Annual Heritage Award Winnersby Carol Brown
The Kizo Art Gallery, just outside Umhlanga, has taken their recent commitment to preserving heritage seriously. Previously considered a commercial gallery catering to the expensive decorating clientele, the gallery has expanded with the inclusion of a section devoted to serious contemporary art. Nathi Gumede, previously of the KZNSA, who joined Kizo about a year ago, is in no small way responsible for this turnaround with the full support of the director, Craig Mark. One of their initiatives has been the establishment of the annual Heritage Awards for which they have secured substantial sponsorship from a number of corporates. The awardees have been chosen by Kizo in conjunction with KwaCulture and the Department of Arts, Culture and Tourism. Winners were announced at a glittering function held in the nearby Imax Theatre.
There were the requisite number of official speeches including a reading by Zosukuma Kunene of a portion of his late father's renowned work Emperor Shaka The Great. This was accompanied by acclaimed Maskhanda guitarist Madala Kunene.
Award winners were:
Dr Fatima Meer, tireless defender of the oppressed since the 40s, a founding member of the Federation Of South African Women (Fedsaw), has established a string of educational institutions, published more than 40 books on a wide variety of subjects and won numerous awards. She has served in a number of advisory capacities to the government and in spite of recent difficulties - the death of her husband and son, plus several heart attacks - she remains a fighter and a champion of the underclasses.
Mzwakhe Mbuli, the People's Poet, has spent all of his career fighting injustice and racism and promoting positive attitudes. Renowned for his outspoken commitment to freedom and justice, Mbuli's uncompromising lyrics are set to highly-charged township music which has captured the hearts of the urban and rural communities.
Barry Leitch is a renowned Zulu cultural consultant and entrepreneur who, together with Kingsley Holgate, created Shakaland, the cultural experience near Eshowe. He was also consultant author for the book Zulu.
Nesta Nala (awarded posthumously) was one of South Africa's most prolific ceramicists, renowned for her beer-pots. Nala won several awards and her work is represented in major public and private collections locally and internationally, whilst three of her daughters continue her legacy.
Mazisi Kunene (awarded posthumously) was not only an epic poet but, in exile, the Chief Representative of the African National Congress in Europe and America and played a pivotal role in the founding of the anti-apartheid movement. He also served as a Cultural Advisor to Unesco who in 1993 made him Africa's Poet Laureate. In 2005 he was honoured as South Africa's first Poet Laureate.
Busi Mhlongo is a brilliant singer, dancer and composer whose music carries a strong message and defies categorisation. Drawing on various South African styles, it is fused at various times with contemporary elements from jazz, funk, rock, gospel, rap, opera, reggae and West African sounds. This fresh and exciting mix has a universal appeal, as does her singing style and stage presence.
