WELCOME TO JOHAN CARINUS ART CENTRE
Carinus offers Junior Art Education to Grades 4-9, and Senior Art Education to Grades 10-12. We provide education to Victoria Primary School, Graeme College, Victoria Girls' High School, Ntsika Secondary School, Nombulelo High, Fikizolo Primary School, and PJ Olivier.
A brief history of the Carinus Art Centre, Grahamstown
The Art School, one of two in the Eastern Cape that caters to Visual Art and Design, is situated at 84 Beaufort Street. It was instituted in 1948. Truro House is the National Monument section, while Grant House on Donkin Street, which used to be the hostel for Graeme College, forms the top complex of the Art school.
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Truro House premises were first used as barracks for soldiers in the First World War. In 1914, the nuns owned the buildings, using them as a hostel. What is currently used as the school library was originally the kitchen of the home, belonging to the Gowie family. The nuns used it as a dispensary during the war. They gave medicines to all soldiers, regardless of their race or country of origin.
In 1928, additions were made to this complex, and it was then used as a hostel for Training College ladies up to 1947. The school acquired the old Graeme College Hostel building on Donkin Street when Graeme College was relocated across town in 1975. The old coal shed for the Graeme College hostel, together with the toilet block, was renovated in 2010 into a two-bedroom cottage for rentals. Both these buildings are fully used at Festivals for Art Exhibitions.
In 1948, the school was named after the Acting Administrator of the Eastern Cape, Mr Johan Carinus, who saw the need to revitalize Education in the Province. The first Principal of the school was Sister Lilian Francis, followed by Mrs Molly Brown and Mr Jack Meyer, subsequently an inspector of Education. It was in his tenure that the school became government-owned. Mr Louw Erasmus was subsequently principal for 25 years. Mr Tony Swift then took over and remained for 20 years, until 2006. Mrs Ginny Reed took over from Tony Swift in 2007 and retired at the end of 2013. Mrs. Michele Kloppers has been in the position since 2014 and has retired in 2024. She was the principal for 11 Years. Mrs. Kay Sealy-Fisher is the Principal of Carinus now from 2025.
Meet Our Principal:
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Kay Sealy-Fisher:
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As a long-term resident of Makhanda/Grahamstown, a town rich in educational institutions, I consider myself to be a tenacious lifelong learner. I am also a lover of beauty and an avid gardener. In the years before accepting the position of principal at Carinus, I completed a BFA, PGCE, Hons in Psychology, and MA in Psychology. However, it is through teaching and interaction with learners, and colleagues, that I have learned the most and have found myself grounded.
The Johan Carinus Art Centre, with its learners and staff, can be likened to a garden that needs sustenance and maintenance to grow. It is an honour and privilege to be the “gardener” of such a precious school.
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