Mafatlha paints the Bible
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Friday September 12, 2014 13:49
The young man told Arts & Culture that while growing up his favourite subjects were history and art. “When learning history, I realised that there were a lot of questions that were not answered. No matter how many questions I asked to understand life, I did not get satisfactory answers,” he said. The young man said he tried every possible way to understand how life exists and how it was going to end.
He said that he later turned to the Bible where he found answers. He said that it took him years to understand the bible and finish it. Realising that it answered most of his unanswered questions, Mafatlha dedicated his time to the bible. He said he was also passionate about art. “I decided to come up with a different form of art and came up with Chronology of the Bible painting. Reading the bible, I turned to understand life. It gave me a picture on how God created earth, people and animals and how he wanted them to live,” he said.
Mafatlha said he decided to put his understanding in pictures and by so doing drew everything said in the bible in a much simpler form. He added that it took him several years to understand the Bible as he went through all the scriptures. It was then that he decided to create the Chronology of the Bible painting, where he portrays details of the Bible in a simpler manner. “I decided to incorporate two of my favourite subjects together as a way of spreading to the public in an appealing way.
As we know, a picture is worth thousand words. Unlike in the Bible, this painting tells every story written in the Bible but in a simpler way,” he explained.
Mafatlha also said his painting explains the chronology of life easily and faster, considering that it often takes several hours to go through material that reveals life events as stipulated in the Bible. The painting, which shows a hand carrying the world, is said to symbolise God’s hand when creating the earth.
“The hand marks the beginning of life. Going down you see the flowerpot. It symbolises life. It is when the man and woman (Adam and Eve) were created. The flowerpot soil represents the biblical view of life and death. We are made from soil so when we die our flesh returns to the soil,” he said. Mafatlha said that Adam and Eve’s children sinned and God became angry with them.
“He ordered the only man who obeyed him, Noah, to build an Ark so that he could punish the world for man’s sins with water.
It was then that Noah, his family and paired animals were saved. The rainbow drawn in the painting is a reminder to mankind that God could bring floods to the world as punishment,” he said. Mafatlha’s painting also showcased a tower called Babylon that he said was built, but in those years, people wanted to reach the skies and supposedly catch a glimpse of how God created them.
He said this brought confusion among people and this is where chaos erupted. The paintings later stated the dates after Abraham. That was estimated to be around 1900 Before Christ (BC). He pointed out Abraham and his descendants were blessed, as God was happy with the way Abraham feared and honoured him. The painting also included Pharaoh and Moses’ lives.