Preserving disappearing culture with art

A garden erected at the Thapong Visual Arts Centre in Gaborone is beautifully decorated with Piet's sculptures, most of them carrying a theme on Botswana's disappearing heritage as well as aspects of traditional life that are fast being dumped, all thanks to improved living standards.

But perhaps the most eye-catching of Piet's pieces is the one showing inside the Thapong Hall, which he had submitted for the 2011 Thapong Artist of the Year Award.  He used objects such as old kika and motshe (pestle and mortar) to emphasise the point of disappearing culture.  Then the artist poured corn, which was artistically held together in the mortar using transparent glue.