Stevenson opened in 2003 in Cape Town’s Green Point district, after a visit to documenta 11, curated by Okwui Enwezor, by founding directors Michael Stevenson and Andrew da Conceicao. Moved by Enwezor’s ethos, they decided to create a new platform for contemporary art in South Africa, which was short on dedicated spaces at the time. Since its inception, Stevenson has connected local artists to the global art world, and introduced international practitioners to South African audiences. In 2008, the gallery partnered with David Brodie to open an outpost in Johannesburg. That same year, the space in Cape Town relocated to a former sweet factory in Woodstock, where it has operated ever since. The Joburg gallery moved to the Braamfontein precinct near Wits University in 2010, and in 2019 it joined the network of galleries situated in or near Parktown North. Stevenson’s small Amsterdam office, shared with photographic agency WeFolk, opened the same year. In 2012, the gallery introduced its current partnership structure, and it is currently owned and operated by its 13 directors: Federica Angelucci, Marc Barben, Lerato Bereng, Joost Bosland, David Brodie, Sinazo Chiya, Andrew da Conceicao, Jessica Honeyman, Lanese Jaftha, Sisipho Ngodwana, Sophie Perryer, Alexander Richards, and Michael Stevenson. While more than half of the artists on Stevenson’s roster — including Zanele Muholi, Jo Ractliffe, Moshekwa Langa, Serge Alain Nitegeka, Penny Siopis and Simphiwe Ndzube —were either born in South Africa and/or are now based there, the programming has become increasingly international over the past 15 years. The gallery represents Paulo Nazareth, from Brazil, Viviane Sassen, from the Netherlands, Portia Zvavahera, from Zimbabwe, Frida Orupabo, from Norway and the American artist Odili Donald Odita, among other artists from elsewhere.
