An old myth from England and Wales was that a city was given such status by having a cathedral.
While many have debunked this over time, with history telling us that Birmingham became the first British town to earn city status without a cathedral in 1889, there is one commonality between that myth and modern cities – having places of worship.
One might say that the social trends have moved from a certain religion-driven means of community building, but the counter-argument that places of worship have themselves changed through time remains true. Whether it is the café where your favourite cake takes you on an outer body experience, an art gallery that allows you space for pensive introspection, or an auditorium where you find yourself transported into worlds where characters battle out life’s challenges while you vicariously cling on with hope that you will find solutions to your own situational problems, we commune and connect in various ways.
A nod to conservation
On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the institution, Maru-a-Pula School has taken the opportunity to usher the new season in with a feast of artistic offerings for the general public. Established in 1972, what was once a small collection of buildings amongst a sprawling 20 hectare landscape amassed with acacias and other indigenous trees has grown to become an institution of international repute. Half a century on, the trees on the Maru-a-Pula campus still spot horticultural tags in a nod to the preservation of indigenous flora and knowledge. When Sir Seretse Khama’s desire for a non-racial international school to be established came to fruition, Deane Yates was the first to take on the task, thus establishing a culture of community consciousness, dependability, compassion and integrity.
With the institution’s growth, so too has there been numerous moments where faculty, students, alumni and their peers have jointly worked to keep the cultural spirit of Gaborone and its visitors pulsing. Over the month of August, the school’s art department and Maitisong Theatre have added multi-generational events to the city’s social calendar in an effort to keep the legacy alive.
Termed “The Art Crawl” – a nod to the hop on, hop off activity, the series of installations of artworks across the city has poked at the opportunities spaces often viewed as bare, useless or transitory possess. In a capital city with a notable lack of art galleries, this experience was fashioned to expose people to looking for art in unusual places, thus making the art the destination. The exhibition spread between the school campus and five locations in the Gaborone CBD features established and apprentice artists working in various forms.
Just a whisper
In her framing of the experience, Sedireng Mothibatsela offers that the school’s art department “has been a place of honest, raw and challenging investigations into who our students are and aspire to be within the context of how they wish to take up space in the world”. Mothibatsela, who currently serves as Head of Department, is an alumnus of the school herself, having matriculated in 1995. Without presenting The Art Crawl as quintessential, the decorated artist confesses that it is “just a whisper of what the walls of the department hold through the symbiotic relationship between students and their teachers”.
The Art Crawl itself features the works of 65 artists who are related to the school in some way. The multi-disciplinary selection of the works available for viewing makes for a sensory safari of sorts, moving between installations, paintings, weaving and photography – all the while being in a cafeteria or peering over the city from a high rise office building in the centre of the city. Among the esteemed artists showcasing works are Ann Gollifer, Ngozi Lebogang Chukura, former Head of Art Department Stephen Jobson, Neo Matome and Meleko Mokgosi.
For the exhibition, Gollifer offers her sharp wit in vignettes illustrated on Okavango papyrus while Chukura’s signature evolves with hand-stitched silhouettes overlaying on a study of translucence in portraiture – bridging sculpture and hanging art. Jobson’s private collection reminds the viewer of his fascination with messaging and the human form while Matome’s installation work invites one into discourse around what is hidden and what is tangible. The artworks by Meleko Mokgosi, associate professor of painting and drawing at the School of Art at Yale University and a former student of Jobson’s, offer a more intimate experience of his practice – being renowned for his all-encompassing, figurative and large-scale works that often interrogate subjects such as colonialism and African livelihoods.
Ubiquitous masks
In a nod to the artistic calibre of the students in the school, present scholars were also given the opportunity to showcase alongside these industry players. Of note are the works of Form 6 student Khalil Mohammed Khan and Form 5 student Isabel Zoe Charles, whose work, much like that of 2021 alumnus Alexander William Jamu, captivate the viewer in how they obscure one’s direct connection to the subjects gaze. In a time where masks have been ubiquitous and synonymous with protection, these works resonate with an unspoken urgency to connect.
While The Art Crawl calls attendees to the centre of the city, Neo Jasmine Mokgosi holds her own in an exhibition hosted at the Lady Olebile Masire Centre in Gaborone West. Mokgosi, whose photographic brand is Faith in a Jar, is an alumnus of the school. The retrospective exhibition at the community centre is a reflection on “how fashion, identity and culture come together in contemporary African youth expressions”, says the artist. Featuring self-portraits and excerpts from projects across theatre, film and fashion, the artist offers multiple lenses to relate with her art from.
Matching Mokgosi’s multiple-lens approach is the 35th Maitisong Festival that takes the baton from The Art Crawl to close off the month of August. Traditionally staged in March, the festival was rescheduled to fall within the jam-packed golden jubilee celebration calendar. The festival, under the theme of “Seeds of Creativity,” runs from 22 to 28 August, with multiple shows over the closing weekend. Featuring productions from Botswana and international guests, the festival continues to offer music, dance, theatre and poetry to stimulate parched audiences. Much like The Art Crawl, the festival presents space for less experienced performers to be billed alongside world-toured counterparts.
A potpourri of productions
This year’s line-up has Dato Seiko slated for an acoustic musical session accompanied by Jordan Moozy, Thato Jessica and Veezo View, the folk stylings of Hydro Molefe as he invites audiences into his musical journey, South African acts “Fatherhood” by the Alex Theatre Company and Academy, and “King Cetshwayo: The Musical” directed by Archie Oupa Matsetela and Jerry Pooe respectively and sees the return of “Morwa The Rising Son” performed by Maitisong director Tefo Paya and directed by former Head of Drama Warren Nebe. An impressive move is the abundance of native language usage in productions billed for the festival, marking, perhaps, that there is a substantial interest in not only creating the art but also consuming it.
Maru-a-Pula School’s journey with Botswana stems from the country’s juvenile stages, and it is impressive to see the consistency in keeping the passion for art alive throughout the years. While one might stand in awe at what has changed, there is still so much that is still the same. This commitment to giving artists a platform is something that must be celebrated as Botswana continues to work toward a knowledge-based economy that recognises that art and culture development are the cornerstones of community wealth. The city is indeed alive and calls for us to come meet for the purposes of art once again.