<B>Indulging in creativity</B>

Leslie Nimmo arrived in Mauritius in 1997 to set up the school of design for the IVTB. Then he decided to stay and share his love of painting.

His determination has driven him throughout his life and career in spite of his calm and careful habit of thinking before speaking. Leslie Nimmo is a man with great personality and determination. On the other hand, he has a strong sense of humour. “I try to be humoristic whenever I can. I like to tell jokes. People tend to be too serious nowadays. I am also very ambitious.”

Leslie’s paintings have always been prolific and uncommon. He has already exhibited his works but his first solo exhibition was launched last Friday at the Mahatma Gandhi Institute in Moka and lasts until 31st January. Leslie looks forward to giving people a glimpse of his capabilities. Some schools will send students and Leslie will be pleased to do some demonstrations. “I see this exhibition as the next step up. It gives me more flexibility. I feel as if I have more control over what I am doing. People love these paintings because they are digital. This is quite new to Mauritians.”

Leslie’s passion for painting began when he was eight, with his uncle Arthur. Then, he discovered his abilities by winning prizes every year in art, in fact two - one for art and the other for design and technology. But he had already decided on his career. “I was hesitating between architecture and art. Once I got accepted for architecture, I shifted to art. Architecture might be too constraining in terms of creativity.”

Apart from painting, Leslie used to perform in athletics and rugby, representing his school in both disciplines. Today, walking is his favourite activity. At home, he enjoys listening to music but he concedes he cannot be good at everything. After ten years here, French is still his “Achilles heel”. “Mastering languages is my weak point. I speak English. I understand basic French. I tried two years at l’Alliance Francaise, but in vain.”

Leslie was born on 4th of March 1943 in Glasgow. He has two grown-up children: David and Fiona. His career and achievements are simply awesome. After graduating at the Glasgow School of Art, where he studied Fine Arts, then Graphic Design (Publicity and Advertising), he even tried photography and was an Associate of the Royal Photographic Society (Scotland). He did some voluntary work and ended his career teaching at secondary and tertiary levels. He was senior lecturer in Napier and Edinburgh Universities, and head of Department of Art and Design at Edinburgh’s Telford College. He came here to set up the school of Design at IVTB in 1997. Afterwards, he spent three “wonderful” years at Le Bocage International School. His biggest achievement is the title of Chartered Designer, the highest award in Design in the UK.

Leslie is 64 and already knows how he will spend the coming years. He comments about it with his usual sense of humour. “I will stay in Mauritius forever. I have settled down here and I enjoy it. Anyway forever is not that long! When it comes to my professional life, I want to keep working and exploring to remain active. I will try more traditional paintings and maybe one or two other exhibitions, why not?”