Listening to the silent majority

[58]

In Soweto, I met sculptor and painter, Darlington Buthelezi (33). I made an effort throughout my tour of interviews to meet as wide as possible a range of minds. I never knew in advance whether the interviewed belonged to group i or group ii. Also, it remained a gamble each time whether the person interviewed felt free enough to express himself with a minimum of restrictions. Darlington presented a small problem of sorts in this respect.

He had been born in Soweto and received his schooling there. ‘Something inside me drove me to painting and sculpting,’ he told me. ‘Perhaps I had talent. My teachers put my drawings on the walls. I began art lessons in 1973. In 1981, I went to an art class opposite the Market

[p. 74]

Theatre in Johannesburg. But since 1982, I have worked entirely on my own.’

His mother brought us ‘rooibos’ tea.

‘I mostly taught myself,’ continued Darlington, and began to carve wood. ‘I bought all the necessary tools and put them in an attaché case (which he proudly showed me and indeed looked very professional). My style is my own, but I still consult others, especially when I have a problem. There is, for instance, a guy named Duran Sihlali, a Zulu artist, who has also worked in England and Spain. He now teaches in Soweto. Sometimes colleagues help me find a gallery to exhibit. I use for my statues very heavy wood, which actually is imported from Central Africa. Originally it was used for sleepers on railway lines. This wood is of superb quality. I carve anything I like. It's exceptionally hard and solid. I control the wood grains, because, as you can see, I have all the tools I need.’

But, after mailing him the text of our conversation, which had also dealt with apartheid and bordered at times on political matters, he telephoned me and said he would like the last pages scrapped and would rewrite them. I understood that he simply wanted to avoid any possible criticism or confrontation with Sowetan comrades, street committees or whatever. I understood and respected his concern, but under the circumstances, the re-write he brought me a few days later had so little in common with the original text, that I prefer to eliminate these passages altogether.