Cape Town photographer Mikhailia Petersen documents the city’s new year parade
On 2 January, photographer Mikhailia Petersen headed out on her bike from her home in Woodstock over to District Six, through the city centre and ending up at Bo-kaap in pursuit of Tweede Nuwe Jaar. The annual Cape Minstrel Carnival has blessed Cape Town’s streets with a parade like no other for well over a century. Rooted in the city’s history of colonisation and struggle, it marks the one day off a year the city’s slaves were traditionally allowed, which they used to come together through music, costumes and dance. After emancipation in 1838, local communities formed bands, choirs and troupes and by the early 1900s new year processions became commonplace. Tweede Nuwe Jaar went on to survive Apartheid and has embedded itself into South African popular culture, becoming a celebration of togetherness.
“It was beautiful to see every generation uniting to remember and choose joy”
The pandemic meant a two-year pause but in 2023, Tweede Nuwe Jaar returned in full force. This was the first time Petersen had personally encountered it. “I stopped to take photos of Jessica, the angel in white,” she tells us. “I was given all access to the parade, which started at Good Hope Centre and the Hanover Ministrels happened to lead. This gave me an up-close experience. It was beautiful to see every generation uniting to remember and choose joy. It felt like that for everything that has hurt, we chose the brightest of colours, played instruments and danced.”
