Following the successful staging of the Pan African Craft Exhibition (PACE) during the 2010 Soccer World Cup, the feat is returning to Gauteng but now as part of the provincial Human Rights month programme.
Held for the first time in South Africa in Sandton last year, the exhibition will now be held at the Sharpeville Exhibition Centre from 17 to 31 March 2011, following a partnership between the PACE, Gauteng Department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation (SACR) and the Sedibeng District Municipality.
The project will feature over 30 individual crafters from across Africa including Ghana, Kenya, Togo, Botswana, Mozambique and South Africa among others.
As part of reaching out and developing craft arts, a parallel exhibition featuring developing crafters from Sedibeng including those from the local Vaal University of Technology will also display their wares. This will happen at the old Sharpeville police station also from 17 to 31 March. The station is where the 1960 shooting of 69 victims of the Human Rights massacre started.
At this exhibition featuring developing crafters the public will not only have a chance to see but will also be allowed to buy the never seen creatives. By having the developing crafters from the university, the PACE programme, as part of the partnership agreements with SACR, aims to close the gap between the academia and the professional elements of the craft sector.
“It is our mandate to promote the arts in Gauteng and as SACR we are glad to have brought such an important opportunity for our people to be exposed to Africa’s creative beauty but also we celebrate the fact that many of our developing crafters will begin their journey to becoming professionals through such programmes like PACE” said the Gauteng MEC for Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation, Lebogang Maile.
“Besides contributing towards the economic sustainability of the individual crafters the craft is said to contribute about R2 Billion to the economy and this accounts for at least 0.14% of the Gross Domestic Product contribution towards Gauteng’s GDP”, added MEC Maile.
Entry to the exhibition is free and media is also invited.
Enquiries:
Nomazwe Ntlokwana
Cell: 083 507 8068
Tel: 011 355 2578
E-mail: nomazwe.ntlokwana@gauteng.gov.za
