Sbu Mbatha was born on the 23th of August 1995 in Swayimane, Pietermaritzburg. He attended Jabula High School, and after school came straight to Ardmore, where resident artist, Siyabonga Mbaso, encouraged him to join the Winter School programme in June 2016. Sbu learned many different things at the Winter School from Fee Halsted and Wiseman Ndlovu, including Egyptian art, how to paint and sculpt, and Zulu culture. Sbu aspires to paint like fellow Ardmore artist, Mandla Ngwenya, whose signature style is very different to anyone else. He too would like to be able to achieve this. “Ardmore has played a big role in my life and has provided me with a job,” he says. “Being here has helped me improve my art and that is my main target.”