Association of Arts Pretoria
173 Mackie Street
Nieuw Mucleneuk
Pretoria, South Africa
Pretoria Art Museum
Cnr Francis Baard and Wessels Str,
Arcadia Park,Arcadia,
Pretoria, South Afric
Tel: 012 358 6750
Meet runner-up: Sthenjwa
Sthenjwa Hopewell Luthuli - Runner-Up 2017
1. Where does your passion for art comes from?
In my early years back at school I couldn't read and write and this made it challenging for me to interact with people. As a child I drew comfort from my creative side.
2. Briefly describe your artistic journey up until the point of entering Sasol New Signatures?
I have had six years of practicing my art and things have been going so well in terms of making a living from my work.
3. What motivated you to enter the Sasol New Signatures art competition?
I looked at my past six years of work experience and decided 2017 was the year for me to enter - so I made a plan.
4. What excites you about the creative process?
I so enjoy every step of the process - from the very beginning until the last stage. There is such a big relationship between my work and myself!
5. Tell us about your preferred medium/s ...and why?
I specialise in printmaking and wood cut blocks. I use these mediums because I enjoy the process of carving these effects and the freedom it gives me to explore new ideas.
6. If you could summarise your work in three independent words, what would it be?
Cultural, innovative and authentic
7. Did this competition teach you anything about yourself?
Reaching this stage and being in the top seven encourages me in my work and gives me confidence in my talent.
8. Which local artists do you admire?
Athi Patra Riga, Mary Sibande, Jane Alexandwe, Thamba Shade and Vulindlela Nyoni
9. What are you currently working on/What is next for you as an artist?
I’m currently participating in a three-month residency in the city of Bremem in Germany and I’m also exploring the idea of working with a huge scale wood-cut block.
10. What impact would winning this competition have on you?
Winning this competition would mean that I am able to demonstrate to the world that I am capable of exhibiting in the Pretoria Art Museum and it would offer me the opportunity to show all my woodcut blocks I have been working on for the past ten months.