A man of a few words, Ntcheu-based fine artist Eric Jackson lets his hands talk for him.
And, ironically, the hands that do all the work are soft, with no markings of the detailed work they do— work modelled on Jackson’s brain.
“I challenge people that my hands have the ability to make dance even the hardest of hearts; power to melt even the most unappreciative of hearts. These hands have emotion-evoking capabilities,” he says, pointing at his hands.
Often, those who do not know him may catch him engrossed in a soliloquy, which he regards as a big stage from where he can impress his thoughts on the world.
“I do not regard myself as a newcomer to art. For your information, I started exercising my mind and coming up with artworks when I was in Standard 4 at Kawale Local Education Authority Primary School in Lilongwe.
“I continued coming up with artworks when I was selected to Dombole Secondary School in Ntcheu District. I did not go to college to study art because I never went past secondary school; I am a self-made fine artist, born with the state of mind of an artist,” Jackson points out.
The irony is that, when conversing with someone, Jackson does not emphasise his words with gesticulations of the hand. It is as if he regards his hands as sacred— something not to be thrown around anyhow.
Only when his brain conjures up something artistic does the hand— the right one, that is, which is something of his magical wand— come to life.
Born in 1985 as the second-born in a family of three, Jackson knew that it was impossible, through science or miracle, for him to be the first-born in the family.
However, he had the presence of mind to know that he could be the first one in his family to do something.
“I am the first artist in my family. Nobody else is into this but me. It takes me three days to come up with an artwork. Of course, that depends on the mood I am in. Artwork depends on mood,” Jackson says.
“You know, art is a form of personal communication between oneself and the imaginary world. Sometimes, it is a form of personal communication between oneself and a historical fact. That is why I do both realistic and abstract painting. I draw inspiration from both worlds,” he adds.
To stress his point, he shows me two realistic paintings, one depicting Inkosi ya Makosi Gomani V and another one depicting the Lidiwa— the resting place of Inkosi ya Makosi Chikuse Gomani 1 in Nkolimbo Village, Ntcheu District.
He moves on to abstract art, showing me the painting of an imaginary village with imaginary children making fun out of dust or whatever tickles their fancy.
“As I have said, I delve into both worlds,” Jackson, single, explains.
Through artworks, Jackson has been recognised by people and institutions that value art.
For instance, he is the artist who does all the artwork at Ntcheu District Hospital— be it work on the walls, inside wards— notably children’s wards, as children get enchanted by visuals.
That is why even early childhood development centres entertain visual arts, which give children the leeway to enter imaginative worlds, be creative and engage in playful thinking, according to Save the Children.
Research findings attest to that.
For instance, in its April 2023 edition, the International Journal of Education and Research, Volume 11 Number 4, indicates— in a study titled ‘Effect of Visual Arts Appreciation Education on Children’s Aesthetic Development: An Empirical Study’— that visual arts benefit children in more ways than one.
The researcher, Lee-Chen Chen of the Department of Early Childhood Education, Asia University, explored the effects of visual arts on children’s interest and feelings about viewing artworks, their perception of and views on artistic work and their performance in art creation.
In the study, five to six-year-olds were chosen as subjects and works of artists were employed as themes.
“Although visual art education is not exactly the same as aesthetics education, but [it] is the best means of educating in aesthetics. The sense of aesthetics should be started at a young age and developed from a lifetime of perceptions and experiences gained from the surrounding environment. If a person begins to store such spiritual feelings in early childhood, they may draw on the sources of beauty as an adult.
“Aesthetics should be cultivated through education from a young age; therefore, childhood is the most crucial stage of aesthetics cultivation. Aesthetics is defined as experience of the perceived good and instances of beauty that are autonomously constructed deep inside the mind of an individual, which is to interpret external information through the keen senses and connect with imagination and experience, which triggers the feeling of moving and joy in the individual’s inner soul. The goal of this field is to cultivate the abilities of children to explore and observe, express and create, and respond and appreciate,” the researcher points out.
The researcher further indicates that experiences gained through the appreciation of artworks and natural objects can help children form concrete critiques, which further enhance their knowledge of visual arts, ability to appraise beauty, imagine and create, and experience of pleasure during aesthetic appreciation, ultimately resulting in balanced emotions and a mindset for appreciating beauty.
“Art appreciation is an important art learning experience for children” such that people have to “provide them with opportunities to appreciate artworks that are [of] high quality and developmentally appropriate in both content and form in their everyday life”.
Chen indicates that daily life can be another important source of aesthetic experiences.
And all these points have not escaped Jackson’s attention.
“Through my paintings at the hospital, I try to reach out to both children and adults. As you know, art is universal and everyone draws meaning from it the way they [the individual] want. For me, as an artist, creating something gives me a sense of satisfaction. I realise that people are free to draw conclusions on artworks the way they want. If, through my artwork, I touch someone, that gives me a great feeling,” he explains.
“I thank the management of Ntcheu District Hospital for recognising my work. I rest assured that I will get something at the end of the month. I ask individuals, companies, government departments, non-governmental organisations to do likewise to other artists in their areas. Artists have to be empowered,” he adds.
Away from Ntcheu District Hospital, Jackson’s artworks fetch between K70,000 and K80,000 per piece.
He says people buy, especially tourists.
“I try my best to market my artworks. For instance, I attend art exhibitions in, for example, Zomba. I also reach out to people through Twitter (now X), WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, among other platforms,” says Jackson, who indicates that he has been focusing on painting full-time since 2020.
This is understandable because Jackson is a man of many talents.
He is, for instance, a musician, too.
To his credit, he has songs such as ‘Bwemba’ and ‘Monalisa’, among others.
“Music has taken me far. In 2018, for instance, I performed music in the Netherlands, where we performed at three venues. We also had workshops while in that European country.
“What happened is that we were, through Family Planning Association of Malawi, working with the Netherlands non-governmental organisation known as Youth Incentive Organisation. Through that work, I ended up composing a song titled ‘Mutimvere’, which we performed in the Nertherlands. For your information, I ventured into music production in 2012,” Jackson says, a smile plastered on his face.
However, music now occupies half his time, as he concentrates fully on fine art.
He says there are a number of opportunities associated with painting.
“For example, you get recognised by organisations, companies, individuals and government entities. I have told you about my links with Ntcheu District Hospital. And, through platforms such as Zomba Arts Festival, I have made connections that have benefitted my life and art,” Jackson stresses.
Of course, like art, problems are universal, too.
“For me, the main challenge pertains to the availability of materials. Materials such as brushes, paint, among others, are sourced from Blantyre. That means I order them in large quantities. One cannot order the materials just to do one artwork. That means, sometimes, there are periods of inactivity while waiting to order materials in good quantities,” he points out.
But he regards all these challenges as passing wind.
“With focus, it is easy to achieve one’s goals. I just appeal to people to support local artists, buy our artworks and, whenever possible, engage us in work that is beneficial to society,” Jackson, who exhibited his artworks at the Umhlangano wa Maseko Ngoni annual cultural festival in Nkolimbo Village, Ntcheu District, from Thursday to Saturday last week, said.
He is not far from the truth. Artistry does not follow a single, well paved
trail of smooth rides; sometimes, challenges only a true artist can circumvent crop up from time to time.
Just that Jackson does not give up; why give up on the only thing that makes you a pioneer in the family? Not the musician-cum-fine artist.
