About Madeleine van Manen

Madeleine van Manen graduated in 1989 with an NDip Fine Art (Painting) from the then Port Elizabeth Technikon (now Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University). After leaving art school, she worked in the advertising and publishing industry for two decades, owned and ran a small gallery before finally getting an opportunity to start working as an artist full time. She currently works from her studio in Bree Street, Cape Town, focusing on painting and printmaking.

Early career

During her early career – before becoming a full-time artist in 2013 – Madeleine worked as a graphic designer, a freelance writer and journalist, a campaign manager at a large corporation and she did a short stint in the advertising industry before running a small gallery from her home for two years. She’s also illustrated two short story books.

Teaching

From September 2019 until December 2023 she was a part-time art teacher at the Lycée Français du Cap. While she found this fulfilling, she needed more time and energy for her own art. On request, Madeleine presents small workshops in various painting and printing techniques.

Community work

Some projects included working with Lesedi La Batho (Mamelodi), a farm school in Durbanville, donating art to various causes as well as teaching two special needs teenagers (autism and fetal alcohol syndrome) on a one-on-one basis. Madeleine continues to contribute work to worthy causes through auctions and exhibitions.

Groups

Madeleine has been part of Creative Block with Spier Arts Trust since 2016, and recently also part of Union Fair. Spier Arts Trust has supported her career since then on an ongoing basis.

Since the start of 2023, she has been part of The Printing Girls, which is a group of about 100 local and international women in printmaking who share skills and exhibit together.

Exhibition highlights (full exhibition list on CV, available on request)

Madeleine has taken part in various group exhibitions across the country, but mostly in and around Cape Town.

Solo exhibitions:

Façade

10 December 2025 – 8 February 2026

Sisonke Gallery

Cape Town

BUILT

18 October – 15 November 2023

Nel on Long

Cape Town

You Find Silence Where You Expect Noise

9 April – 8 May 2019

Rust & Vrede Gallery

Durbanville

Confirmed exhibitions for 2026

February 2026

Group exhibition with The Printing Girls at Cape Town Art Fair

April 2026

Solo exhibition and art residency at LM Studio Hyéres, France

Notable group exhibitions

TWO ARTISTS. ONE CITY

3 August – 7 September 2025

A duo show with Jenny Parsons at RK Contemporary in August 2025. This show focused on cityscapes of Cape Town. Madeleine’s overlooking the CBD from her studio in Bree Street, and Jenny’s overlooking the city towards the harbour from her studio in Woodstock.

THE PROMISE

16 January 2025 – 27 February 2025 at AVA

In 2024, Madeleine was chosen as one of the four artists to be that year’s Nando’s Creative Exchange group. (Other artists were Lionel Mbayiwa, Kenneth Shandu and Rentia Retief.) Their exhibition was shown at Union House in November 2025 and at AVA in February 2025.

FOR (SEA) CHANGE

In October 2024, she took part in a group show, again at AVA, with The Printing Girls. This show, titled “For (Sea) Change” highlighted the threats to, and delights of, our oceans. Funds were raised for an ocean cause and the exhibition had work by some of SA’s top printmakers. One of her two works sold to a corporate collection.

BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE

Another memorable group exhibition was “Between a Rock and a Hard Place” at AVA in August 2022, with Jo Roets, Clare Menck, Kristen McClarty and Laurel Holmes.

Collections

Private collections in South Africa, France, Switzerland, Belgium

Spier Arts Trust

Nando’s

Hollard

Spier Wine Farm

AT Kearny

The majority of my work involves the city of Cape Town, aiming to capture the essence of a scene and the emotion related to that moment, trying to make sense of who and where I am.

Belonging. Be(long)ing. To have an infinity for a place, the sense of being accepted as part of a group. A sense of fulfilment.

Buildings tell the story of humanity. They are places to hide, rest, share, gather, work, worship, in- and exclude, invest, feast, heal, make love, dream, learn, create … places to experience all human emotions, satisfactions, and discords. They are containers and incubators.

Yet, in a city of nearly five million people, it is surprisingly easy to feel isolated, anonymous, alone and even lonely. There can be a great silence within all that noise. Socio-economic situations determine how we experience our city and what we have access to, even in public spaces.

Our cities are ever evolving. From my fifth floor studio I can paint the same scene each year and there will be different elements – anything from a new building to cranes or changes in colour. The ever present Table Mountain and it’s many moods also affect the scene. Living on the Southern tip of Africa, where two oceans collide, the weather conditions can change within minutes, changing atmosphere, colour and nuance. That is wat inspires me to keep painting these scenes.

That, as well as the how of living here and now, within our confines of our privileges or lack thereof.

When my subject matter is nature, I tend to also intuitively work towards the same theme of a quiet and isolated situation.

Using various materials together to coherently work on canvas, paper or board, I try to portray this all in terms of recognisable visual structures, colour and texture. My images are often heavily distilled in order to achieve this.

Materials could include gouache, pencil, pastel, charcoal, oil, collage and engraving – at times all of these on one image. I pay strict attention to the qualities of the materials I work with, ensuring longevity of the work.

Similarly, in my printmaking work, I often work experimentally and may combine various techniques in one artwork.

About

Early career

Teaching

Community work

Groups

Artist Statement