Art for arts sake
ALEXANDRA - A few years ago Tsutusmani resident Vika Mjoka left his job as a security guard to pursue his love for art.
A few years ago Tsutusmani resident Vika Mjoka left his job as a security guard to pursue his love for art.
Today, he has a Diploma in Visual Arts and is the director of the Alexandra ICT Centre which he and his friends established in 2012.
“I have always been a creative person from a young age,” said Mjoka who is originally from Mount Frere in the Eastern Cape. “When I was in Grade 4 I was the only boy in my class and I took up needle work because that is what the girls were doing. That’s were it all started.”
After completing matric he decided to come to Johannesburg to further his studies. But things did not go according to plan as he had no money to go to school. “I worked as a security guard for a few years and I rediscovered my love for art in the process.
“I enrolled at Intec for a Diploma in Visual Arts and was studying while working. I then quit my job shortly before graduating,” he said. Mjoka also researched other artists, continued painting and sold some of his artwork.
He said he has painted more than 500 paintings and has sold 80 percent of them. To further add to his skills, Mjoka studied project management and then opened the Alexandra ICT Centre.
“We noticed that township artists didn’t have any space to work from and they didn’t know who to sell their paintings to or how to approach potential clients.”
He said through the centre they hoped to promote local artists and encourage others to take up art. “Art is in my blood and you can use art to send a positive message.”
