In 1965 the African Art Centre had collaborated with Alliance Francaise to hold the first Durban exhibition of Rorke's Drift weavings. The partnership was revived in 1987 with an exhibition of African art and craft, and renewed again in 1990 when Alliance Francaise South Africa approached the Art Centre to organise an exhibition in Durban for up and coming young artists.

In August 1990 the highly successful Vulamehlo - Open Eye exhibition was held at the Durban Art Gallery. It moved to the Sibusisiwe Educational Community Centre in Clermont in September.

Artists responded enthusiastically, with 108 people contributing 172 works. A wide variety of work was exhibited ranging from paintings, graphics and sculpture by professional artists to creative art, crafts and artefacts by artists with little or no formal art training. Among new artists recognised at the exhibition were painters Joseph Manana, Truman Myaka and, particularly, Trevor Makhoba.

Between 400 and 500 people attended the opening on August 8, in an atmosphere of warmth and appreciation, and the response of the public was so good that the Durban Art Gallery extended the exhibition for a week. Thereafter, part of the exhibition was transferred to the Sibusisiwe Educational Community Centre. Carol Brown commenced her review of August 24, 1990, by saying:

"The African Art Centre is a pivot of the hiatal art scene in that it has for many years nurtured and brought together talent which would not otherwise have been exposed. Exhibiting in public galleries is a complex process and (the) Centre has made it possible for all types of art to be brought to public attention.

"Beadmakers, wire basket weavers, graphic artists, printers, painters and sculptors have travelled from outlying areas to bring their work in and have it assessed and criticised and then marketed and sold. While the Centre staff have played a vital role  in this process they have been guided and supported by other artists, and for the first time the Centre has organised, together with the Alliance Francaise. an exhibition which brings all these people together.

"The result is a show of great vitality and a wide range of styles. Some of Natal s better known and more professional artists like Verster, Wafer, Zungu and Botha show works alongside newcomers.

"There are different worlds and different experiences evident in the show. Scenes of township strife, rural scenes and observations of simple activities hang alongside spring flowers, decorative bowls, paper mache fantasy creatures, and sculptures of wood and bronze.

"To pick out any one artist or work would be doing an injustice to the exhibition as a whole. It is a large show with over 170 works and there is no spirit of competition as is usual in a show of this nature. The organisers and artists have entered into the project in a spirit of cooperation, and it is perhaps this aspect which gives the exhibition its character and liveliness."