OUR GOAL
Creative Mentorship Hub has been designed to provide social cohesion amongst the children and looking at the importance of preserving and nurturing human culture and heritage and necessary for human health and social well-being. Visual arts offer a variety of methods and mediums that children have the freedom of choice to enhance their independence and a good sense of belonging. Using Art is about self-expression and offers learners a way to engage meaningfully with, and respond to their world. It provides opportunities to stimulate and develop learners’ intellect, engaging their creative imaginations through visual and tactile experiences and the innovative use of materials and technology in realizing their ideas. It also encourages learners to develop an individual visual language and literacy, which is informed and shaped by the study of visual culture, past and present. Our organisation caters to all people including people who are living with disabilities.
ABOUT OUR FOUNDERS
Tshepo Motaung and Humbu Nsenga (Directors) started putting together the vision and ideas to establish the organisation that assists children from the townships and Johannesburg CBD. They provided a space for the children to create and think with their contemporaries and a safe environment for children to be part of. They were inspired by the unrecognised talent in the townships, mainly the unknown artists not creating nor attending school.
Tshepo approached the young people to make sure that he saved the talent and gave them a sense of belonging and provided them with the space to explore, develop and release creativity in response to both externally-generated and self-generated projects.
Looking at the unemployment in the country, the founder’s discussed how they can develop entrepreneurial skills and professional practice within the artistic realm, thereby, providing a variety of career options to the young people. Therefore, the artists were exposed to the diversity of visual art traditions not only in Southern Africa but internationally. By using the skills they acquired the artists are now able to earn, create, and inspire in the vicarious environment of modern-day, South Africa.
Nsenga (far left) and Motuang (far right) pictured below
Founders' biographies
Tshepo Motaung, co-founder of the Creative Mentorship Hub (CMH) was born in the rural areas of
Harrismith and was raised in the dusty roads of Orange Farm, south of Johannesburg.
Motaung has worked and collaborated with the following organisations in different capacities such
as Lefika la Phodiso (Art counseling centre), Touch of Genius Gallery (mentoring the young and upcoming
artists), Westcol Tvet College (facilitated NQF Level 2 in arts and craft). He is currently the senior
facilitator at Afrika Tikkun. Motaung has an arts education background. He trained as a community art counsellor in 2012, where he facilitated using different methodologies. He is trained in Trauma Support and has also completed his child and youth care training in 2018. He has been working with young people from early on in his career, working to develop these creative youths who are interested in fine art.
Humbulani Mamphiswana Nsenga otherwise known as Humbu Nsenga is co-founder of the Creative
Mentorship Hub. She is a wellness art coach. Her approach is determined by her client’s needs, be it
as a life coach/art counselling or art instructor. This approach helps with life design choices that
support her client’s values, facilitates a space to help bring about effective change, enhance
wellbeing and promote visual arts. After completing her fine art studies at the University of Johannesburg, Humbu trained as a Community Art Counsellor in 2012. She is a practicing artist, certified life coach (COMENSA) and wellness art coach. She completed an intermediate Counselling skills course with JPCCC (Johannesburg Parent and Child Counselling Centre) and is a SETA accredited facilitator (Facilitate learning using variety of given methodologies”) and is able to train the Community Art Counselling Course. She is a
co-author and featured artist of one of the Lefika ‘Body of Knowledge’ Book Series, Opening Bodies – Open Studio for Children”. Humbu facilitates a wide range of groups including adolescents and children. She works psychodynamically, using the creative arts to uplift and transform young adults. Humbu primarily works with NGO’s and child care centres in South Africa. She has worked and collaborated with the following organisation in different capacities: Lefika La phodiso art counselling centre, Fight with insight, August House, Nkosi’s Haven, Emoyeni Buddhist retreat centre, Artjamming, Artmattes Zone and Department of art and Culture.