20 Sep 2017

Alfred Motlhabani, 23, of Nshakashogwe says art is his stepping stone to greater heights, and his determination has made him to nurture his talent as an artist.

Motlhabani said this in an interview and highlighted that having his work displayed at events such as the Makgadikgadi Epic gave him hope that he could reap rewards. He noted that since his early years of primary school he developed an interest in art.

He said although there was no art as a subject then, he used creative and performing art to fill the gap and demonstrate what he loved which was art. He said every moment in his life brought an improvement in his art life. He said he started off by just drawing using a pencil,  but later introduced painting and recently worked on using a computer to draw.

Trading as Ali Arts Effects, Motlhabani said after he attained 28 points in Botswana General Certificate of Secondary Education (BGCSE) in 2012, he realised that he was not going to be able to go further with his studies unless he upgraded his results. He decided to look for a job and was fortunate to find it at Chikos Penal Beating until 2014 while doing art in his spare time.

He said he realised that he needed to follow his dream and went back to school where he studied and attained a certificate in computer studies at Marapong Brigade in 2015.

Motlhabani said that was where his drawing using a computer was discovered.

He said the art industry has a bright future, and that the challenges he encountered did not demotivate him, but instead encouraged him to work even harder because “it is a matter of bread and butter. Ends