Nelson Mandela ‘Mandela’s Joy’ by Marc Alexander, oil on canvas, 120cm by 90cm, (2013). It has been said that what brought Mandela the most joy, was the laughter of children; therefore, besides campaigning globally for peace, he focused much of his attention on empowering disadvantaged children and being an AIDS activist. Mandela said, “There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.”