Former Makhanda art educator Sasha Scholtz has established a visible coastal presence while continuing to draw on the landscapes and communities of the Eastern Cape for her teaching and art practice, according to a recent report.
From local classrooms to a Clovelly studio
Scholtz, 61, taught for 15 years at two well-known Eastern Cape primary schools — St Andrew’s Prep and DSG Junior School — before relocating to Clovelly in Cape Town. There she and her husband converted two garages into an airy studio, Creative Space Art Studio, where she runs classes and creates public installations.
Her time in the Eastern Cape remains central to her work. The report quotes her saying the province provided a “wonderful tapestry and framework for inspiration”, listing landscapes, bush, sea, mountains and smaller textures such as stones, decaying leaves and beach debris as ongoing creative resources.
“The Eastern Cape provided a wonderful tapestry and framework for inspiration, including vast spectacular landscapes, bush, sea, mountains, rolling hills, forests and then the smaller details when you look closer.”
Teaching, community arts and public projects
Her practice has been more than studio-based. While in the Eastern Cape she took part in community-oriented programmes and festival activities, including the Children’s Art Festival that formed part of the National Arts Festival in Makhanda. She also taught pottery and mosaics and led evening classes for adults.
- Early career in advertising and preschool art education in Eswatini and Franschhoek.
- 15 years teaching in Makhanda primary schools, with involvement in the Children’s Art Festival.
- Current work in Clovelly includes running an open studio event and creating mosaic installations along a wetland walk.
The report notes Scholtz helped establish an annual open studio event in her Cape Town suburb and has installed mosaics along a much-loved wetland walk, bringing her emphasis on accessible community arts into public spaces.
Local connections and influence
Scholtz credited local Eastern Cape organisations and practitioners with nurturing her practice. She singled out engagement with the Keiskamma Art Project in Hamburg and participation in offerings at the National Arts Festival as important stimulants for her work and wellbeing. She also referenced continuing development through attending classes with artist and teacher Sally Scott.
For Makhanda residents, the story underlines two threads: the long-term influence of the town’s cultural and natural environment on artists who train and teach here, and the ways former teachers carry those influences into wider community arts initiatives elsewhere in the country.
| Period | Place | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Earlier career | Eswatini, Franschhoek | Preschool art educator, adult classes |
| 15 years | Makhanda | Art teacher at St Andrew’s Prep and DSG Junior School; festival involvement |
| Recent | Clovelly (Cape Town) | Creative Space Art Studio founder; public mosaics; open studio organiser |
While the artist has moved away from Makhanda, her account in the report reflects the town’s continuing role as a source of artistic material and professional networks. For local arts educators and festival organisers, the trajectory highlights potential career pathways that link classroom teaching, community arts and public commissions.
As municipal and provincial cultural programmes continue to debate funding and support for arts education, stories like Scholtz’s underscore how school-based teaching and regional arts projects can shape lifelong practice and community-facing projects beyond the Eastern Cape.
