Painting is Scelo Ngcobo’s passion – Mandeni

Mandeni artist Scelo Ngcobo believes that putting his heart and soul into his work is what makes his pieces stand out from the crowd.

Ngcobo had been drawing and painting since grade one after his teacher discovered that he had a talent which was rare in the rural area of Eshowe.

She thought it was best to nurture it and today, Ngcobo is making a living from his art.

“My grade one teacher at Ngilandela Primary school who was also an artist, used to give me drawing homework and sometimes asked me to redo some of his work. That is how I developed my passion for painting and drawing.”

“Being an artist requires you to be very patient and consistent, because it takes a lot of work and time before you actually get to make money out of art.

“I know lots of people in the rural areas who were brilliant artists but due to the fact that it takes time to make money, they gave up their talents.”

Ngcobo draws in pencil and ink and paints in oils. His main income is from portraits or designing company logos.

“People sends me photos of themselves or call me to come and do paintings or drawings of them. Sometimes they send photos of their friends or family members so that I can draw them and they give that drawing as a gift.”

Ngcobo is also busy designing a comic book that he plans to release before the end of this year.

“The book will be telling stories about Zulu culture and traditions. I believe that the beauty of our culture needs to be told in different forms.”

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