In 1996 I was invited to participate in The Thapong Artist Workshop, held in conjunction with the Museum of Art at Gaborone, Botswana. Over thirty African artists were there, representing such countries as Botswana, Kenya, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, etc. Included in this group were two sculptors for Norway and England, a painter from Yugoslavia and me, representing the United States.

The workshop was held for two weeks in Mahalapye, which is located approximately two hundred kilometers north east of Gaborone, in the gush area at the edge of the Kalahari Desert. The arid climate, with its continuous blanket of iridescent rose colored sand, the low thorny trees and huge seed pods strewn among giant termite castles became instant information for my sculptural paintings. I was photographing everything and as we all became more comfortable at the workshop, I began taking pictures of the artists and their work. When it came time to assemble the book, I reviewed and it became clear that the images of the artists held a compelling radiance, vigor and elegance.Thus, the artists themselves became a major force in the My Africa series.