Dike heals broken souls with art
Timothy Dike from Shakawe is a fulltime visual artist based in Kasane whose aim is to ‘spark the brain that will change the world and heal broken souls with colourful dreams.’
“I use acrylic paint, oil paint, pencil and pen to create my master pieces. I learnt art at school. I started doing art at Shakawe Junior Secondary School and continued at Shakawe Senior Secondary School but I never took it seriously. A few years later, I learnt more about art on the streets. It healed me when I was going through a difficult time five years ago and I decided to quit everything I was doing including my studies. Since then, I gave art my all and never looked back,” Dike told Arts & Culture in an interview.
Dike pointed out that among his pieces, the emotional series art pieces were his favourite because they affect the soul deeply and by so doing change how people feel or view life. He added that his art tagline was ‘where you meet your colourful dreams’ describing his versatile artistry. Dike is a self-driven creative artist who specialises in visual arts as a medium of expression. He is inspired by the native arts and crafts, cultural heritage and traditional livelihoods of
the Okavango Delta. He explained that in 2017, he decided to embark on an artistic excursion and began stroking the brush on canvas to create abstract, portrait, landscape, wildlife art and décor. He said he later founded Big Tim Arts as an artistic elevation for livelihood and creative excellence. He added that he produced massive artworks for individuals, corporates and families especially paintings, portraits, customised denim,
clothing and shoes.
“The support I got from the public is amazing and they love my positive vibes all the time which means they connect well with the artist in me. Some get inspired while others get healed emotionally. The theme of my art is emotional art and colourful abstract art. Through my art, I aim to change the human mindset and take African art to the whole world,” Dike said.
This young talent is currently sells his work both locally and internationally. He sold his mater pieces to countries like USA, France, South Africa, Namibia, Zambia and Botswana. He also exhibited his work at Thapong Visual Art Centre, Kasane, Maun and Shakawe. He was a runner up at America on the Move Visual Arts online competition in 2020 organised by the American Embassy in Botswana.