Visual artists leave mark on province

In what is considered by some as a man’s profession, two female local cartoonists are leaving their mark on the province.
Ntombi Ntakakazi is regarded as a powerful female artistic force to be reckoned with. This energetic visual artist began her journey at Motheo FET College where she did a course in Arts and Design and proceeded to the Central University of Technology where she studied Fine Arts.
Her impressive collection of work earned her recognition from her peers who nominated her for a Premier’s Excellence Award in 2007. She received the first prize in the Arts and Culture category.

She launched her career at Kopanong Women’s Magazine as a cartoonist and later moved on to a local newspaper in Bloemfontein.

Through her works as a cartoonist at Free State News, she gives her own interpretation of what is happening in the world of politics and current affairs. Her satirical work allows her to challenge the status quo and give it her own interpretation.
“I began working for the paper in 2004. A newspaper cartoon usually takes me less than two hours to complete, this is mainly because of the scale as well the concept of the piece. I regularly update myself on what is happening in the world of news and this gives me an edge in my interpretation.”

Ntakakazi, who was born in Botshabelo, has always wanted to be involved in art. Growing up, she was drawn to her creative side. Her first masterpiece was a hand drawn in the sand at the age of four. In primary school, she got her first real experience of the potential career that lay ahead as an artist when her teachers would pay her to do charts and illustrations of key classroom lessons. Ntakakazi only stopped designing clothing for her dolls in Grade 10 and admits it was a unique addiction that has shaped how she approaches her art today.

This multi-talented artist also does individual portraits for clients and is regularly commissioned to do original artworks or murals around the city. Her work at Bloemfontein Zoo is a unique illustration of life at the zoo.

“When doing murals I usually take time out to research what I am doing a piece about. With every mural there needs to be a balanced perspective and illusion. With the exotic animals at the zoo I decided to create a piece that combines both the jungle life in the Amazon along with the Caribbean. When it comes to such work, I like putting myself in the painting.”

She was also asked to do artwork for the Mangaung Fresh Produce Market, where she depicted street scenes of everyday fruit and vegetable small businesses in the area.

Her dream is to establish her own non-profit organisation through which she can inspire young artists to achieve their dreams and teach them about the art.

Ntakakazi is a firm believer in the power of positive energy.

“Art is everything, every person is an artist. When you walk inside a place like Nando’s for example you get to witness a welcoming artistic impression and design which was originally an idea is someone’s mind. I love being able to express myself through art, and feel very blessed that this is the path I chose.”

Lyrene Kühn is a second year BA Fine Arts student who believes an art piece is incomplete until a viewer or a spectator has seen it and has formed an opinion about what they feel it means to them. She also believes that art has changed from perfect pieces like those of Michelangelo and Picasso which resemble no signs of imperfection and reality.

Her interest in drawings and artwork started at pre-school when she saw her first animation.

She proceeded to study Fine Arts with the hope that someday she would become an animation artist.

Kühn believes developing an art work is a sophisticated and thought provoking exercise.

“When you start doing a new project, you start with an idea. You get information on your idea and think of your idea. It is almost like cooking, you put all your ideas in the pot, what you have researched, how you want to do it, and you let it cook. Every time you take a step in the process you think about it and ask yourself if this is really what I want to do, then when you are happy, you take it further.

Then the experimental phase takes place when you use pictures and drawings.”

Her individual art allows those experiencing it to make their own interpretation of what they see. Her cartoon work fuses charcoal with pen shadows. It captures emotion and displays her vivid imagination.