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All at Sea Gallery Pages: Johannesburg and environs The Oppenheimer Fountain (aka Impala Stampede) In 1960, the sculptor Herman Wald was commissioned by Harry Oppenheimer, to create a study of leaping impala, in memory of his father, the late Sir Ernest Oppenheimer. This structure was familiarly known as the Oppenheimer Fountain, and it was sighted in the park that was behind the Rissik Street Post Office, bordered by Joubert, President and Market Streets (Google Earth Co-ordinates 26° 12.252'S 28° 2.564'E) in the center of Johannesburg. It was a familiar landmark (and short cut) to anybody that grew up in Johannesburg in the 1960-1990's. However, by the late 1990's the deterioration of the park and its use by informal traders as a storage area, meant that the park was no longer a safe or pleasant place to see or visit. Inevitably, vandalism took its toll and parts of the fountain were cut off, probably to be sold for scrap. Eventually what was left was completely removed and the city was left without one of its most recognisable icons. The Public Works of Herman Wald
The park has since been redeveloped, and a replacement statue for the Impala has been created. The informal traders cannot leave their goods in the park as it has been fenced and gated. The centre piece of the area is a rough-cut diamond crystal made of stainless steel and standing two metres tall. Other artworks by local artists have also found a spot in the park and while it no longer looks the way it did so many years ago, the space is becoming more representative of the ever changing city around it.
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