#DI Emerging Creative Tebogo Lethuba chats with us about his artistic transition and a new comic book

This young designer illustrates a promising future

When did you know you wanted to pursue art?

Well, I've always naturally been that artistic kid at school, and I've been doing art for as long as I can remember.

I only made the decision to pursue art and creativity as a career when I was about 18 or 19 years old.

How would you describe your creative style/ aesthetic?

I'm currently going through a transition when it comes to my creative style, and I'm now shifting towards a cartoon-like style of illustration that is mainly inspired by pop art. The big eyes on my characters are like my signature and aesthetic.

My old style, of course, was mainly influenced by Afrofuturism, and an African aesthetic, so right now I'm trying out new things.

What's your dream artistic collaboration?

My dream artistic collaboration would be to work with Nike since I'm a huge fan of the brand - I'd really be delighted to work with them someday!

You feature people quite often in your work, why is it a favourite subject of yours?

Well, yes, I do feature people a lot in my work. I would say the reason behind it is that it's what I see most often on a daily basis (both on screen and in real life). Basically, I'm just interested in engaging with different characters from different places.

What would you like to explore in your work?

I would like to explore fashion since I'm also a big fashionista/enthusiast.

What is your favourite part of the creative process?

My favourite part of the creative process is when I get to freely envision something that's going to inspire someone later on or serve a particular purpose.

What can we look forward to seeing from you in the near future?

I'm currently in the planning process of a collaboration with a South African maize brand, on a comic book named The Amazing Bhuti Afro. It's going to be out there soon if everything goes well.

I've also been practicing and developing my new cartoon-like illustration style and I hope to hone that skill!

 Credits: Tebogo Lethuba