22 Sep 2015

A peep into Nelson ‘Manello’ Mbangwa’s bedroom reveals stacks of colourful drawings and paintings that dot every wall of the tiny bedroom reminding one of the adage that says ‘life imitates art’.   

Even his bed spots a surplus of artworks all over its breadth and length, and for this Nelsons imply says when night falls he pushes the lovely creations aside and just lies next to them until the next day.  

“I am not bothered one bit because the artworks have become my adorable babies,” he says sarcastically in an interview with BOPA.   

Nelson is the kind of artist who proudly walks the streets of Francistown with hands and clothes tainted with paint, perhaps like a mechanic would walk around smeared with grease and oil. He also perfectly brings out the ‘life imitates art’ motto by his sense of dress considering how his clothes bear different art formations.   

The jeans and t-shirts he wears are painted and ruffled up artistically by the artist himself and he would sometimes show up dressed in his beloved blue baggy jean creatively painted here and there.   

Also a bucket hat smeared with different colours of paint and a bag pack done the same, just to show how passionate he is about the arts.   

Mbangwa says he has been drawing and painting since primary school days at Jackalas Primary until the present day and that he cherishes every moment he produces a unique art-piece.   

“I specialise in portrait and abstract art. I also love painting clothes just to show the energy or aura in which we humans converse,” he says.   

His art work screams ‘professional’ in that it always spots a frame finish, something which he says other up-coming young artist neglect.   

He further says he has taken part in the President Day’s art competitions three times since 2013 scooping position two each time and pocketing P1500 in the process. Mbangwa further says he exhibited at this year’s Clifton PTA Arts Exhibition held in Francistown in August.   

Furthermore, he says he intends to host a solo exhibition soon and has thus far finished five art-pieces of the 16 he is targeting to begin his solo exhibition with.   

He decries the lack of support for artist by Batswana, noting that, unlike in other countries, where the arts are highly supported and artists make a meaningful living out of it, the same cannot be said about artists here. His advice to aspiring young artists like him is to believe in themselves and be original in their works. Ends