Mamello Morake is 26 years old and was born in Botshabelo but raised in Bethlehem. 

From early in her childhood she remembers being a girl who enjoyed drawing and doing artsy tasks amongs other activities. She grew up watching her mother on her sewing machine designing dresses and more; she is a creative herself, and naturally Mamello thought she wanted to be a fashion designer in future.

It was only later in her high school years that she realised that fashion design was not really herpath. In high school she had the privilege of taking visual arts classes, and as pricey as they were, she was fortunate that her mother was always supportive of the betterment of her talent in art regardless.

There she learnt techniques in drawing and painting which she could never have learnt on her own and explored with different mediums. In 2014 she was a freshman doing graphic design. Unfortunately she could not finish her degree but in that one year she had learnt so much, which she is grateful for because it has helped her improve her creative skills tremendously.

In 2018-2019 she went to USA to be an au pair. Apart from gaining cultural exchange experience and traveling abroad, her initial plan when she left was to go get inspiration for her art so she could start a gallery one day. Yet she got lost in the excitement of living abroad. Eventually she returned home, and sadly fell into unemployment. Then the pandemic hit.

During this time drawing was what kept her sane and gave her purpose: she sold portraits. She earned peanuts but it could at least buy her essentials. What made her happier was the joyful reaction when clients received their portraits – this has always reminded her that art definitely is her forte.