adminThe metal, iron is an unyielding resolute medium, which can only be brought to life by fire.
Then, it becomes malleable, pliable, versatile, solid or liquid, and can be endowed with any form or shape. It is a medium that has enchanted man from the beginning of time.
Early Iron Age
Ironware was found in Zimbabwe over 2 000 years ago. It is an ancient craft, which was predominant in areas where iron deposits were found – along the Great Dyke plateau that straddles the country. Redcliff, Kwekwe, Hurungwe, Hwedza and Shurugwi are areas known to have the most significant deposits of iron ore.
The Iron Age Shona craftsmen and blacksmiths were respected and revered for their role in supplying the materials needed for daily life.
Hoes, axes, spears, arrowheads, daggers, iron beads and small vessels were made in iron for utility, decoration and rituals during the Iron Age.
Function was the key to form. But in addition to utility there was an appreciation for ergonomic design sensibilities, portability, proportion, balance, harmony and ornament.
These aesthetic qualities can be seen in most ancient Zimbabwean metal and wooden artifacts and material culture. Artistic traditions were expressed to a large degree through the hand of the craftsman. However, blacksmithing was considered a prestigious craft and was referred to as “the Kings Craft” – for which they would be given chieftainship.
The advent of contemporary metal sculpture in Zimbabwe dawned in the early 1970s – much later than contemporary stone sculpture, which had taken root in 1959. In those early days only a handful of visual artists experimented with the medium. One of the early practitioners of metal sculpture, who stumbled upon the idea “while looking at scrap metal in a junkyard,” is local artist Arthur Azevedo, who is also a master draughtsman, painter, visual arts lecturer and historian. Azevedo is the foremost metal sculptor in Zimbabwe, who has innovated and dominated the medium for over 35 years.
His profusion of artistic creativity and technical prowess has not gone unnoticed, and he has participated in over 67 exhibitions to date.
He possesses an exceptional visual literacy, which allows him to identically visualise images in discarded scrap metal.
According to an essay penned by his daughter, Delfina Barschdorf, (August 2009), “He works principally by respecting the information contained in the material . . . his interpretive imagination provides him with an analogy of the subject he wishes to create.”
In psychology of art, this process of recognising complete forms in “I’art trouve” (found objects), is known as bi-associative synaptic vision. The aptitude of seeing a complete image in unrelated arbitrary shapes. As such, Azevedo is a master of identical vision.
He possesses a visual memory of prodigious accuracy, which enables him to capture images at his disposal and recognise the image in an arbitrary piece of scrap metal. His importance in contemporary Zimbabwean art stems from his technical innovations in scrap metal sculpture.
His use of industrial techniques such as blow torch cutting, welding and riveting, have had a profound influence on the development of metal sculpture in Zimbabwe. He has transformed metal sculpture into a viable artistic medium.
The increased popularity of metal sculpture in Zimbabwe in recent years is due to the relatively easy accessibility and availability of scrap metal and welding tools – but the general standards, of execution and presentation of the works are a far cry from Azevedo’s mastery of the medium.
Human, animal and bird imagery
As an art critic, this writer is drawn to use comparative studies of occidental artists with local artists.
One has noticed Azevedo’s predilection for familiar bird and animal sculptures, which poses theatrical gestures. His steel images of crows, owls, hammerkops, storks, bulls and dogs in characteristic poses keep us perpetually astonished at the penetration of his vision.
One is reminded of the linear metal sculpture of Spanish artist Julio Gonzales (1876) -1942), the approach of Pablo Picasso (1889- 1973), and the interpretation and finish of metal sculptor Lynn Chadwick as well as John Chamberlain, all of whom possessed an identical vision and worked from the fortuitous discovery of discarded materials – the art of chaos and chance!
Cultural value
Arthur Azevedo’s work celebrates the exchange of human aesthetic and cultural values. His work affirms the common human experience through the universal language of an art accessible to all. His art can be seen as a powerful instrument for art education in the broadest sense. He is an artist who has synthesised years of experience into formidable, expressive and durable art works in metal.
He looks at the world with a continuous new vision, and through his “metal musings” enables us to do likewise. His works are worth collecting. They are historically and stylistically timeless, rare collectors items. He has many works in private and public collections throughout the world.
l Dr Tony Monda holds a PhD in Post-Modern Art Theory and Philosophy and a DBA Doctorate in Business Administration in Post Colonial Art and Heritage Studies. He is also a practising artist, visual designer and art critic.
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