News Africa

Francistown — Badirwang drew pictures in the ground with his playmates during their infancy stage, one could deduce that art is in his blood.

 

Badirwang, a soft spoken and conscious artist, who is decorated with art certificates from junior to senior school level says his talent goes a long way back to primary school days.

 

In an interview recently, he stressed that it was at junior school where he got inspiration from his art teacher at Mmei Community Junior Secondary School in Francistown, that he took the subject serious. He added that an art club at junior school also gave him the opportunity to meet other advanced artists and compete with them for certificates and other incentives.

 

Badirwang stated that he carried his art talent to senior school and Molepolole College of Education (MCE) where he trained, majoring in Fine Arts and Computer Studies. The young artist also learnt screen-printing, signage, graphic design and T-shirt printing, which he said do not take much time to master like fine arts.

 

Badirwang went on to become an art teacher, a job that he did for four years until he quit and became self-employed.

 

He never looked back as he had talent that can enable him to put food on the table as he creates exquisite fine arts products like pictures and posters and also does commercial art, signage, T-shirt printing and graphics.

 

As an optimistic youth, he stated that he intends to open his own art gallery, which will display his work and that of other artists. He intends to impart his skills to others, especially women whom he feels are vulnerable and need to be given the same opportunity as men.

 

Furthermore, Badirwang urged students to choose art as their practical subject at school and youth who are talented artists to use what God gave them. He said art is the only friend that can refrain the youth from roaming the streets and consequently help them to be self-employed.

 

In addition, he stated that artists should be patient when doing their work, stressing that one should not focus only on making quick money but they should persevere and await golden opportunities like exhibitions, where their products can be bought in bulk.

 

Besides art market being scarce in the country, Badirwang said he would like to see artists unite so that they can request for assistance from government to enable them bench mark in neighboring countries like Zimbabwe, South Africa and other European countries, where art is treated as an immense business.