for shaping the spirit of Tshekisho 2026 in Mangaung, forging a new literary movement rooted in radical imagination and collective memory.
✦ Tshekisho 2026 at a glance
The inaugural biennial gathered 183 attendees across 16 sessions in Mangaung, honouring Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje. It featured film screenings (Matabeleland, Katanga, Dika Ofoma’s filmography), the Tshekisho Lecture, a play reading, African Literature Quiz, zinemaking and radical publishing workshops, Black Consciousness dialogues, debate contests (Free State IV & Tshekisho Kgotla), and live concerts — reviving the Free State’s literary culture and prefiguring African thought.
The Tshekisho Biennial is a new gathering for literature, prefigurative thought and the arts, held in Mangaung in honour of its namesake, Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje — an esteemed South African writer, intellectual and artist born in the Free State province — whose example can inspire a new generation of similar thinkers and writers, particularly Black youth with resonant artistic and intellectual missions.
The festival also adopts Plaatje's activist undertones, spotlighting a rigorous ensemble of projects who are prefiguring storytelling and collectivisation in post-apartheid South Africa. Tshekisho is the Sotho-Tswana word for trial. In that spirit, we push boundaries, challenge thought and embody an engaged literary community.
The biennial is more than just a gathering; we are a critical movement, a vibrant intellectual forge where the future of African literary thought is hammered out.
To establish Mangaung as a critical hub for African literary discourse, honouring the Free State's rich history while actively shaping its future narrative.
A commitment to amplifying bold, experimental, and marginalised voices. Tshekisho is a space for challenging conventions.
Promoting rigorous, accessible intellectual discussion and action, through interactive and participatory dialogue.