Photography - Africa Is Now Magazine

MOSAKO CHALASHIKA

The Botswanan photographer who specialises in skate imagery, says it’s helped him to sharpen his skills and to highlight the skate scene in Gaborone.

Photo by Gareth Vidmar

Born and raised in Gaborone, Botswana, Mosako Kushata Okaile Chalashika spent seven years in South Africa (in Kimberley from 2011 to 2015 and in Cape Town from 2016 to 2018). Before he was a photographer who held a fascination for the skate world, he was himself a skater.

‘The main reason I got into photography is that the skate scene in Gaborone had never had a photographer in the past,’ he says, ‘so that meant that there wasn’t any skateboarding content coming out of Botswana. I really wanted to fill that gap and give Botswana the skateboarding exposure it needed.’

During his years in Cape Town he honed his craft and began practising in earnest. ‘As I was shooting more skateboarding photos, I slowly got into shooting studio, fashion, portraits, etc in 2017. The main reason I came to Cape Town in the first place was to study professional photography at City Varsity and I completed my course in December 2018.’

@knucklehds

@joubertvs

Mosako’s hope is that his photography will raise awareness about the skateboarding scene in Gaborone. ‘In the past 2-3 years there has been some progress. We have had a few videos and couple of photo features in Session skateboarding magazine. Last year we also had the Vans ZA team coming to tour our city and Gaborone skater Kagiso Leburu and I recently travelled to Lagos, Nigeria, to attend Go Skate Boarding Day in June. At the moment we are having a hard time getting a skate park in Gaborone, but hopefully this will be a reality soon.’

@horoblitz

‘The energy we give out to each other is authentic, and that’s what I love about the skate culture in Botswana.’

@chrisnderi2

Mosako says that the skate culture in Botswana is a small community. ‘But there really is a beautiful side to it because everyone knows each other, so whatever skate missions or plans we have, no one is ever left out.’

There are no brand sponsorships in Gaborone, or major league contests and skateparks. ‘So, when you see someone with a skateboard, they’re doing it because they genuinely love it. The energy we give out to each other is authentic, and that’s what I love about the skate culture in Botswana. I’m sure that most African countries can relate.

In terms of how skateboarding has influenced his photography, Mosako explains that it’s made him more aware of his surroundings when he’s shooting in the streets. ‘It has made my timing sharper,’ he says. ‘I’m now more conscious about composition and it has shown me the importance of angles.’

PHOTOGRAPHERS MOSAKO ADMIRES:

Jared Sherbet @mmmsherbet
Jansen Van Staden @jansenvanstaden
Sam Clark @slam_clark
Jonathan Pinkhard @pink_hard
Chi Modu @chimodu
Adriaan Louw @adriaanlouw1
Travys Owen @travysowen

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‘I studied digital media design and I’m passionate about visual communication. In 2016, I received the award for best visual techniques in my final year of Multimedia Technology Design at the University of Johannesburg. But it’s something I left behind as soon as I found photography. I’m deeply interested in street style photography and studio photography (any genre). I love creating with light.’

LESEDI ‘S WORK

‘With my street style photography, I feel in control, so I can paint any picture I want. But I always try to capture the human spirit. Everyone’s face has a story to tell. It can be deceiving, truthful, heroic, joyful, ugly or beautiful. But these are just the surface labels we give to images of people.’

PHOTOGRAPHER: LESEDI MOTHOAGAE @LAMPOST

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THEODORE AFRIKA

Theodore Afrika is a photographer who doesn’t like to be hemmed in by labels. When you hear his name, think of him as a brand; a creative who has a passion for art, music and dance, and who pours passion into his work. As a photographer in Cape Town, South Africa, he’s had to develop tunnel vision when it comes to his work. In a place that can be blinkered and racist, he has chosen to blur out the negatives and adjust his focus to the positives.

Theodore combines his love for portraiture photography with his love of self-expression. His approach to the craft is emotive and captivating. After working in the field for some time, he decided that freelancing was the way to go and not long after, he was signed up as a photographer at Hero Creative Management. His advice to aspiring photographers? ‘Don’t allow the distractions of the industry to draw you away from your passion and never limit yourself. It’s easy for someone to colour in a drawing, but not everyone can stay between the lines – and they shouldn’t either.’