Mandela Day mosaic unveiled

The Mandela Day inspired mosaic at Betrams Junior School

November 3, 2009 – The Nelson Mandela Foundation, in association with the Johannesburg Development Agency (JDA) and the Atterbury Foundation, unveiled a beautiful mosaic artwork at Bertrams Junior School in Johannesburg today.

The artwork is the result of months of hard work by JDA staff and Bertrams Junior School learners to create the mosaic on a school wall in celebration of Mandela Day. The mosaic uses brightly coloured tiles to recreate the hands of the JDA staff and the school learners. This follows Mr Mandela’s encouragement to ordinary people that it’s in their hands to make the world a better place.

The mosaic was inspired by the initiative of the Nelson Mandela Foundation (NMF) and its sister charities to make Mr Mandela’s birthday July 18, a day on which ordinary people could give back to their communities in honour of his commitment to humanity.

“When the time came for us to celebrate Mandela Day, we had an idea to link our partnership with Bertrams Junior School,” said Lael Bethlehem, chief executive of the JDA, an agency which redevelops Johannesburg’s inner city and surrounding townships.

She was delighted to find that the school first opened its doors on the very day Mr Mandela was born: July 18, 1918.

“There was some special magic – some Madiba magic – in that coincidence,” said Bethlehem.

Bethlehem encouraged the learners to embrace the Mandela Day message. “Show kindness to each other and build one South African nation that is unique in its diversity. Follow the vision of Nelson Mandela,” she said.

Melissa Love, a representative of the Atterbury Foundation, said: “We are very happy to be part of this, for our heart is very close to the inner city and it’s a vision of ours to uplift the inner city.”

The school choir performed a series of songs and expressed their thanks to the JDA, the NMF and the Atterbury Foundation.

“To you, Lael, and your team, we cannot thank you enough for recognising our tiny school and for putting us on the map,” said school principal Khanyi Twana. “We hope that the mosaic wall and the magic hands will inspire us and the next generation to come.”

Sello Hatang, Information and Communications Manager at the NMF, said: “This is a very good day, an important day. Mandela Day is not about some grand idea – all Mr Mandela was asking of us was to take care of our neighbours, and the JDA and the school have helped to make Mandela Day an everyday experience.”

The learners and JDA staff were assisted in their creative efforts by Andrew Lindsay, curator of @Spaza Art. He gave both groups a short workshop on how to mosaic and then guided them through the process.

The result is a floor-to-ceiling artwork depicting the hands of all the people involved in the project.

Lindsay chose hands as a motif, as they are an easy shape that both experienced and inexperienced artists can create. He also liked the symbolism that hands represent, tying in with the Mandela Day imagery.

“This mosaic is a true joining of hands, making it a true tapestry that truly reflects our society and our commitment to working together and joining hands,” said Lindsay.