The Frank Joubert Art Centre
Something that I, Patricia, took for granted was the numerous opportunities to be creative throughout my Canadian education. Fine arts were a normal part of school, but unfortunately, this is not the same in South Africa. Here, most students are not exposed to this vital part of education, which is what makes the Frank Joubert Art Centre particularly special.
"The Frank Joubert Art Centre is committed to providing innovative visual art and design education to learners and educators of differing abilities, within an inspiring, vibrant, and nurturing environment."
No words better describe what is found at the centre. Walking into the beautiful heritage building, you are greeted by a continually rotating display of the beautiful artworks produced through their numerous projects. Just exploring the hallways, stimulates your creative imagination. This process is facilitated by the knowledgable and passionate staff, a few of which are collaborating with iLanga Art.
"[They] embrace change and diversity, and enjoy working in collaboration with other cultural and educational institutions, both local and international."
The Frank Joubert Art Centre work with Captonian schools, through offering art classes and outreach programmes. Another aspect of their work is through their much needed "Ibhanbhathane Project," through which they train teachers all around South Africa to teach art in their classes. Due to the historical inequality and lack of importance placed on the creative arts, most teachers have never been exposed to fine arts, themselves. Ibhanbhathane, which means 'butterfly' in Xhosa, travels to teachers to equip them with the skills to introduce low-cost art lessons into their classes. Lastly, they work with children and youth living with disabilities, another population that experiences a great deal of discrimination.
The last reason that iLanga Art was eager to partner with the Frank Joubert Art Centre is because of their amazing set of values and ethics.
"The following ethics govern the basis of all relationships (staff, learners, etc):
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pursuit of creativity
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respect
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a positive attitude
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openness to change
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humour and a sense of fun
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striving for excellence
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honest to all
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a non-judgemental attitude
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transparency
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dedication
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enthusiasm
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approachability
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support and understanding"
Who wouldn't be honoured to work with such an amazing initiative?
