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Jacko Maree Group Chief Executive, Standard Bank Group
T
he National Arts Festival, always a barometer of the country’s cultural landscape, plays an important role in the artistic development of our society. We value any contribution we can make to enhance the growth and enrichment of South Africa’s cultural heritage, especially through the annual Young Artist Awards as well as the Standard Bank Jazz Festival and its accompanying Youth Jazz component. Our association with this iconic cultural event dates back to 1983 when Standard Bank first became the title sponsor of the Festival. The partnership has endured over a period of 30 years although it has taken on a slightly different guise in the past ten years since the establishment of a multi-sponsor relationship in 2002 when the Eastern Cape Government joined forces with Standard Bank followed by
the National Lotteries Distribution Trust Fund and the National Arts Council. We are delighted that this partnership has ensured that the future of the festival is secure and we trust that it will continue to do so. Standard Bank has made a firm commitment of support for the next three years as we believe in the significant contribution of this cross-cultural showcase which reflects a truly national character. As a financial institution we try to position ourselves as being relevant to the societies in which we operate and the arts constitute one of the core pillars of our involvement with communities. Our appreciation is due to the overall Festival team who, together with the citizens of
Grahamstown, as well as the support of the national media, make this important event happen every year. We wish you every success.
Xoliswa Tom Mec For Sports, Recreation, Arts & Culture of the Eastern Cape
M
usic, theatre, dance, visual art, crafts, film and literature … these are the many forms of expression through which South Africa’s artists become the shining examples of how our country continues to heal from its past, embrace its present conditions and envision its future. The arts are one of many tools through which South Africa’s struggle for democracy was fought. At the National Arts Festival this year, the Eastern Cape Department of Sports, Recreation, Arts & Culture will present the exhibition, My Expression, My Freedom which reflects on the past 100 years of how South African artists used their creativity to ensure that future generations of South Africans will enjoy the fruits of a new democracy. This exhibition is informed by the centenary celebrations of the African National Congress which is the ruling political party in the Eastern Cape, and which is committed to ensuring that the arts continue to be the vehicle through which we advance social cohesion in all our communities. The Eastern Cape is one of South Africa’s most economically challenged provinces but the National Arts Festival, which is located in this province, is the one place in South Africa where the richness of our diversity and the wealth of our creativity shows no boundaries. This province has given us internationally celebrated artists such Athol Fugard, Winston Ntshona, John Kani, Michael Moerane, George Pemba, Zim Ngcawana, Elizabeth Connel and a host of other creative geniuses. Earlier this year, the Eastern Cape Department of Sports, Recreation, Arts &
Culture was the first in South Africa to host a summit to explore ways to advance the Mzanzi’s Golden Economy proposals as outlined by Arts & Culture Minister Paul Mashatile. This province is not only the host of the continent’s largest arts festival but it also demonstrates that it has the vision and the courage to take a leadership role in determining how the arts can contribute to economic prosperity for all South Africans. It is also significant that as the African National Congress celebrates its centenary this year that the city of Grahamstown is also reflecting on its own 200 year history. In the same way that the Eastern Cape Department of Sports, Recreation, Arts & Culture has embraced the courage to present My Freedom, My Expression, I applaud the artists and arts organisations of Grahamstown who will grasp the opportunity to create work that further reflects, celebrates and articulates the many challenges that we still all have towards building opportunities for those who have been previously marginalised. To the visitors from all over South Africa and abroad who will visit the Festival this year, let me wish you an enjoyable, stimulating and inspiring experience in our province. I also want to take this opportunity of inviting you to attend the Eastern Cape Department of Sports, Recreation, Arts & Culture’s Indigenous Music and Dance performances, the province’s craft hub and to support the province’s jazz initiative at the Dakawa Centre. At the province’s WordFest programme, I urge you to reflect, to be critical, to debate, to engage each other’s minds and consciences.
Once again, I want to express my Department’s appreciation to the National Arts Festival for making the Eastern Cape the platform at which all South Africans can embrace each other, laugh together, feel the same empathy, share the same hopes and imagine the enormous potential that we have as a nation. I want to continue to pledge my Department’s support for the National Arts Festival and to thank the officials in my Department for the partnership role that they play with the Festival to advance Minister Paul Mashatile’s vision of Mzanzi’s Golden Economy to create a new growth path for our people. In the spirit of the arts, I say, “Xa sisebenza sonke singeza lukhulu”.