Sculpture history under threat

Godwin Muzari Showbiz Mirror
Stone sculpture is one of local arts genres that carry the nation’s cultural and artistic identity, exploring various issues about our way of life. For years, stone-carving has been revered internationally and some of the best sculpture pieces by first and second generation Zimbabwean sculptors stand imposingly in the world’s major galleries.

Besides a few local traditional dances, sculpture and mbira music have penetrated the international market as expressions of traditional beliefs and history.

While the preservation of mbira music and its passage across generations is made easy through recordings and repetitive performances of folk songs, the survival of original art in sculpture is under threat.

Most of the best pieces by sculptors of different generations have been sold and shipped outside the country.

The pieces by first generation sculptors that used to be kept at some galleries are gradually disappearing due to decline of activity in sculpture. Galleries are closing or scaling down operations while aspiring stone-carvers are slowly losing interest in the art due to the appalling situation.

Those creative and original pieces from some of the big names in sculpture could completely disappear unless serious action is taken to safeguard them.

When Chapungu Sculpture Park was put under liquidation more than a year ago, some art collectors came to buy good pieces at the park for low prizes. It took the intervention of Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe and the National Gallery of Zimbabwe to rescue some sculptures and a few wood carvings from Chapungu for the gallery’s permanent collection.

Sculptures by the likes of Fanizani Akuda, Joseph Ndandarika, Bernard Matemera, Sylvester Mubayi, Colleen Madamombe and Agness Nyanhongo have been taken for the permanent collection.

Many other sculptors worked outside established sculpture institutions and their works were only seen at gallery exhibitions. It is mainly for this reason that University of Zimbabwe lecturer Zvakanyorwa Wilbert Sadomba has initiated a programme to ensure the important part of our sculpture history does not get erased for good.

Sadomba was instrumental in the setting up of Zimbabwe Sculpture organisation that seeks, among other things, to safeguard the creative works of the sculpture industry.

They have set up a centre in Concession where some sculptures will be permanently kept to ensure the works of the country’s renowned sculptors live forever.

“We do not even have anywhere where we keep our best pieces of sculpture as a nation as most pieces have been bought and shipped out of the country. We created the Nhaka Cultural Heritage Centre in Concession where we commission artists to create pieces that will be kept permanently so that local art lovers can view the works instead of letting our great creations go to other countries,” Sadomba outlined his idea.

Some works by late renowned sculptors have all been taken by foreign collectors and they need to be bought back if their history is to be kept back home. In fact, some unscrupulous local sculptors are now making pieces similar to the departed sculptors’ style and selling them purporting they were done by the late sculptors.

Sculptor Dominic Benhura says it will be difficult for the country to keep the important history of our sculpture because there are very few local collectors. For a long time there were no local collectors of sculptures since very few appreciate the art. However, there has been a slow rise in local collectors over the last few years and well-known among them are musician Oliver Mtukudzi and doctor Solomon Guramatunhu.

Benhura said the corporate world should intervene to ensure that the interesting history about the rise of sculpture in the country does not get erased forever. The idea to have intervention of companies has been suggested for many years but it seems very few are willing to assist.

It would be sad to have local arts students studying pioneering sculptors resorting to foreign galleries to see the works. Maybe the solution is to start teaching the young to appreciate local art so that we have more collectors in the future.