Circle of life: Place it on the Altar by Boitumelo Diseko. The artwork symbolises the New Testament God sacrificing his only son for our sins, so that we may be saved.
‘My love for art started when I was in primary school: I noticed how my older brothers could draw and I wanted to emulate them.
I began drawing cartoons when I was still at school. My craft evolved when I was at university: I explored different types of mediums such as steel, oil paint, etching and the like. It was only in my third year of studies that I focused on a particular style of making art.
I was influenced by artists such as William Kentridge: he looks at memory and landscape as well. I started being fascinated about psychology, memories, landscape, Christian faith and identity and how they link together.
I have a love for art and also for business, so at a young age I knew I wanted to own an art gallery. I didn’t know what I would call it at the time but I knew I had to fulfil that dream. I sell my work online and also at my own gallery, B Artworks Gallery.Â
At the moment I haven’t sold any works by other artists, but I hope to do so in the near future.
Working with other artists, you get to see other talented people using different mediums to convey their message. It pushes me to explore more in my craft.
My greatest highlight is when a customer contacts me and expresses their love for the art I create. My aim is to have the viewer interact with the work personally, and derive what they think it means for them.
My artworks are rooted in environmental psychology and the Christian faith. The artworks look at how the environment affects us as human beings and how God uses it to build our character.
Environmental psychology is a multidimensional field that focuses on the interplay between individuals and their surroundings. It examines the way in which the natural environment and our built environments shape us as individuals.
I use lines akin to contour lines as a way of depicting memory and identity encoded onto a landscape.
The scale of my work varies. The elements that I use are space, line and colour. The work is abstract and the three elements communicate effectively together.
I usually use black, white, yellow and red. I’m not restricted to such colours, though I feel they are more striking — that’s why I use them.
I never anticipated that I’d be where I am now. I’ve been blessed to have had solo art exhibitions and also been part of group exhibitions.
There have been some ups and downs, of course, but you have to hold onto your dreams and keep pushing — no matter what.