Mbhokota village, near Elim, seems to be a nucleus of wood-carving craftmanship – with more and more sculptors emer­ging from this mountainous village, which was first put on the map by the late internationally acclaimed sculptor Jackson Hlungwani.

Another young artist has emerged. His name is Risimati Grant Makhubele.
“My joy and happiness come from carving wood,” Makhubele said. He had discovered his talent for curving wood when he was a common labourer on a farm in Tzaneen some six years ago.
Just like Hlungwani and others who followed in his footsteps, Makhubele is a self-taught artist. He produces wooden articles such as ndlelo (dishes), animals, human statuettes, spoons, walking sticks, and fish.

Makhubele uses wood from dry, fallen trees such as nkonono, nyiri, muvhumaila, muvhangazi, mondo and nkanyi, which he collects from the mountains. While the godfather of the woodcraft, Hlungwani, used “his complex personal, spiritual beliefs as a guide for making his work”, the young generation, to which Makhubele belongs, just gets down to hewing the wood and fashioning it into wonderful creations.

“Wood-carving runs in our genes,” remarked Makhubele. “We had a grandfather who made spoons, chairs and other domestic articles out of wood. This is a long history of craftsmanship which can be found in our culture.”

His market is limited to referrals made by people who had bought some wooden articles from him. His creations sell from anything between R150 and R700. Makhubele can be contacted at 073 933 5856.