Sandton painter lands big exhibition in Cape Town
Representatives of ESPN Africa were delighted to share their time with old and new fans of NFL at Artistry in Sandton for the celebration of the Super Bowl clash between Kansa City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles.
Accomplishing dreams will forever be regarded as the pinnacle of one’s existence. Athenkosi Kwinana’s moment came at an early age without even knowing it, in the years before she became a professional painter.
Growing up with albinism, Kwinana always felt out of the box even when watching television in the comfort of her home. As the young painter says, she would often stand in front of the television just to see her favourite shows due to her vision impairment.
“I would always watch Generations, Muvhango and a few other shows that I enjoyed watching with my family up close to the television because I couldn’t see properly. Until one day, my mother was a bit annoyed with me blocking the screen and she gave me a pad and a pen and told me to draw something,” said Kwinana.
According to the young artist, she started to dive deeply into the art form as an escape from being different than others.
“When growing up, people would always look at me differently. People were always afraid to be around me because of who I am on the outside. Drawing became so close to me, to the point where I started to realise that I am good at it and I just progressed. High school came and I excelled, but I was caught in an awkward position because of my mother,” said the artist.
Her mother told her that art wouldn’t pave the way as it did not generate enough income, but Kwinana stuck with her passion and love and pursued it at college.
“After college, I had one of my paintings sold by a doctor in Cape Town and my mother instantly saw what I was capable of. My style is interpretive and thought-provoking. I depict the beauty of Albinism and everything that is Black, which I am.”
After partnering with Fiera Milano Exhibitions Africa, Kwinana landed her first big local exhibition in Cape Town organised by the Investec Cape Town Art Fair which will commence from February 17 to 19.
When asked how she felt about playing a big role in the 10th annual art fair she said that she cannot wait for people to see her work and concluded that she is not expecting anything, but sharing her vision with people that love art.
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