Title: Scenic Kwazulu-Natal
Author: Mark Skinner
Photographer: Mark Skinner
Genre: Illustrated book
Imprint: Sunbird Publishers
Publisher: Jonathan Ball Publishers
Johannesburg, South Africa 2010
ISBN 9780624037934 / ISBN 978-0-624-03793-4
Hardcover, 29 x 22 cm, 124 pages, throughout colour photos
Cape Town, dominated by its famed flat-topped mountain and virtually encircled by the crashing waves of the Atlantic Ocean, is arguably Africa's most celebrated city. First inhabited by the San thousands of years ago, the city has in more recent times come to symbolise the renaissance of the entire continent. The site of the founding European colony and not for nothing known as the Mother City, modern Cape Town is peopled with an eclectic blend of cultures, which include people of Dutch, English, Malay, Khoi and black descent, the legacy of all reflected in the many faces of the cosmopolitan city, from its grand old Cape Dutch homesteads and whitewashed fishermen's cottages to its striking cathedrals, synagogues, mosques and kramats. Once revered as the continent's most coveted harbour, majestic Table Bay has borne witness to more than three centuries of maritime trade but, although currently enjoying renewed interest in its role in the broader African economy of today, is more popularly entrenched in the hearts and minds of its people and ever-increasing number of visitors for the symbolism represented by the tiny island some 11 kilometres off its shore. "Scenic Cape Town" is a tribute to the rich and varied heritage with which the Mother City is blessed. In this magnificent portfolio, Mark Skinner's stunning photography and Sean Fraser's concise text have captured the very essence of this vibrant and modern city.