Nelson Mandela Square

This guide to Nelson Mandela Square in Johannesburg follows sculptors Kobus Hattingh and Jacob Maponyane, commissioned in 2002 to cast the country's first public statue of Nelson Mandela, and the choice to show him mid Madiba jive rather than seated in solemn pose. You'll hear about the 2004 unveiling by his granddaughter Ndileka, on the tenth anniversary of South Africa's first democratic election, and the debate the statue's placement above valet parking and designer boutiques still stirs. It traces the space from its earlier life as Sandton Square to the name it carries now.