By Anthea Garman
Think!Fest co-ordinator

Roy Sargeant, instigator of the Young Artist Awards in 1981, and then the Festival Chairperson, said at the first session of this year’s Think!Fest: “We really did need a fundamentally empowering prize for the most important sector of artists:  those just beginning to make real names for themselves.  We said to them: “Here is a bunch of money; create something thrilling and exciting’.”
Janice Honeyman (a  1982 winner): “I had a project sitting in that hollow in the creative section of my brain and Five Roses (the first sponsors of the awards) gave me R4 500 to develop And Green and Golden which set me on the path of story theatre and adaptations.”
Andrew Buckland (a  1986 winner): “I tripped into this way of being, and as soon as I tripped I was caught, nurtured, challenged and given structure. I was taught: art is not a system to support the status quo, it is for challenging ideas and for that it gives you a voice and a language. The award gave me courage and encouragement.”
Sibongile Khumalo (a 1993 winner and now the festival chairperson): “I think of my life as BG and AG: before Grahamstown and After Grahamstown. I felt schizophrenic as a young singer, my father was involved in classical music, my brother in jazz, and pop was huge in the township. But somebody noticed me and gave me a space to search and helped me to define my own voice.”
Acty Tang (a 2007 winner):  “I embrace the avant garde, I do dance a different way. I want to know what dance is like without the strictures of training. The award gave me moral support which was very important, and the huge amount of money was concrete backing to go forth and explore.”
Kesivan Naidoo (a winner this year): “My uncle, who spent years in Robben Island, taught me to do whatever you can with whatever you’ve got to change the world. Being an artist… that’s the thing. Artists never compromise, they get what’s inside out. They change people’s hearts to make the world better. This is my mission. I’m sick of poor people on the streets, so at least with this award I can now get a meeting with Helen Zille! You gotta live your life as an artist. Make your life a work of art. Get the inner artist out.”
Sargeant again, when asked by Mannie Manim (chair of the panel) how he felt hearing from the award winners: “It is extraordinarily gratifying. It is extraordinary what has occurred in this little town over the years. It is a testament to what the arts can do even in the worst weather possible.”

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