Creating art is Mookie’s passion

GLENWOOD street artist, Mook Lion, is passionate about creating art in public spaces.

Mookie, as he calls himself, is a fine arts student at DUT and has made a name for himself by creating murals in and around Durban.

“I come from an artistic family, my gran, mom and brother are artists and my sister and dad are musicians I attended a Waldorf school which really encouraged my creativity. I did art all the way through school, and never thought it was something I would pursue, until I started oil painting in matric. It did something for me, it grabbed and excited me,” he said.

Mookie started doing graffiti 11 years ago and started studying fine arts in 2009.

“My interest in graffiti started when I was young, as I always noticed it in Durban. It was super exciting, mysterious and interesting and it spoke to me. One of my friends went to Cape Town and saw people there painting murals, which got him excited. I started doing murals with him and when I was in my third year of studies, I started blending the two interests into one and started more on street art, which communicates more with the public, than graffiti. Graffiti appeals to young people, but it makes other people uncomfortable, they hate it, they find it aggressive and challenging,” he said.

He said the biggest challenge with street art or murals was getting permission to do the work.

“Most of the attempts get shut down and it's really about putting in the time and effort to get permission,” he said.

Mookie said he tries to make his work site specific, something that relates to the environment closely.

“I like to make something meaningful and relevant, in terms of the time frame,” he said.

He said he had an appreciation for nature and this was reflected in his work.

The process he follows to getting work completed includes getting a specific site, and doing research on what people will respond to.

“I get an idea first and find the best way to communicate this. The best way, if I have the time, is to do prep work in my studio and work on this, using it as a reference point. I try incorporate fine arts aesthetics and technique in my work,” he said.

Mookie has completed a lot of work in Durban, and said there were many different murals he was proud of for many reasons.

His favourite mural was one he completed with his team in Shepstone Road, near Cool Runnings, which was the biggest mural he has completed.

“The image is of three elephants as though they are wondering through Durban before it was urbanised. Following the challenge Andries Botha had with his elephant sculptures in Durban, we had to get permission from the city, but it was a step forward and was a success,” he said.

He said art in a public space was challenging and it caused a stir, which he felt was one of the main functions of art.

“It challenges the way things are,” he said.

Mookie is currently studying his Masters in fine arts. “It all has the same end goal, to find out the social function of street and mural art. My main challenge is motivation, as I have to do this on my own steam, but I'm making progress!” he said.

While his main focus is his studies, he still finds time to tackle corporate mural jobs, murals at schools and other events.

Looking to the future, Mookie said his team hoped to register as a business and NGO to pursue this work full time..

“There is funding available, as it has an element of development, and we can get a lot of work done. Long-term I'm better off doing cultural work, as people recognise its value,” he said.

When he isn't painting and working on his Masters, Mookie is an avid surfer.

“I surf a lot, I love it! It's something fun to do with friends and family,” he said.

EXTRA BOX

AN appeal goes out to residents to contact Mookie if they are keen to provide a platform to make art work in the area.

He would like residents who are happy to provide a wall or space at their home or business as a canvas for the team to paint murals on, free of charge.

“I'm trying to make the area better, and it would be nice for people to support that. It would form part of my studies as well,” he said.

If anyone has acrylic paint or any other left over paint lying around in their garages, consider donating this too.

If you are interested, contact Mookie on mookie.chapman@gmail.com