adminThe unfortunate scenario was that Zimbabwean fine-art market remained in doldrums for a long while numerous artists took oaths into the profession and critical art spaces to lure business transactions into the sector.
Various disturbing factors that rocked the country’s economy did not spare the artists’ habitat and the current Western world economic recession also aggravated the desperate situation to unprecedented levels.
There have been efforts by important art institutions in the country to have an existing art market consolidated but nothing has materialised.
This was testimony on the art exhibition and auction that was held at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe (NGZ) in Harare in partnership with the European Union and Friends of the National Gallery (Fog).
The art exhibition opened on the March 18, 2011 sponsored by the EU to honour their relationship with Zimbabwe over the years as well as fund-raising for the National Gallery of Zimbabwe did not yield any sales until artworks were later auctioned.
With all hopes pinned on the much-needed rare art auction, only a handful of buyers gathered with disappointing offers. Most of the artworks were left unsold and the few that did fetched amounts that were far below the artists’ reserved prices.
The trend rang more alarming bells of uncertainty to the much struggling artists. Majority of the country’s fulltime artists largely depends on sales from tourists and other artists have been left miserable as they have endured several years without any business.
They are struggling to buy art materials of choice and have resorted to use of ancient and modern detritus to make telling futuristic, apocalyptic works, voicing what lies inside rather than what is spoken. Undisputedly, their artwork made through dire necessity has much to say and creates a direct link between art and contemporary Zimbabwean society.
In almost the entirety of art exhibitions held 2011, inconsistencies at pricing of artworks wreaked havoc to unprecedented levels. Most of the artworks were tagged at glossary prices and a few were grossly inflated. It’s an incorrect assumption that underpricing works of art will yield a significant number of sales and attract future business transactions.
This unfortunate trend has unforgiving consequences especially to artists who will forever struggle to correctly price their work and put themselves in their rightful positions especially when confronted with opportunities from beyond our borders. Selling artworks at grocery prices undermines the artists and is unsustainable.
Despite the appalling economic state of the majority of the artists, there were numerous exhilarating events in the progression of the sector.
Zimbabwe had a pavilion at the 2011 edition of the international Venice Biennale in Italy, and National Gallery of Zimbabwe showcased artworks by Calvin Dondo, Barry Bickle, Misheck Masamvu and Tapfuma Gutsa.
Several partners including the Zimbabwean Government contributed significantly to realise the maiden participation of the country and there are bright prospects for similar future platforms. Again through National Gallery of Zimbabwe, Virginia Chihota, took part in the Lyon Biennale in France.
The National Gallery of Zimbabwe had several international links that saw a number of important international art networkers coming into the country to give art talks and curate shows.
The Gallery has art forums dubbed “Harare Conversations” launched in 2010 after realisation of the need to liaise frequently with artists for the development of the sector.
The highly informative visual art talk often has presentations by both national and international experts such as curators, gallerists and artists to mention a few.
There were high profile exhibitions too at the national art space like “Beyond Borders: Re-questioning development and challenges in contemporary art practice in East and Southern Africa” which was the theme of the 2011 edition of the evergreen Harare International Festival of the Arts.
There was “Hope and Despair”, a multimedia show that also examined the country’s art dialogue within a broader international discourse, “Pimp My Combi” was the 2011 edition of “Gwanza”, the Month of Photography exhibition.
The exhibition was an exploration of the minibus as a marker of vernacular aesthetics and cultural codes, as well as a vehicle defining both urban landscape and social space throughout Africa.
Across town at Gallery Delta Foundation for Art and the Humanities several commendable shows took place including “Freedom Revisited” in which the European Union in association with Gallery Delta launched an art competition and exhibition of paintings, drawings, graphics and multimedia.
The European Union funded the art show with awards to re-establish its relationship with Zimbabwean art and artists and Gallery Delta. Previously the EU had sponsored huge art shows with Gallery Delta under the themes “Peace Through Unity and Diversity” in 2007 and “Unity” in 2009. Gallery Delta also hosted a three- way themed art exhibition titled “3 Thoughts”, “Dance of the Ishwa”, “Redefinitions III”, “Facsimiles of
Energy” and their premier “Summer Exhibition” to highlight a few.
Gallery Delta Foundation for Art and the Humanities has also secured “Colour Africa 2011”, an exhibition of Zimbabwean contemporary art comprising paintings, graphics and mixed media sculptures – by 20 artists and opened at Amalienstrasse 81 in Munich on July 6, 2011. The initiative stems from Verena Nolte, an arts consultant of Munich and trustee of the foundation, and the gallery, over the past year.
Further, the exhibition coincided with the 15th year of the twinning of the cities of Harare and Munich supported in part by the City of Munich Art and Cultural Department.
The exhibition attracted as much interest and success as that of the first “Colour Africa” at the Rathaus Gallery in the centre of Munich in year 2000 and elevated the Zimbabwean artists and their work at a prestigious venue and location on an international platform which they so justly deserved.
In the city centre of Harare new kid on the block “First Floor Gallery” made remarkable steps in the positive direction with a host of both national and international art exhibitions as well as master classes.
Their monthly exhibitions became popular attracting new audiences each time they had a show opening. Inscribed in their documents of existence amongst other things, First Floor Gallery (FFG) recognises that art cultural language is for the people and should be taken to the populace. Severally they defected from their city centre base to conduct shows where multitudes of customers pass through.
FFG had a couple shows at The Basement where they had maiden international exhibition titled “Art In The City” which featured paintings by South African-born Australian artist Richard Butler-Bowdon, who was supported by a couple of credible young artists who are regular exhibitors in many important national art shows. FFG also exhibited in Mbare under the theme “Mbare Kutapira” by 2010 National Arts Merit Award winners Zacharaha Magasa and Wycliffe Mundopa graced by a seasoned guest artist Moffat Takadiwa.
Not to be out done were Domboramwari Art Village who had a wonderful multimedia show at their centre themed “Small Works” and “Dzimbanhete Arts Interactions” (DAI) 2011 edition of their annual print show dubbed “Zviro Zviedzwa” that also took place at their centre that lies between the Lion and Cheetah Park and the Snake World in a natural environment of interlocking Savanna bushy trees in between enormous granite and sedimentary rocks.
Of great significance towards the development of the visual arts sector in the country were the efforts by the Culture Fund of Zimbabwe Trust in collaboration with African Regional Intellectual Property Rights Office when they conducted a critical Intellectual Property Rights capacity building workshop for Harare metropolitan visual arts sector at Aripo in Harare on July 8, 2011.
There were various presentations by well-informed experts on various topics concerning Intellectual Property Rights and an insight on our national copyright legislation.
Workshop participants who were artists and representatives of various visual art organisations cited huge information gaps amongst majority of their nationwide colleagues and the non-existence of a national representative body that will be capacitated to redress the anomalies. Consequently, it was decided that a steering committee be formed to start the processes necessary towards formation of a strong representative visual arts body.
The Culture Fund trust also went to conduct a similar workshop in Bulawayo and a steering committee from that region too was formed. To date “Harare Visual Arts Sector Steering Committee” has conducted two major consultative seminars with some of Harare’s visual artists at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe and a series of consultative outreach seminars in Warren Park, Mbare, Hatfield and Chitungwiza.
The committee to date has recorded invaluable information reflective of visual artists’ hindrances towards development and their proposed solutions to help establish a dynamic and sustainable sector.
The 2011 art year would not be the same without the acknowledgement of the exceptional media coverage of visual art events by both the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation Television and the print media especially The Herald which published well beyond a hundred articles on fine art inside the year.
We hope the trend will continue in the years ahead and the national visual arts representative body being formed as well as improvement of artists’ welfare.
- Stephen Garan’anga is an international fine artist, independent art projects co-ordinator, chairperson of AfricanColours Artists, critical visual arts writer amongst other things.
Online Reporter