Artistic genes in the Ratlhale family

Spira Tlhankane | Friday July 8, 2016 15:26

 

History shows that artistic genes ran in the family of many iconic artists such as French painter Jean Honoré Fragonard (1732-1806). He went on to train his son, Alexandre Fragonard (1780 - 1850) who became a successful painter, sculptor and draftsman. No one can forget the 19th century literary family of the Brontë sisters, Charlotte (1816–1855), Emily (1818–1848), and Anne (1820–1849). They were well-known poets and novelists who produced classics such as Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.

Similarly, in the village of Otse in the South-East district, the Ratlhale family boasts of artistic genes that run through each member. Landy Ratlhale is the second youngest son in a ceramicists and potters family of five siblings. His mother is a traditional potter while his father Peter Kuhlmann is a veteran potter and a former instructor at the then Lekgaba Pottery and Ceramics in Francistown. His older brother Brian Ratlhale is also a ceramicist therefore the frequency with which talent passes on through the Ratlhale family is no more than a coincidence. 

After taking a 60km road trip to Otse, known for the mysterious and legendary Lentswe La Baratani Hill, Arts and Culture was directed to the first right gate on the side of the road at the village entrance.  Just a few metres into the gate on the left, a dusty road leads into a small yard with a signage written Rare Pottery and Ceramics. The damaged sculpture of a rhino at the entrance lets you know that you have arrived in a yard of craftsmen. There are also a few old cars in the compound with the studio where the magic happens situated in the far right at the back.   After a quick tour around the place, the younger Ratlhale was eager to tell Arts and Culture his story. Ratlhale said everything he knows about pottery came as a result of his father’s tutorials. “I never attended formal training. I didn’t do well in my BGCSE and pottery was the first thing I embarked on when other children went to university,” he recalled.

The 25-year-old potter said from the onset, he realised he could not work well under instructions, therefore he decided to do something that will allow him to exercise his freedom. “I worked as a construction worker and a bartender before all this,” he said.

Ratlhale added that he tried his luck at the President’s Day art competitions in 2014 where he scooped position two and three at the regional stage. He said he was focusing on traditional pottery at the time. After failing to scoop a position in 2013 national competitions, Ratlhale said he tried his luck once more using letsopa la Setswana (traditional clay) in 2014 and managed to scoop position two at the nationals.

In 2015, Ratlhale took a break from the competitions and started making pots using a potters’ wheel machine. After intense learning and experience on working with the machine, Ratlhale came back again this year and scooped position two at the regional stage.

Ratlhale said he decided to use a machine because he felt he had perfected every skill in traditional pottery. “I had to move up the stages and shift from my comfort zone,” he said. He said with the machine he could now produce more products within a short time.

“The machine takes me through stages and in the end they guarantee the right shape and size. Freehand doesn’t ensure perfection,” he said.

He said the kiln at their studio was an expensive investment that cost close to P100,000. “We couldn’t find this equipment in Botswana but through hard work and doing other businesses like construction, we managed to pull through the financial struggles to buy it,” he said.  Ratlhale indicated that the support from the community has always been massive because the studio has been there since 1992 therefore people know about it. “We haven’t reopened for the public because we are still working on running the kiln so that it could meet the demand,” he said.

He said even though they order clay from outside there are still stores in Gaborone that supplies their studio with different types of clay. Ratlhale said he mostly works with his parents and brother. “But we welcome everyone especially students from schools who are interested in this craft,” he said. Ratlhale said he has not attended any pottery workshop but intends to learn more in future.

Going forward, he said the intention is to see the studio transforming into a huge arts centre where people could learn and train about the arts.  He said the studio is his family’s legacy and they intend to pass it onto future generations.