T.KAASHE (Thama Kase)

Thama Kase was born in 1971 on the farm Makriel in the Ghanzi district. In 1992 he joined the Kuru Art Project. His large swirling compositions and unusual colour combinations were met with great enthusiasm. He loves to combine known animals with ones that he conjured up, as a result of his fantasy they become amusing and charming. He comments that these caricatures of animals stem from his childhood memories of hunting trips with his father. For a small boy the animals they encountered were enormous and frightening. In his dreams they became the caricatures he now likes to depict.

"Why do I always have to make the serious things? Why should I not make people laugh? Anyhow, I think people love the fun in my art". Thama also has a serious side. He has great respect for his culture and traditions. He admits that he pays great attention to the advice the old people give him. They told him to cherish his art, so that he can leave something about himself and his character for his children. During 1999 he lost two of his children.

Thama loves to play the guitar. He also has a great interest in the traditional music and dances. For him the traditional dances of the San are a great source of enjoyment and he loves to take part in it. He has vivid childhood memories of hunting trips with his father and grandfather. These things are more important for him than the modern day technology, like motorcars, radios etc. Even so, he admits that he loves his radio and the music it produces. He loves to paint extremely large canvases but he also enjoys to make lino prints, etchings and lithographs. The process of mono printing suits his specific style very well. His work often has unusual colour combinations, but he admits to be very fond of pure black and white, as well. Together with the Kuru Art Project, Thama’s work has been exhibited worldwide and has been reproduced in the Kuru art calendar and many other publications.

	Hunting a tsamgha cat - reduction linocut - no date
	They live in holes - reduction linocut - 2000
	Qau qaua and pursuers - lithograph - 1999