The parish priest, father Maurizio Canclini, started the art centre project in order to give some young people attending the parish and the Luyobolola Community School the opportunity to put their artistic skills into practice.

Some of them showed a particular interest in African figurative arts in all forms ranging from sculpture to painting.

From the beginning, the project had several targets. The first was to give young people artistic training based on technical and cultural knowledge. The hope is that young artists will rediscover Tonga culture through art that would otherwise disappear or that would be dimmed with the modernization of city society.

The second aim was to set up a school of art in order to give artists the means for further artistic development and the possibility of future economic enrichment.

So in 2002, the art school was born with 12 students and a teacher. The students were taught sculpture and canvas painting.

At the beginning, lessons were taught underneath a tree. Then building materials were donated specifically for the construction a classroom. The classroom was built in the shape of a traditional African house; a round structure with a straw roof, known as chitungu. It was built by the students of the art school and promptly equipped with painting and sculpture tools.

A lot of people, especially Italian people visiting Mazabuka, found the works of art very interesting and some have contributed directly to the project by giving funds or introducing the works of art in Italy. The production of small statues, African masks and religious paintings have been successful. Ultimately, we would like to change the school into a real art workshop which could reach not only the "protected market" of visitors and friends but also open up to the national and international markets.

Every artist earns from his/her own work; there is not a common wage or salary for artists. This way everyone is stimulated to work and produce and by this we try to avoid opportunistic behaviours. This contributes to the human and professional aim of young people learning not to take advantage of others and everyone is stimulated to improve the quality of his/her work.

At the moment there are nine artists between the ages of 19 and 27 years old. There are three project leaders who take care of the organization and management of the art centre. Two of them are attending art college in Lusaka and the third is going to begin attending this year (2006).

Among the nine artists, two are physically handicapped. For them, the centre is a source of human and professional development. In a society lacking in social services and resources for the disabled, the centre provides an opportunity for them to work and live with dignity.

The Art Centre is currently sustained by the demand of African handicrafts by fair trade Italian businesses and individual consumers. Our aim is to assure the continuous training of young artists allowing them to improve their skills and maintain the vocational training of a new generation. Young people who show a particular interest in art will be given the opportunity to attend the art school in Lusaka. After college the artists will teach the next generation at the art workshop. We also have a collaboration of professional artists coming from abroad (up to now from Italy and USA) as volunteers to share their experiences and knowledge to the students.