Our team

Imbali Staff

Justine has been the director of Imbali since 2010. Over the past decade, she has grown the organisation into a premier training institution. Justine is enthusiastic about beautiful handmade objects and finds fulfilment in getting up every morning to come to the Imbali studio. For her, every day presents opportunities for creativity and building new relationships. Justine believes that working creatively with the hands and mind carries profound therapeutic value, and that transforming materials can lead to transformation within both individuals and communities. Justine studied painting, art history and psychology at Rhodes University. She then completed her postgraduate studies in education at Wits, earning a master’s degree focused on the value of art education for marginalised children and youth.

Portia started working at Imbali in 2015. She keeps the Imbali office functional and is the point of contact between students, their families and the studio. Portia is passionate about craft enterprises and teaching the business and sustainability aspects of the creative industries. She has always had an interest in craft and began knitting at the age of 8. Portia studied at Imbali from 2005 to 2007. She formalised her knitting interest into a business in 2014, specialising in knitted babywear and jewellery made from wool, wire and telephone wire. Her entrepreneurial experience has contributed to the development of Imbali’s modules on costing, pricing and managing a craft business. Portia is currently studying global social entrepreneurship online with Philanthropy University.

Stacey studied fine art and has been teaching art for 25 years to people of all ages. She believes that creativity has the potential to solve all the world’s problems and is zealous in her determination to cultivate creativity in others. Stacey loves mountains, seas, trees, birds and dogs. She grows herbs, flowers and vegetables, plays music, reads addictively and paints. Stacey is especially interested in the transformation of unusual, found materials to create art or craft. At Imbali, she writes learner and facilitator materials, devises assessment methods and manages the assessment of students. She teaches a foundation module, a craft product development module and a facilitation course.

Lungani grew up in KwaZulu-Natal and now lives in Kagiso. His interest in crafts started during his early schooling. However, it was only after becoming a student at Imbali that he realised this interest could lead to a viable career. Lungani is passionate about sharing his craft skills with others: “I love working with students, sharing my expertise in silk screen printing, starch batik and ceramics. I like to explore various techniques and push their boundaries.” After graduating from Imbali, he completed a year-long internship and was then offered a full-time junior facilitator post. Over the past decade, Lungani has travelled twice to Holland to run screen printing and starch batik workshops. He has also completed numerous short courses to further his skills in printing, ceramics and facilitation.

Prudence was born and raised in Kagiso. She is an Imbali graduate who now manages the Imbali shop inside Museum Africa, while running her own sewing business. Prudence is passionate about empowering artisans and promoting the work of Imbali students through the shop. “I believe being genuine and nurturing, as well as professional and driven, is essential for success in the crafts sector,” she says. Prudence has extensive knowledge of the products, materials and techniques used in the shop, and she enjoys sharing the stories behind the handmade craft with customers. Prudence also teaches second-year students about window dressing and the administrative systems involved in running a craft retail space.

Connie has over 40 years of experience as both a craft maker and teacher. She specialises in textiles, sewing and pattern making, and is passionate about passing on her skills while encouraging her students to value quality craftmanship, responsibility and perseverance. Connie has participated in several international creative projects, including the Bordeaux Carnival in France and the Celebrate South Africa Festival in London. She has worked in the Netherlands as a textile facilitator and at the International Community Arts Festival (ICAF) as a programme manager. She has also trained refugee women in textile skills in Utrecht. Connie has qualifications in sewing and pattern making, Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET), and LifeLine counselling.

IMBALI BOARD

Simphiwe Mbonambi is currently the Executive Manager of Corporate Services at the Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone. She is a proven business leader with more than 10 years of leadership experience, 8 of which have been at an executive level. She holds a BCom Honours degree in Supply Chain Management, is a certified Executive Coach, and is currently doing her MBA at Henley Business School.

Zanele Motsa is an experienced professional with over 20 years of experience in the financial services, utilities, information technology and professional services industries. She has worked in various IT and financial services domains at organisations such as IBM South Africa, Rand Merchant Bank, DST International, MMI Holdings and the South African Reserve Bank (SARB). Her expertise spans IT strategy formulation, implementation and oversight, thought leadership, business solutions delivery, information and data management, and consulting services. Zanele serves on multiple Information Technology governance committees within the SARB and is a board member of the Insurance Sector Education and Training Authority (INSETA).

Frances Potter began her career as a researcher and human rights lawyer during South Africa’s turbulent 1980s, before shifting her focus to design and artisan craft development in 2002. She worked across Southern and East Africa as a market consultant for Aid to Artisans, and later served as director of the Africa Craft Trust. She co-founded The New Basket Workshop in response to the needs of rural basket producers in Africa, and has consulted for institutions in India on multi-country design initiatives. Frances has been a board member of Imbali since 2016. She has overseen major arts-funded projects and now collaborates with artisans in Angola’s Okavango Basin. Frances has also served as a UNESCO judge and international cultural jury member.

Anne Cabot-Alletzhauser leads the Alexander Forbes Research Institute, which examines savings, investment and financial well-being issues across Africa. Anne is trained as a development anthropologist. She has spent over 30 years managing pension fund assets in North America, Europe, Japan and South Africa. In 1992, she moved to South Africa and pioneered the multi-manager approach to pension fund management that is widely used today. Anne saw an opportunity to integrate development anthropology with financial services expertise through the Research Institute, with the aim of exploring how financial systems support social well-being. She serves on several advisory and research committees and has lectured at many universities and industry institutions, including Wits Business School and the Gordon Institute of Business Studies.

Specialists, collaborators and partners

Imbali has an extensive network of local and international artists, crafts people, designers, educators and business owners. These individuals, all experts in their fields, bring specialist knowledge and expertise to Imbali’s training programmes.

Alisa Ray is a Community Arts Counsellor and Visual Arts Facilitator who works in a range of different contexts. She works with children at an inner-city children’s home, as well as with adults at addiction and psychiatric recovery centres. Alisa is currently studying to become a qualified Art Therapist. At Imbali, she runs the Life Skills Programme, which was piloted in 2019.

Ane Lyngsgaard is a Danish basket maker internationally recognised for her innovative weaving practice. She has over 20 years of experience and has taught in Europe, Canada, the United States and Africa. Her work is exhibited in Europe and is included in several public and private collections. Ane specialises in merging old, traditional skills with contemporary design. Her work is inspired by nature and balance. At Imbali, she introduced new weaving methods and materials – including pack band, chop sticks, wire and thread – while working with both students and facilitators. “In my teaching, I want to improve the skills of the students by using methods I have been taught by international basketry masters all over the world.” Read more about Ane and her work here: http://www.pileriet.dk/

Eva Seidenfaden has worked in the field of basketry as a weaver, teacher, author and curator since 1983. She specialises in spiral basketry from Dordogne in France and Burkina Faso in Africa. Eva has exhibited widely and has participated in numerous international craft fairs. She founded the organisation Baskets4Life, a collaborative group of Danish basket makers and designers who exhibit together and work with communities to exchange weaving skills. Since 2006, Eva has been involved in working with women’s weaving initiatives in Burkina Faso, including developing a production line of shopping baskets. She came to Imbali to teach the Burkina technique with coloured telephone wire. She imparted a keen delight in this technique, inspiring students with its creative possibilities. You can find out more about Eva by going to: http://www.vissinggaard.dk/Eva+Seidenfaden_UK.aspx

Harriet Riddell is a performance textile artist and educator from Oxfordshire, UK. She studied Contemporary Applied Arts at the University of Hertfordshire. Harriett uses freeform embroidery to create stitched portraits and live scenarios. She often works in unusual locations – such as public markets, slums and fields – sometimes powering her sewing machine with solar energy, bicycle batteries or foot pedals. Her work has been exhibited in cities around the world, including London, Delhi, Nairobi and Toronto. Harriet spent six weeks at Imbali in 2018 teaching freeform embroidery. Her spontaneous way of working and her ability to capture the transient world on a permanent tapestry left a lasting impression on the students she worked with. To find out more about Harriet and her amazing work go to: https://www.instagram.com/institchyou/

Kathrin Stadler is a full-time artist and creative practitioner based in Basel, Switzerland. She has travelled regularly to Imbali to teach, bringing new ideas, techniques and materials. Her enthusiasm is contagious and she is responsible for introducing Imbali to new products and creative directions. Kathrin approaches art in a playful way, encouraging her students to celebrate the often-overlooked details of everyday life. She has a studio at Kulturzentrum Kesselhaus in Germany, where she works with a wide range of materials, including found objects, photography, paper, fabrics, wax, inks and charcoal. Kathrin has completed residencies in Taiwan and Johannesburg, and has participated in numerous collaborative projects, one of the most notable being the “Graffiti Knitting Project”. To find out more about Kathrin and her art go to: http://www.kulturzentrum-kesselhaus.de/Kathrin%20Stalder

Kamal Naran has worked in a variety of different art and counselling facilitation contexts, including museum workshop facilitation, extracurricular art programmes in schools, the Lefika La Phodiso Community Art Counselling and Training Institute, and the Johannesburg Parent and Child Counselling Centre. He has also written and presented numerous academic papers at conferences. At Imbali, Kamal worked alongside Alisa Ray to develop and run the Life Skills Programme.

Kim Sacks is an award-winning ceramicist, a ceramics and craft teacher, a gallery owner and a collector of African art and crafts. She supports Imbali in numerous ways, including offering advice and mentorship to our ceramics teachers and students, and hosting tours of her gallery and ceramics studio for Imbali students and graduates. Read more about Kim and her gallery here: http://www.kimsacks.com/

Mara Fleischer is an inspired and uninhibited creative, specialising in finding sustainable environmental solutions. She is a community facilitator, focusing on meaningful collaborations with cultures, society and the environment. She is passionate about recycling and design for community enterprise, and she thrives on the innovation in Africa. Mara has over 20 years of experience in the crafts sector, specialising in product design and development, creative facilitation, design thinking and entrepreneurial skills. Mara works with Imbali as a specialist product developer and design-thinking facilitator.

Margo Snoyman studied fashion design and textiles and has worked in the field for over 30 years. She was the chief costume designer at the State Theatre in Pretoria. Margo has also lectured on the history of fashion, worked in trend forecasting and run her own business. She sees creativity as the most powerful resource for the 21^st century. Margo is also a keen collector of fashion items, embroidery and textiles. At Imbali, she teaches product development and design, inspiring the students to grow their creative skills and transform their passion into sustainable business.

Nina Sedumedi is a fashion designer and business owner. She studied fashion design at Wits Technikon and founded her brand, Nina Sedumedi Creations, which “celebrates the African female and her unique form”. Nina designs and manufactures a wide range of garments, from everyday clothing to custom-made pieces for special occasions. Her company specialises in flattering designs for full-figured women. Nina has been involved with Imbali for many years as a specialist sewing and pattern making facilitator, and as a business mentor to final-year students. She has also employed several Imbali graduates in her business. Find out more about Nina’s Made in SA fashion brand at: https://www.ninamadeinsa.com/

Nomusa Sithole is a master embroiderer and a founding member of the Intuthuko Embroidery Group, which is based in Benoni. In 2016, Nomusa represented South Africa at a BRICS summit in Jaipur, India. She works with Imbali as an embroidery specialist, leading the first-year embroidery module. She teaches students a wide range of specialist stitches and helps them perfect hand embroidery and appliqué. Read more about the Intuthuko Embroidery Project here: https://www.artivismexhibition.com/intuthuko-embroidery-project.html

Ruth Sack was the director or Imbali from 1998 to 2010 and has remained closely involved with the organisation since then. She wrote The Imbali Artbook: Adventuring into Art and co-ordinated workshops across all 9 provinces to introduce the resource to educators. Ruth has extensive experience as an artist, teacher, researcher, writer and exhibition curator. She holds a master’s degree in fine art from Wits University and has worked in many educational contexts, from urban and rural communities to government training programmes. Ruth has also been involved in delivering SETA-accredited crafts training programmes – with their very complex and specific requirements – and she has been trained as an assessor within that system.

Yda Walt studied textile printing and dyeing at the London College of Furniture and later worked as a freelancer, selling her work to companies including Liberty of London, Calvin Klein and DKNY. For more than 30 years she has run her own now hand screen-printing and design business in Johannesburg. Yda produces many items such as textile artworks, prints, cushion covers, tablecloths, bags and dish towels. Her work is uniquely African – particularly in ranges such as African Proverbs – and her love for vibrant, bold colours infuses all her work. Yda has worked with Imbali for many years as a specialist screen-printing facilitator and design trainer. She also provides freelance hand-stitching work for many of our students when she receives large orders. You can find out more about Yda’s work at: https://ydawaltstudio.co.za/

Imbali has developed numerous partnerships with like-minded organisations. Imbali is at times contracted to do work for these organisations and at times they do work for Imbali. Collaboration takes various forms.

Africa Craft Trust

The Africa Craft Trust is a Johannesburg-based craft development organisation. The Trust implements innovative programmes throughout South Africa and beyond to assist in generating sustainable business for craft artisans. Their programmes focus on: enhancing market access, product development and training in a range of craft business and marketing skills. The Trust assists artisans to expand livelihood opportunities and boost their incomes. They collaborate through enterprise training and design collaboration, drawing on local and international expertise. You can read more about the work of the Trust here: http://africacrafttrust.org.za/

Boitumelo Sewing Project (Outreach Foundation Hillbrow)

The Boitumelo Project has been operating in Hillbrow since November 2001 as a centre offering training and skills development. The project creates ‘a safe space’ where both men, women and youth can be involved in creative activities of arts/crafts development while learning key life skills to address the myriad complexities in their daily lives. Boitumelo Project strives for creative excellence and facilitating communication within communities in Gauteng and South Africa. The project uses the arts to nurture self-worth that enables product development which in turn supports product sales and income. This facilitates economic independence and combats poverty in an incremental way for participants. Read more about Boitumelo here: https://www.facebook.com/BoitumeloProject/

Ceramics Southern Africa

Founded in 1972, Ceramics Southern Africa is the official representative body of potters in Southern Africa. The objective of the association is to promote ceramics in Southern Africa by improving the work being produced and to foster an interest in ceramics by the general public. This is done by presenting workshops and organising exhibitions regionally and nationally. The purpose of Ceramics SA is to maintain a representative forum for the encouragement and fostering of the art and craft of ceramics in Southern Africa. The field encompasses all relevant processes that add value to clay. Over the years Ceramics SA have included Imbali students and graduates in a range of events, workshops and master classes. http://www.ceramicssa.org/

Creative Learning

Creative Learning is a non-profit organization based in Washington, DC. Since its inception in 1977, Creative Learning has assisted communities, non-governmental organizations, and educational institutions at home and abroad to foster change that has a lasting social impact.

Focusing on communities with pressing human needs, Creative Learning enhances the capacity of local organizations around the world to improve the lives of people in their communities. Through the creation of people-to-people partnerships, Creative Learning are especially dedicated to protecting human rights, supporting economic and social development, and building peace. http://creativelearning.org/

House of Embroidery

House of Embroidery is a South African-born dye house established in 1995 which produces multi-coloured hand-dyed embroidery thread and ribbon.

As a fair-trade company, House of Embroidery prides itself on the sustained empowerment of previously unskilled South Africans. Most of the team are women, many of whom had no prior employment. The majority are currently the main breadwinners in their respective families. https://www.houseofembroidery.com/

Johannesburg Art Gallery

Since opening its doors in 1915, JAG’s home on the edge of Joubert Park has remained at the epicentre of the Johannesburg’s art establishment. JAG boasts the largest public collection of modern and contemporary art on sub-Saharan Africa. It houses collections of 17th-century Dutch paintings, 18th- and 19th-century British and European art, 19th-century South African works, a large contemporary collection of 20th-century South African and international art, and a print portfolio containing works from the 15th century to the present. Current primary curatorial focus is on contemporary African and South African art.

JAG also has a shop where they sell art books and crafts made by local craftartists. Imbali has been supplying the JAG shop with our beautiful handmade craft products since 2014. To find out what’s on at JAG go to: https://friendsofjag.org/

Keiskamma Art Project

The Keiskamma Art project is part of the Keiskamma Trust, a community organisation, centred in Hamburg, a rural area of the Eastern Cape, which works to foster hope and offer support for the most vulnerable. The Keiskamma Trust strives to address the challenges of widespread poverty and disease through holistic and creative programmes and partnerships.

The Trust has developed five studios specialising in beading, felt-making, embroidery, ceramics and printmaking. The project is run under the leadership of local managers and group leaders. Together they work with 130 artists and crafters to create quality art and craft works, generating much-needed income to improve the quality of life in Hamburg and its surroundings. http://www.keiskamma.org/

Origins Centre

The Origins Centre is a museum that explores the origins of art in Africa Southern African Rock Art, San Heritage, Human Evolution, Stone Tools, and more. It is based at Wits University.

The Origins Centre also has a shop. Items for sale are a mix of eclectic and beautiful ethnic objects, art, which contrast with more traditional, authentic pieces and contemporary items with a distinctly South African flavour. The majority of merchandise on sale in the Origins Shop is the product of creative and craft initiatives led by local communities, non-governmental organisations, women’s groups and individual South African artists and crafters. Origins Shop also offers visitors an unequalled range of books ranging from Africana and archaeology to geology and fossils. https://www.wits.ac.za/origins/

Imbali been supplying the Origins Centre Shop with our beautiful handmade products since its inception in 2006.

Play Africa

Play Africa is a children’s museum equipping children and families for the future through play, creativity and connection. This bold, exciting and ground-breaking project in post-apartheid South Africa, together with partners, seeks to transform the landscape of the city of Johannesburg for children and families. Play Africa is based at Constitution Hill.

https://playafrica.org.za/

Sticky Situations

Sticky Situations are a network of passionate and talented local and global urban professionals, whose core intention is to create positive changes to the urban fabric, be that with people, processes, policies, practice or place. Their work centres around the synergy between people and processes both as resources and as catalysts for change.

Sticky Situations use participatory design methods to facilitate, co-ordinate and implement community-driven projects. Their work is grounded in community capacity building and action research. Collaboratively they assist communities and stakeholders to identify goals and to build the skills and confidence needed to create change.

http://www.stickysituations.org/

Madi a Thavha

The Madi a Thavha Mountain Lodge is well-known for its central location in Limpopo, its focus on the art and culture of the province and its luxurious and comfortable interiors. Its Dancing Fish gallery is like a live-in cultural heritage gallery and embraces Madi a Thavha Textile & Design studio. All the CraftArt displayed in the rooms and gardens of the Lodge and in the Cultural Heritage centre are made by local craft artists. The colourful stories and customs of the region are presented on huge wall panels, explaining the meaning of bead work, spirituality in Africa, traditional music instruments and other artefacts from ancient times until today. A permanent exhibition of contemporary Limpopo CraftArt decorates the veranda.

Madi a Thavha offers guided village tours, and guests can book creative activities and cultural performances on tour in advance. Hiking and birding can be done practically from your room’s doorstep too. https://madiathavha.com/