Perhaps you have pondered why seven bronze heads rest on this concrete plateau. This is the Rona Batho Sculpture. It is a Nelson Mandela memorial. It stands in Nelson Mandelapark.
The park needed a Mandela monument. The Rona Batho Sculpture became that monument in September 2021. Amsterdam’s former mayor Eberhard van der Laan wanted this memorial. CBK Zuidoost organized a competition. Artists were asked to create a memorial. It could not be a portrait of Mandela.
About fifty artists applied. The choice fell on Mohau Modisakeng. He was born in Soweto in 1986. The artist refers to Mandela. But he does not show him directly. Mayor Femke Halsema unveiled Rona Batho on September 5, 2021.
The Rona Batho Sculpture sits on a small hill. It is in the park’s northern part. The sculpture features a concrete plateau. It has a diameter of six meters. The plateau features a text ring. It says: We are only human through the humanity of others. This refers to Ubuntu philosophy. Ubuntu means I am because we are. Mandela often quoted this. Seven bronze heads sit on the plateau. It serves as a pedestal.
Modisakeng drew local residents. He scanned them. Then he cast their portraits in bronze. The artist considered Mandela’s ideas important. They were more important than Mandela himself. Modisakeng shows Mandela’s evolving ideas. The heads are incomplete. They do not stand in a perfect circle. They seem to lean on each other.
The Rona Batho Sculpture includes an information column. Modisakeng was mainly known as a photographer. He also worked as a videographer. His works often refer to colonialism.
The Rona Batho Sculpture embodies unity. It stands for self-determination. It represents freedom and Ubuntu. It honors the contributions of black South Africans. They fought for freedom.
The Rona Batho Sculpture reflects on rebuilding. It considers redesigning a community. This is based on democracy. It includes equality and multiculturalism. It considers Ubuntu. These represent the foundation of South Africa. This project is 25 years old.
South Africa moved from white rule to black rule in 1994. Secret meetings occurred in the 1980s. They were between the government and the ANC. Nelson Mandela led the ANC. He was still a prisoner. A settlement was reached.
Mandela and other prisoners were released in 1990. Political parties were unbanned. Exiles returned. The New South Africa began. It is also known as the Rainbow Nation. The first nonracial elections were on April 27, 1994. Nelson Mandela became president on May 10. People celebrated the end of apartheid.
Nelson Mandela became a hero. He symbolized non-violence. He was a symbol of freedom. He stood for reconciliation. The Rona Batho Sculpture celebrates this legacy.