This year, Nedbank International Polo is crowning new nobles and redefining who we look up to as a society. Gcebile Dlamini and Nkosinathi Nzima from the Arts & Culture Trust (ACT) have both used their influence in society and love for the arts to contribute to the lives of individuals living in marginalised and underprivileged communities.
For over 28 years, Nedbank, in partnership with the ACT, have supported the development of arts across communities in South Africa. The Nedbank Arts Affinity Programme has played a role in empowering artists by creating opportunities for them to showcase their talents, gain exposure and earn an income for their creative work.
Gcebile Dlamini, an Arts Affinity beneficiary, is an independent director who partners with different organisations around Johannesburg to stage plays and performances. It is her intergenerational work that makes her part of the New Nobility as she brings together the youth, the elderly as well as disabled community members to find their authentic voices and narrate their personal stories on the stage and through videography. Dlamini has been doing intergenerational drama productions for several years and was able to pursue her master’s degree after having been awarded a bursary in 2019 through the ACT, which is funded by Nedbank. A second bursary was awarded to Dlamini through the National Arts Council.
Dlamini made her footprint through her collaboration with the Johannesburg Society for the Blind and Jo’burg Child Welfare Thembalethu Play Project. ‘The vision was to use the arts to educate able-bodied young people and community artists more about disability and the hardships that the disabled face daily. I believe that having an authentic voice helps everyone from being put into a box defined by societal norms. It gives them the tools to better their day-to-day functioning in a society that constantly challenges them and questions their worth.’
Nkosinathi Nzima (Inkosi Unathi), a beneficiary of the Arts Affinity, is a multimedia creative from Johannesburg who creates work that transcends race and class to uplift those around him. His work speaks to the environment in which he lives and how that interacts with the wider South African reality that surrounds him, including the ills of homelessness, pollution, and tribalism. Nzima’s work is considered subversive in how he captures his subjects and what he chooses as his canvas. Through his work he hopes to inspire action aimed at realising a better future.
Nkosinathi’s impact encompasses the purpose of the New Nobility by making a real difference in people’s lives. He elaborates by saying, ‘Mastering my craft and sharing that with the rest of the world so they can see and learn from it is what I find to be the best way of earning nobility.’
The Nedbank Arts Affinity Programme encourages individuals to find passion in what they love and to use that passion in a way that betters their future and the future of others. Support individuals such as Gcebile Dlamini and Nkosinathi Nzima by joining the #NewNobility movement at the 2023 Nedbank International Polo, and use your influence to empower those around you.
For more information go to nedbankinternationalpolo.co.za and continue supporting change in Mzansi.