY | RESURFACE
14 March - 16 April 2025
“I think my work illustrates my fractured way of looking at things,” notes Murray. “I like the idea of sifting through various objects, shards and images in search of something tangible, but unlike the archaeologist, my work doesn’t reach a conclusion."
Work details:
Unpack IV
acrylic on canvas board
30 x 21.5 cm
DM to receive the exhibition catalogue, or visit the website via the link in bio to learn more.
Work Images, credit: Matt Slater
Install Images, credit: Damian Griffiths
NOW OPEN
JOHN MURRAY | RESURFACE
14 March - 16 April 2025
Working in oil on canvas, as well as collage and bricolage, the images used in Murray’s compositions are often interpretations of found objects and photographs. Some of these images have specific cultural, historical or political significance, while others are ephemera collected from the artist’s everyday surroundings
Work details:
Hinterland I
acrylic on canvas
100 x 80 cm
DM to receive the exhibition catalogue, or visit the website via the link in bio to learn more.
Work Images, credit: Matt Slater
Install Images, credit: Damian Griffiths
NOW OPEN AT EVERARD READ LONDON
JOHN MURRAY | RESURFACE
14 March - 16 April 2025
John Murray moves between representational and nonrepresentational forms, finding significance in the contrasting states between the tangible and the imperceptible, playfulness and seriousness.
Work details:
Unpack V
acrylic on canvas board
30 x 21.5
DM to receive the exhibition catalogue, or visit the website via the link in bio to learn more.
Work Images, credit: Matt Slater
Install Images, credit: Damian Griffiths
