Local artistry takes the spotlight at Nando’s Creative Exchange 2026

Established in 2011 through a partnership between Nando’s South Africa and Spier Arts Trust, the programme was created to identify, nurture and advance talented South African artists by providing meaningful career development opportunities.

Over the years, NCX has helped bridge the gap between artistic potential and professional sustainability by offering mentorship, exhibition platforms, materials support and access to professional networks.

In an exclusive interview with BONA Magazine, the four participating artists opened up about their experiences in the programme, the inspiration behind their work and the challenges of interpreting this year’s exhibition theme.

Bekezela Mabena, Luxolo Witvoet, Samantha Maseko and Viola Greyling also reflected on how mentorship and collaboration have influenced their creative journeys and strengthened their confidence as artists.

Artists reflect on their creative journeys

For the four participating artists, being selected for the programme represents an important milestone in their professional journeys.

Bekezela described the opportunity as an honour, explaining that it gave him a platform to express himself and explore his subject matter more deeply.

Speaking about the most challenging part of preparing for the exhibition, he revealed that spending more time travelling than usual and working through sleepless nights to develop his concepts pushed him to experiment with his creative process.

He also identified collaboration as one of his biggest lessons, explaining that conversations and encounters with people during his travels helped shape his artistic work.

Luxolo described his selection as a tremendous honour and an indication that his work was growing and being recognised by the wider art community.

One of his biggest challenges was finding a way to translate the theme of migration into his visual language while experimenting with larger canvases and multiple figures.

His biggest takeaway from the mentorship process was learning to trust his intuition and creative ideas.

For Samantha, the programme provided an opportunity to challenge herself and explore migration beyond its physical meaning.

She became particularly interested in the psychological and cultural experiences of leaving places behind, questioning what people carry with them and what they choose to embrace in unfamiliar environments.

She also credited the mentorship sessions with helping her view her work from different perspectives, think more deeply about her concepts and trust her artistic voice.

Viola described her selection as a moment that made her feel seen and gave her renewed confidence in her creative practice.

She explained that editing her work was particularly challenging, as she constantly considered how each piece could communicate migration and the search for belonging in a new home.

She further described the programme as a pivotal point in her career, saying it had taught her to trust her own voice when creating.

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Nando’s Creative Exchange builds sustainable artistic careers

As the Nando’s Creative Exchange celebrates its 15th anniversary, its continued focus remains on creating opportunities for artists to transition into sustainable professional careers.

Since 2017, the programme has maintained a structure in which four artists are selected annually and paired with an established artist mentor. Through mentorship, materials sponsorship and public exhibition opportunities, participants receive support to develop their artistic practices and build professional networks.

The 2026 exhibition, Tiriparwendo, highlights the importance of storytelling, collaboration and cultural identity while showcasing the different ways artists interpret shared human experiences.

Together, Bekezela, Witvoet, Maseko and Viola invite audiences to reflect on the meaning of home, the experiences that shape identity and the journeys that continue to transform us.

The exhibition also reinforces the programme’s longstanding commitment to recognising artistic potential, creating meaningful opportunities and supporting the next generation of South African visual artists.