Lebotse: An artist of all trades
Lesedi Mkhutshwa | Sunday March 13, 2022 06:00
However, for Mmadinare native, Nanette Lebotse, she defies the odds of having to find a niche in her artistic work but chose to integrate theatre acting, modeling and poetry as a way of exploring her creativity and intellectual capacities. In an interview with Arts & Culture, Lebotse indicated that being a generalist or Jack of All Trades, is a good thing as it helps one to always be creative and think outside the box.
She added: “When you have multiple artistry jobs, you will never be bored as you are constantly creating different things, utilising different styles, and experimenting with different mediums.” According to Lebotse, being a generalist artist helps her to be more versatile, well rounded and a problem solver. When speaking about her artistic career, Lebotse said she works on her artistic skills during her spare time.
She stated that her poems reflect her feelings. She further said: “I usually write in the fire of emotions. If it’s a genuine poem that flows, it should have been triggered by pain. Sometimes I try to come up with poems not prompting agony but they don’t come out right.” The mother of two said she has written over six poems mostly triggered by love and pain. She highlighted that some of her poems include If a poem was dime, Rest well mama, If they can hurt us why can’t they be punished, Loved you dearly, My body is my greatest motivation and Hope.
The multi-talented artist recently performed ‘IF a poem was dime’ during the Roots Live Sessions at Molapo Gardens, which speaks about her ex-partner. The poem, which was painful, left most of the attendants in tears because of the message, perfect poetic sound and repetition, which established rhythm at the same time enchanting the listeners.
Some years back, Lebotse also appeared on Mr Taggs’ video ‘Lekgarebe la Motse’ which she is famously known for because ever since then she started her modeling career. She indicated that she then modeled for different clothing shops such as Amerlyn clothing and for personal bookings on presentations. She said she has showcased her acting skills during different theatre performances organised by Donga Theatre Artists, Mothaolosa Theatre Productions, Bopaganag Basha and Tselakgopo. She said most of the productions were about Gender-Based-Violence (GBV), teenage pregnancy, HIV/AIDS and road safety.