Andile Keith Dube well known in the arts industry as Kay Dee says that he draws pencil portraits, either commission works or just drawing for pleasure and practice. He has 16 years of experience as a fine artist. “I started drawing when I was in grade one (1) at Senondo Primary school in 2006”.
“I loved watching cartoons when I was growing up, so I just felt inspired to draw what I saw or at least try to draw something I liked from the graphics of those cartoon characters, this is how my love for art and drawing started” discloses Kay Dee. He also adds that he watched a lot of Dragon Ball Z cartoon and safely says that it is the only cartoon that boosted his love for drawing.
Kay Dee wishes to venture into surrealistic art mixed with modern day art and mentions that this will be able to differentiate him from those involved in drawing, he looks forward to start working on this next year.
This young man reveals that he is naturally competitive by nature and believes that his advantage is that he draws with accuracy and neatness especially when he is faced with a competition.
In 2021 Kay Dee had the priviledge to showcase his works at the Art Of Health Zimbabwe exhibition where he came third. His works received a huge recognition at the Journal of Adolescent Health(JAH), an art competition where he came first.
Kay Dee explains how the reactions from people give him so much joy that encourages him to continue improving his art, “Seeing someone’s reaction after receiving a portrait I would have drawn for them is what I enjoy the most, it’s usually smiles, disbelief and sometimes even tears”.
Kay Dee states some of the challenges he faces and that these do not prevent him from pursuing his dream, “Lack of motivation due to some personal factors, fortunately I have managed to deal with some of those issues. Shortage of art equipment has also been an issue for a lot of us artists especially in our local town, Gwanda. It would make a really big difference if we could get sponsors who can supply us with the materials we need, maybe our talents will be advanced and our skills sharpened”.
The following are some of the equipment he needs in order to realise his full potential, large drawing board, fixative sprays, mono erasers, large sheets of papers and charcoal sticks. This gentleman who is also in the Fire and Rescue Services under the Municipality of Gwanda wishes to teach people about drawing, it is his desire to hold class sessions with those who want to learn how to make art, especially with pencils.
