This celebration exhibited
a
unique collection of Zimbabwean Shona Sculpture
in the gardens of the Centre of Creativity, and a free
performance of Gizmo's youngest Performing Artists, also
featuring a Japanese Sword fighting demonstration,
live Jazz music and a Hungarian Cooking Demonstration
next to the pleasure of the big Trampoline, fire and a
marvellous view of the sea.
Laura Chiweshe told us that
"Sculpture
is probably the most befitting art that celebrates a
true Zimbabwean culture. The name
Zimbabwe
itself is a celebration of stone buildings and sculpture
that the earliest inhabitants of this country are
believed to have been experts in. Dzimba dzemabwe
“houses of stone” is a celebration of the artistic urge
that drew the forebears of this country to the call of
stone and gives meaning and significance to this ancient
country’s rich history in stonework. Today,
Zimbabwe’s stone
sculpture has become renowned world wide for its rare
originality and unique artistic touches. Zimbabwean
sculpture has produced internationally celebrated
artists, such the late Joram Mariga, the late Nicholas
Mukomberanwa and Dominic Benhura, whose impact on the
global arts scene remains unmatched.
Zimbabwe
Stone Sculpture
recognises the importance of Shona spirituality that is
at the centre of stonework among the Shona people. The
Great Zimbabwe bird, one of the early stone carvings by
the Shona people which has been incorporated into the
country’s flag represents a profound and deeply rooted
spiritual meaning of the people we have to know as
‘Shona people’ today.” The ‘Zimbabwe
birds’ specifically are said to be discovered in the
ancient City of Zimbabwe that dates back to the early
13th century, were set atop totem poles to represent
wisdom and truth.
Since the
beginning of time the Shona tribe have sculpted in
stone, not for money or fame or recognition, but for the
love of their land, their people and the rich culture in
it. It is an essential means of communicating the deep
and complex nature of the relationships that are
fundamental to life in Zimbabwe, incorporating all that
is seen and much of what is unseen into stone.
All Sculptures are
for Sale
with thanks to the Iranian Shona Stone Sculpture
Whole Saler Mehrdad Khallaghi
who
bought the Sculptures directly from the
Zimbabwean Artists. A
percentage of the proceeds will be used to sustain
future BRING A DISH Cultural Celebrations, which take
place every last Saturday of each month.
“There is a widespread assumption today
that art must necessarily be international. …. But
against this trend one finds isolated pockets of
resistance, which suggest that good art can (perhaps
must) be a local affair – the product of a particular
place and culture. And of the one of the most remarkable
in the contemporary world is the last 30 years …. placed
beside the dismal stuff so beloved of the international
art bureaucracy – as they were in the 1990 Biennale –
these African carvings shine out in a desolate world.”
The Sunday Telegraph,
England
1991
“The sculptor is concerned with the
formal and expressive aspects of his medium, and there
is an almost inevitable fusion of idea and material
which is the essence of all good art… Henry’s diminutive
and easily overlooked ‘Hornbill’ – a carving of
wonderful simplicity – is possibly the finest, because
of its purity of shape and the economy of its means.”
Andrew Verster, Daily News,
Durban,
South Africa
1979.
