What does it take for an artwork to remain alive on display?
The third instalment in our Secret Life of Art series turns attention to the unseen labour behind exhibitions—the ongoing negotiation between artist intention, material vulnerability, audience interaction, and time. From fragile materials to works that require continual adjustment, this members’ talk, presented by Lee Burgers, Head of Collections and Registrar at Zeitz MOCAA, explores how art lives, shifts, and endures within the museum environment.
This series has provided rare insight into the practical work of collections management, opening conversations around conservation, installation processes, and the care of artworks within the museum.
Date & Time
Friday, 17 April 2026 | 5.30 pm
Venue
Zeitz MOCAA Members’ Lounge, Level 0
Please note that this event is exclusively for Zeitz MOCAA members. If you hold a valid membership and would like to attend, please contact membership@zeitzmocaa.museum.
Not yet a member? Join today from just R430 and enjoy year-round access to Zeitz MOCAA, plus exclusive benefits: Invitations to exhibition previews, discounted event tickets, and more.
about lee burgers
Lee Burgers is Head of Collections and Registrar at Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MOCAA). She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from Michaelis School of Fine Art at the University of Cape Town (UCT) (2012). Additional qualifications include Certificates for Advanced Operations Management, a Paralegal Practitioner Certificate, Strategic Human Resource Management (UCT) as well as a Certificate in Business Sustainability Management obtained from the University of Cambridge’s Institute for Sustainability Leadership.
Burgers has demonstrated experience in art logistics and project management. She is also an art advisor to private collectors. Between 2016 and 2019, she was Head of Operations at SMAC Gallery where she managed the logistics and artwork production for the three gallery spaces and art fair presentations. In this role she gained an understanding of the conditions of artistic production not only in South Africa, but on the continent. This knowledge deeply informs her current role at Zeitz MOCAA where, since 2021, she has worked closely with the museum’s curatorial team, in the preservation, strategic mediation and care of its unique permanent collection of modern and contemporary art by artists from the continent and its diaspora.
Zeitz MOCAA would like to extend our gratitude to Hazendal Wine Estate for their continued support and sponsorship of our Membership Programme.
Image credit: Portrait of Lee Burgers by Ramiie G, courtesy of Zeitz MOCAA.
