Lungiswa is a Langa-based ceramic artist who turned a hobby into a passion and then a full-time career. She rents a classroom in a former school to use as a studio. Local children grew curious and began wandering in to ask questions. Lungiswa invited them to come back and learn, soon enough she started tutoring a class of four. Other children saw how much fun they were having, and parents started sending theirs too. The children now call her “Mama”.

Lungiswa uses the work to teach life skills and a love of the land, based on what the children are curious about. Clay is soil, and Lungiswa also keeps a food garden. Together they form a circular way of learning: look after the land and it looks after you.

Lungiswa also wants to close the gap between township and city. Township residents usually travel to the city for opportunities, a pattern Lungiswa wants to reverse by bringing city people into Langa to see the beauty there and what residents make with their own hands. To keep the programme financially sustainable, the children make products to sell, and the money goes back into the programme. The artist also partners with others, including community groups working with children and Honest Chocolate. After the children visited Honest Chocolate during the school holidays, the company invited the programme to an event and plans to donate the proceeds to the children.