About Quaz Roodt
Quaz Roodt is a writer, poet, performer, and social activist. He is the poetry facilitator for the UJ Arts Academy and teaches a poetry and creative writing class. He is also involved in various social outreach programmes across South Africa. Quaz is the co-curator of the Poetry Africa festival on behalf of UJ Arts and Culture and the editor of Poetry Potion, one of South Africa’s long-running print and online poetry publishing platforms. He regularly performs at national and international festivals and has a strong presence on Johannesburg’s poetry and hip-hop scene. Under his alias Sam English, Quaz has released four mixtapes, one EP, and several instrumental projects. He has appeared in numerous albums, short films and documentaries, reflecting his connection to various art forms. In 2009, he published his first collection of poems, The Orange Book Vol:2, and is currently working on his second collection.
About David Mann
David Mann is a writer, editor and art critic from Johannesburg. His short fiction, which draws from the undercurrents of the South African artworld, has appeared in various local and international journals, including Portside Review (AU), Strange Matters (USA), AFREADA (UK), The Kalahari Review, ITCH Creative Journal, Sunday Times Books, ImbizaJournal, Ons Klyntji, The Thinker, Botsotso, New Contrast and the Short.Sharp.Stories anthology One Life. He has also co-edited the 2025 short story anthology POWER (Tattoo Press) and Makers & Shapers of Media: The School of Journalism & Media Studies at 50 (Jacana). His short story collection, Once Removed, was published in 2024. That same year, it was awarded the Thomas Pringle Short Story Prize for the story, ‘Meaningful Contributions’, and shortlisted by the NIHSS Awards and the Nadine Gordimer Award for best short story collection. Mann is also a multi-award-winning art critic, having recently been acknowledged by the Mail & Guardian’s Top 200 Young South African awards for his work as a writer and critic in the South African arts.
About UJ Gallery
The UJ Art Gallery, located at the University of Johannesburg’s Kingsway Campus in Auckland Park, is a dynamic platform for showcasing art. It features a permanent collection of over 2,000 diverse artworks, with a focus on promoting artistic expression, fostering engagement with contemporary art, and nurturing the Johannesburg arts ecosystem. The gallery hosts curated exhibitions, educational programs, and public events, aiming to create a space for dialogue, reflection, and inspiration.
About UJ Arts and Culture
UJ Arts & Culture, a division of the Faculty of Art, Design & Architecture (FADA) produces and presents world-class student and professional arts programmes aligned to the UJ vision of an international university of choice, anchored in Africa, dynamically shaping the future. A robust range of arts platforms are offered on all four UJ campuses for students, staff, alumni, and the public to experience and engage with emerging and established Pan-African and international artists drawn from the full spectrum of the arts.
In addition to UJ Arts & Culture, FADA (www.uj.ac.za/fada) offers programmes in eight creative disciplines, in Art, Design and Architecture, as well as playing home to the NRF SARChI Chair in South African Art & Visual Culture, and the Visual Identities in Art & Design Research Centre. The faculty has a strong focus on sustainability and relevance, and engages actively with the dynamism, creativity, and diversity of Johannesburg in imagining new approaches to art and design education.
