The world is her oyster

Selcourt resident Lesego Seoketsa is ready to take on the international stage after she returned from her residency in France.

The visual artist and photographer was on an art residency courtesy of Makwande Artist Residency for six weeks.
“The intention is to showcase the body of work I created while in France, in London early next year.
“But it is going to need a huge financial backing, so we will see how that goes,” she explained.
The 27-year-old said she draws inspiration from reflecting on her past.
“In your 20s you start to see yourself as an adult. You pay closer attention to your actions in relationships with others and we try to figure out where we adopted certain behaviours.
“My work talks about parenting your inner child. It speaks to that child and acknowledges what that child needed,” she added.

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Seoketsa also pays homage to African women and the role they play in the household.
“What does it mean to be a black woman in South Africa today? Are we redefining that as the youth? So, the themes of femininity are recurring in my work,” she said.
The rising star said her passion and talent in art have always been clear to her and affirmed by strangers.
“In preschool, I would draw, and I would feel better than I do in all the other classes.
“When I was in Grade Four I finally had my first exhibition.
“I created a piece from old oil pastels and my teacher chose it as one of the best submissions,” she said.

Seoketsa went on to complete her BA in Fashion Design from LISOF Design and Retail Academy.
“Before that, I studied biological science for a year at the University of Pretoria,” she laughs.
Even though it was unspoken she felt that creativity was not encouraged in her home.
She felt her parents wanted her to study something more ‘serious’.
“Fashion was my outlet for that repression at the time. But what it was, was art.
“I knew that I was not supposed to be there,” she said.

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While she was at LISOF, Seoketsa bought a camera and started taking photos of the design process.
“Someone saw my images and asked to use them in an exhibition.
“That was my first exhibition in a gallery and that was another affirmation for me as an artist,” she added.
After scoring an internship Seoketsa decided to work full-time on her art in 2020.
“To be honest, everything just fell into place as soon as I gave my work full attention,” she said.
She also got into another residency in Cape Town in 2021.
She was showing her work at the FNB Art Joburg Fair over the weekend.
For more of her work check out her Instagram page @lesegoseoketsastudio.

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