By Konke Welaphi
Walk down any street in Makhanda and chances are you will run into a piece by either Mook Lion himself or members of his trusty team Phila, Bagels, Sive, Cj, Jared and Zena. All these artists and many more that are not mentioned here have taken it upon themselves to make Makhanda “vivid and bold”.
This is the National Arts Festival’s slogan, which got Mook and his team to do another mural for 2025 and they have set the bar even higher than before. Working with the same attitude to let the art breed curiosity, this piece is more of an identity mural of Makhanda.
Featuring one of the Makhanda streets in its background this mural centres around the image of a well. A well? Well, considering Makhanda’s persistent, endemic water crisis, the well is the main centrepiece that calls into question where the water is and what is being done about it.
The simple but striking question that is highlighted above the mural itself is the word “Well?” coloured in different shades of brown, much like soil that hasn’t had water. The piece has other exciting parts such as a beautiful, fluffy brown goat that stares at you from a corner as though emphasising the question mentioned above. It’s a ridiculously cute goat, you would swear it’s real!
Then a classic Mook Lion symbol appears on the mural as well: an encounter with random donkey on the corner of the street. The mural is more than just a painting on the wall; it’s a living part of Makhanda waiting to be seen by the people who residents and visitors.
The team has been working on the mural for a week and aims to complete it today; taking it from nothing but a wall to a statement for the town.
