HIS willingness to help other artists promote their work and put food on the table, especially since the sector was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, has paid off for resident artist at The Athenaeum in Nelson Mandela Bay, Farook Mohammed, when he was recently honoured with a prestigious award at The Mzansi Arts and Media Awards.<\/p>\n
Mohammed, who is also director of his own brand, AfroArabianEmpire, and co-producer of Islamic TV programme, Liljamie Productions, won the award in the category of best events\u2019 organiser, due to everything he had been doing to make it possible for artists to showcase their work and promote themselves during a difficult period for the industry.<\/p>\n
Mohammed said that he did not expect to win, as the competition was tough and he was competing against some big names in the entertainment industry.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe elimination rounds had everyone on edge but I had that feeling one gets of \u2018I\u2019m bringing this one home\u2019,\u201d Mohammed explained.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had faith that it would go well, but didn\u2019t have my hopes up too high. I knew I had loyal supporters throughout the country and wouldn\u2019t have made it without them. <\/p>\n
\u201cI must thank everyone in Nelson Mandela Bay and Kouga for their amazing support, as well as family and friends throughout South Africa. <\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t always win when it comes to competitions, so it came as a surprise to me. I\u2019m going to have to process this one and embrace it.\u201d<\/p>\n
When asked what it felt like when he was announced as the winner in his category, he answered, \u201cAt that moment I felt as if I had a lot to say but all I could say was: \u2018I won, I really won\u2019 and burst out with laughter. I couldn\u2019t stop smiling. Unfortunately, I wasn\u2019t able to attend the event held in Polokwane, but watched bits of it unfold throughout the day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mohammed said that the award is something that has special meaning for him, especially since the last two years have been tough for the creative sector.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvents were cancelled, venues closed, tourism came to a standstill but yet we all kept moving forward, enduring and trying our best. We have had to adjust, evolve and find new ways to showcase what we do. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe tell the stories of our communities and nation at large; we capture history and the beauty of the world around us. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe represent the culture and beautifully diverse face of South Africa. The award I see as a piece in my timeline of development and growth as an artist and by it I hope to inspire many others,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn terms of my career, going forward, the award solidifies the idea behind the artist that I am. It becomes part of my legacy and stands alongside the many references behind my name and the collective faith in what I do. It will certainly play its part in adding value to my work and open new doors of opportunity.\u201d <\/p>\n
He mentioned that cash prizes were up for grabs, ranging from R5 000 and R10 000 to R15 000.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe organisers of the Mzansi Arts and Media Awards always deliver. Depending on the amount of support you receive, the greater the perks. Some are hidden and I am yet to discover what those are or might be; even during the run up to the event, participants were given random surprises,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Regarding his career going forward, his current project is a focus on his brand, which also features his artworks, clothing and cosmetics.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt combines our diverse cultural expressions, knowledge, history and beauty. I\u2019ve tied part of it with Liljamie Productions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have completed season one and will start shooting season two in the new year, with an exciting lifestyle twist, food, fashion, faith and art. So that\u2019s something to look forward to.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
HIS willingness to help other artists promote their work and put food on the table, especially since the sector was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, has paid off for resident artist at The Athenaeum in Nelson Mandela Bay, Farook Mohammed, when he was recently honoured with a prestigious award at The Mzansi Arts and Media Awards.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":50093,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_linkdex":"","_yoast_wpseo_content_score":"","_yoast_wpseo_inclusive_language_score":"","_yoast_wpseo_is_cornerstone":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image-id":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image-id":"","newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","_EventAllDay":"","_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":"","_EventShowMapLink":"","_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":"","_EventVenueID":"","_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":"","_VenueShowMapLink":"","_application":"","_batch_id":"","_company_name":"","_company_tagline":"","_company_twitter":"","_company_video":"","_company_website":"","_custom_id":"6e55e9ef-32a7-47e3-bdbd-cdfb8000dedf","_EventDuration":"","_EventOrigin":"","_EventTimezoneAbbr":"","_featured":"","_filled":"","_job_expires":"","_job_location":"","_media_credit":"","_media_credit_url":"","_menu_item_menu_item_parent":"","_menu_item_object":"","_menu_item_object_id":"","_menu_item_target":"","_menu_item_type":"","_menu_item_url":"","_menu_item_xfn":"","_navis_media_can_distribute":"","_navis_media_credit_org":"","_OrganizerOrigin":"","_provider":"","_pum_built_in":"","_pum_default_theme":"","_pum_form_conversion_count":"","_remote_id":"","_remote_name":"","_remote_position":"","_report_frequency":"","_report_reference_dates":"","_send_attempts":"","_site_id":"","_sitemap_exclude":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","_sitemap_priority":"","_source_url":"","_subscription_period":"","_subscription_period_interval":"","_subscription_price":"","_tec_slr_enabled":"","_tec_slr_layout":"","_template_type":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_ticket_start_date":"","_tribe_aggregator_allow_multiple_organizers":"","_tribe_aggregator_content_type":"","_tribe_aggregator_file":"","_tribe_aggregator_finalized":"","_tribe_aggregator_hash":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_id":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_interactive":"","_tribe_aggregator_origin":"","_tribe_aggregator_post_status":"","_tribe_aggregator_preview":"","_tribe_aggregator_source_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_type":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_hide_attendees_list":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":"","_tribe_ticket_version":"","_type":"","_VenueOrigin":"","_wp_attachment_context":"","_wp_attachment_image_alt":"","_wp_font_face_file":"","_wp_old_date":"","_yoast_wpseo_estimated-reading-time-minutes":"","_yoast_wpseo_focuskeywords":"","_yoast_wpseo_focuskw_text_input":"","_yoast_wpseo_keywordsynonyms":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_block-catalog":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_job_listing_type":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_nova_retailer":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_publication":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_tribe_events_cat":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-duration":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-rating":"","_menu_item_classes":[],"_tribe_modified_fields":[],"_wp_attachment_backup_sizes":[],"_wp_suggested_privacy_policy_content":[],"_yoast_post_redirect_info":[],"_yoast_wpseo_video_meta":[],"activation_date":"","archive_insertion_is_repeating":"","archive_insertion_posts_count":"","article_feature_media":"","article_feature_type":"","article_main_image_caption":"","article_media_icon":"","article_template":"","author_byline":"Candice Bezuidenhout","background_color":"","block_editor":"","byline":"","cmplz_hide_cookiebanner":"","competition_end_date":"","contact_advertise_email":"","contact_advertise_phone":"","contact_editorial_email":"","contact_general_email":"","contact_general_phone":"","contact_office_hours":"","contact_physical_address":"","enabled":"","featured_image_custom_caption":"","featured_video_url":"","fields":"","font_body":"","font_header":"","frequency":"","headline":"","hide_border":"","icon":"","is_wp_suggestion":"","issuu_download_url":"","issuu_embed_url":"","language_version_url":"","large_border":"","name":"","nm_contact_name":"","nm_contact_number":"","nm_date_lost":"","no_overlay_background":"","node-url":"","obituary_born_date":"","obituary_died_date":"","obituary_memoriam_text":"","origin":"","overlay_color":"","overlay_opacity":"","overlay_size":"","placement":"","plural_label":"","post_author":"","post_id":"","post_language":"en","secret-key":"","sponsored_utm_campaign":"","sponsored_utm_content":"","sponsored_utm_medium":"","sponsored_utm_source":"","sponsored_utm_term":"","start_date":"","utm_suppression":"","video_embed_url":"","wp_pattern_sync_status":"","data_version":[],"enclosure":[],"pongrass_image":[],"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","newspack_content_restriction_is_exempt":false,"scaip_prevent_shortcode_addition":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"publication":[],"class_list":["post-50091","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n