Don Mattera to be honoured for sterling work

Iconic poet, author and activist Don Mattera is set to be honoured for his outstanding work with a Grant Patron of the Arts award.

The award will be presented to the legendary poet by National Writers Association of South Africa (NWASA) on March 21. According to NWASA secretary-general Dr Lebogang Nawa, the Grant Patron of the Arts honor is reserved for people who were considered a fountain of knowledge and information in their spheres of expertise.

Mattera, who is also famously known as Bra Zinga, said about the honour:  “I am honored by the gesture from the National Writers Association of South Africa to award me the Grant Patron of the Arts award. As the Don Mattera Legacy Foundation, we endorse the sterling work that NWASA is doing to ensure that deserving writers and authors are honoured for the exceptional literary work that they produce”.

Nawa said: “The award for the Grant Patron of the Arts Award is bestowed on individuals like Dr Don Mattera, who embody and display extraordinary or exceptional qualities of being pioneers, trailblazers, visionaries, versatile leaders, and cross-over practitioners in the arts and culture sphere. These are cultural practitioners who muster – against all odds – the courage, bravery and foresight to challenge conventions, break new grounds and open new cultural avenues of vistas and Don Mattera embodies all of these attributes.

"Due to Covid-19 restrictions Dr Mattera will record the accepting of the award through video link. Four categories of awards will be bestowed on the night of March 21.”

Nawa said NWASA intended to cultivate a tradition of honouring cultural practitioners for their indelible contributions in the sphere. He said the initiative will start with a virtual Inaugural general assembly scheduled for March 20 and 21.

“The awards are to be conferred only at the general assembly; the highest-level authority gathering held every three years corresponding with leadership renewal and affirmation procedures.”