Kaalfontein fine-art artist hopes to bestow President Ramaphosa with statue
Calvin Lekgoara said he hopes to create job opportunities for unemployed youth, who are keen to learn fine art.
Self-taught fine art artist Calvin Lekgoara has created a statue of President Cyril Ramaphosa, and hopes to meet the statesman to bestow him with this gift.
In addition, Lekgoara, from Ward 92 in Kaalfontein, is currently busy with the statue of the late former African National Congress Youth League president Peter Mokaba.
He said this will be handed over to the family of the late Mokaba, once completed, whom he has already met with and agreed upon.
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He also created a specially made chair, which he refers to as a ‘throne’, for the first black president, Nelson Mandela, which is now at the Qunu Museum, in Mthatha, Eastern Cape.
This helped Lekgoara win the Best Arts and Culture Award during the 2010 Aganang Municipal Achievers Awards.
His dream is to meet with Ramaphosa and also to impart these scarce skills to the youth, with the aim of fighting soaring unemployment statistics.
Speaking to the paper, Lekgoara said he started this craft back in 1999, while working for a design and art company based in Alexandra.
“In 2004, I started my own business. In 2015, I created statues for BJ Mkhonzan, who is a late, former, Ivory Park Taxi Association chairperson, Shepherd Bushiri, and Chief Lusiba III, from Ebony Park. Now, I have made Ramaphosa, and it has been more than three years since I made that statue. I want him to see my passion, so that I can start skills development in the community. So that they can have something to make a living out of.”
He has also made ten coats of arms, for the newly renovated courts in the Polokwane Municipality, in Limpopo. His other items include designed bathtubs and ceiling chandeliers.
“Meeting the president would be a dream come true for me,” said Lekgoara. “Or anyone who can sponsor or donate to buy more material, because the material is a bit expensive. Normally, I only hire about four people from the community, when I have an order to do, but if it were up to me, I would work every day to produce more statues.”
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He said, he was not surprised to be on this path, because growing up, he loved doing handwork. He said he was challenged by the lack of implementation of this as a subject in high school, because it would help those who cannot further their education upon completing Grade 12.
He said there were plenty of opportunities in the market for all his items, which means the more hands he has, the more production and job creation for the unemployed youth.
Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, was contacted on May 6 and again on May 7, but had not responded by the time of going to print.
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