Pebble art is a common phenomenon as a hobby, or business venture across the country, however various suburbs in Cape Town, including Melkbosstrand, have created an initiative where decorated pebbles are placed in public for the community to find which creates “creativity, outdoorsiness and community involvement,” according to their Facebook page.
“The aim of the pebble art is not to play hide and seek with them, but rather to spread kindness to others. When we put our rocks out there for others to find they do not belong to us any more. If you have found a beautiful special rock which obviously spoke to you, then it is yours. When you do not need its comfort any more, then you are ready to pass it on to someone else who needs it,” wrote a Cape Town Rocks member on the Facebook page.
Melkbosstrand Rocks
Melkbosstrand Rocks, a pebble art community in the seaside town of Melkbosstrand, has drawn traction from locals, and as a result a Facebook page was created in July 2019, by Johnell Visser, a pebble art enthusiast, and local in the area.
“I went to stay in Stilbaai, and saw that the painted-rock movement is huge,” Visser said who joined the initiative in Stilbaai at the time.
Returning home Visser continued the initiative, and as a result the Facebook page was born.
“I had so many positive comments on my painted rocks in Stilbaai, so when I returned to Melkbosstrand I started the group and started hiding all the rocks I saved up in my time in Stilbaai as well,” Visser explained.
The aim of Melkbosstrand Rocks, like Cape Town Rocks, is to brighten people’s days by beautifying the area they call home, according to Visser.
How it works
When a decorated rock is found, take a picture, and share it on the Melkbosstrand Rocks Facebook group.
The rock can be kept for personal use, where another rock can then be hidden in its place in another public location, or the same rock can be hidden somewhere else, explained the Facebook page.
“If you want your pebble to be posted back here when it is found, write Melkbosstrand Rocks on the back with a little Facebook icon with an ‘f’ in a square, or print out a sheet of labels,” the social media page elaborated. First names and dates can also be included to see how long a rock has been in circulation for.
