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Imbali Visual Literacy

Visual Arts

Africa, South Africa, Johannesburg

Based in: Johannesburg, South Africa,

Art discipline: Visual Arts

Participated in ICAF in 2011 

The Imbali Visual Literacy Project was founded in 1988 to address the inequities in creative education in schools during the time of apartheid. Now, in post-apartheid years, the project has been adapted to address another crucial issue facing South Africa: the crisis of poverty and unemployment. The project trains around 45 students per year in full-time programs in which creative potential can be developed toward productive and constructive careers in craft and design. Students taking part in the three-year foundation program complete courses in Crafts techniques; Craft production; Craft Enterprise and Craft Business skills; Museum education; Street children education, art teaching methodology, counselling skills, literacy and numeracy.  

Imbali also works with diverse communities in a range of shorter-term product-development and skills-development projects. Previously they have worked in Mpumalanga with woodcarvers and bead workers, in juvenile detention centres in Mogale district, in Diepsloot and in Joburg’s inner city with unemployed women and men, and full-time in Kagiso township west of Johannesburg for the past nine years. 

More information

http://imbali.org.za/craft/