Your art, your craft: Athi → Adine Pietersen

Shalom beloveds

When I think about one’s art and craft, I think about that one skill or talent you excel in- something you can do brilliantly, even in your sleep. So I spoke to Athi Maq about her own craft. I met Athi a few years ago, through a different time of my life. I think we were both in a different space in each of our lives during that period, but those conversations planted seeds of hope and faith, that later grew into a meaningful connection. Whenever we speak, it’s always an enriching conversation. Below she shares her take on navigating your craft/art, as well as how she manages her own.

Please give us a short introduction to who you are and what you do?

Hi my name is Athi Maq (full name Athenkosi Maqubela). I’m a creative entrepreneur and aspiring Sound Ecologist. Currently I mainly do photography, graphic design, music selection and resource managing at an architectural school. I recently did a post-grad in Landscape Architecture, masters pending and I am interested in the theory of Sound Ecology in urban and natural environments.

What are your creative craft/skills and how did you discover them?

My first creative craft was drawing. I used to love drawing as a child, and in my adolescence. I really got into realism and surrealism graphite drawing. That’s how I fell into photography I believe, capturing beauty and the essence of faces and spaces. Music selection was a different process all together. My father was big into collecting CD’s and loved good music. It was very much a big part of our lives as a family growing up. So I naturally gravitated to picking up the same habit of collecting music as an art, to be enjoyed and studied as in the melodies and message. I picked up guitar and drumming in high school, and would make playlists for myself and friends. After graduating I started DJing professionally which I didn’t expect to pick up like it did, but it did and still is. So I’m grateful for that.

What are the highlights/ victories you have achieved through your craft?

I guess a victory would have been working as an in-house photographer for four years, deemed as a professional photographer without any formal training. Goes to show with passion you can achieve anything. With DJing my biggest highlight would definitely be, playing beats in a forest, as part of a small festival. That has been a big dream of mine.

What are the challenges you face or have faced with your craft?

Creative blocks, burn out and not being taken seriously. Possibly because I look younger than I actually am, or that I am a black woman or maybe my personality. I’m quite soft spoken and not as aggressive or out spoken, as I find you need to be in the creative industry for the masses to take note of you.

How have you navigated using your craft during a crisis?

I think meditation and reminding myself that things are in God’s hands, and all good things come from Him. So my meditation involves scriptures that stand out to me and bring peace but also the importance of remembering to remain still and trust in God.

What advice can you give to others in pursuing their own creative craft?

Patience is key. When inspiration hits, act on it. Also try not to focus on the progress of others rather focus on your own work and process, and if you do admire someone else’s work use that as a source of inspiration rather than jealousy. I think it’s important as creatives to really navigate with a creative mindset rather than a competitive mindset. There’s enough room for all of us, enough pie for all of us to eat.

Please feel free to share anything else the Lord has impressed on your heart or a special message regarding this topic for our readers?

As our Heavenly Father is a creator, he takes pleasure in when we create. I sometimes like to think of myself as a vessel or an instrument, used to spread love. Of course I’m human so sometimes I will operate from the flesh, but it always feels better to operate from the Spirit. You feel a sense of peace and humility because you know the power doesn’t come from you but rather from the One that loves you so much.