City Deep

The team behind the fiercely collectable Wake Up, This is Joburg series reveals more about Johannesburg’s other side

- Garreth Van Niekerk

Even if you call Johannesburg home, it remains an elusive beast – a city of secrets. But for those interested in its parts unknown, there’s a whole lot to discover in Fourthwall Books’ 10-part series called Wake Up, This is Joburg. The wildly successful collection of titles tells the stories of the golden metropolis in thoroughly readable essays by urban planner and researcher Dr Tanya Zack, accompanied by extraordinary images taken by photographer Mark Lewis.

The ‘dark concrete cavern’ of Kazerne taxi rank’s highway-underpass butchery in the first book – S’Kop (2014) – is where, according to Zack, you’ll find the city’s best-fed rat colony. The second instalment, Tony Dreams in Yellow and Blue (2014), relates the story of central character Tony, and his living museum of a house in the working-class suburb of Turffontein. In the third volume, Inside Out (2014), the explosive colours and personalities of the Rockey Street Market in Yeoville are explored, and Master Mansions (book 8; 2017) tells the epic tale of how an Indian migrant family built a millinery empire in the now-defunct Mabro Mansions. The entire series is a tribute to everything that makes Joburg such an exciting place to live in.

As a city trader in book 9, Johannesburg. Made In China (2017), says to Zack, ‘Joburg is a great place. It’s a half-London. Whatever you need, you can find it here. You can never say “I couldn’t find it in Joburg.”’

We sat down with Zack, Lewis and Fourthwall Books’ Bronwyn Law-Viljoen, who edited the series, ahead of their launch of Undercity – the 10th and final book in the series – to learn more about their discoveries.