18 Jun 2013

Art does not only appeal because of its beauty but also reconnects the community with its roots.

Training and development manager at Orapa, Letlhakane and Damtshaa mines, Pierre du Plessis said this when officiating at an art exhibition in Orapa. du Plessis said the exhibited artworks by students and teachers of secondary schools from the central region depicted lifestyle, traditional roots and culture.

Art, he said, was an essential component of the educational process, which involved creativity and critical thinking. He said through art, people could creatively communicate with one another.

However, du Plessis said despite the fact that art had some economic benefits; a lot had to be done to change the mindset of the community to appreciate the work done by artists in preserving culture. “I appeal to artists to advertise their trade through exhibitions and other forums,” he said.

He called on various stakeholders including the business community to extend a helping hand to nurture youth talent. du Plessis also appealed to the students to stay focused and work on improving their work. “Work hard and enjoy the benefits God given talent you have,” he added.

For his part, the shairperson of CREATE, an association for art teachers in the central region, Patrick Ranyemo also appealed to the private sector and individuals to assist financially.

Ranyemo said art was an expensive subject and would not grow if the schools only relied on what the Ministry of Education and Skills Development provided for art students.

He said some talented young artists ended up giving up on the subject after failing to progress to either senior secondary schools or tertiary institutions as they could not afford on their own to acquire the expensive materials and equipment needed for art work.

Ranyemo further appealed to the students taking art to act as change agents by appealing to the community and their peers to take cognisance of the works that they produced. ENDS