DR. ISMAIL MAHOMED CULTURAL CORNER: Thoughts and Experiences - CULTURAL LEADERSHIP

Day 87 of 100 of the Siphindile Nuh Chelsea Hlongwa challenge that I should write down my thoughts / experiences about how I survived four decades in cultural leadership positions. In this post I write about why as individuals in cultural leadership positions we hold cultural capital in our hands to reshape the world and its narratives.

Dr. Ismail Mahomed Illustrated Portrait. Photo Courtesy of Facebook 

By placing artists on a programme, profiling and marketing their work and building audience engagement programmes around their works we give agency to artists to use their voices and bodies to be heard, seen and be experienced. 

Artists in general are social activists. They drive particular social agendas through dynamic storytelling to capture our minds. They try to push us to limits where we can reimagine both our own experiences and the experiences of others. They spaces and festivals that we curate for them become catalysts which can move us at a very personal level to rethink our positions, values and actions. As cultural leaders we become partners of that process of social change when we programme such artists on our platforms. 

By placing the work of artists in a programme and curating it with well thought through intent and strategy we enable artists to bring marginalised voices into the room and around the table; and the artists give those groups the agency to be heard. 

As cultural leaders there is no doubt that we hold an immense power to decide who gets to sit at the table and whose voices get heard. We can either be facilitators of change or we can be gatekeepers. It has less to do with how big or small our budgets are. It has a lot more to do with us having the intent and the courage to bring voices into the room that can speak truth to power. 

In South Africa, there is canon of creative works that have challenged power and brought about social change; and which works have in most instances been created on a shoestring budget. 

By giving spaces and platforms for these works on our programmes we may not necessarily be supported by State funding agencies who are afraid of being challenged or of upsetting the apple cart but to the contrary of their position towards us we yield the returns from alternative partners, stakeholders, media, audiences and financial backers who share our intent. It is they who then delve into their own resources to amplify and support the work that we do. 

The power that we hold as cultural leaders to reshape the world and its narratives is never determined by budgets. It is designed by the artists with whom we wish to be surrounded. I have always chosen to be surrounded by artists whose work is driven by intent, courage, creativity, imagination, passion, excellence and a deep sense of social justice. It is their voices that has given me power.

Dr Ismail Mahomed is the Director for the Centre for Creative Arts at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. He is a multi-award winning and multi-published arts management strategist and playwright with more than 35 years’ experience in cultural leadership positions.