National Gallery of Zimbabwe Curator

INTERVEIW WITH MUNYARADZI MAZARIRE

2011-11-20T23:13:00.001-08:00

Born in 1969 in a family of four Munyaradzi grew up in Kwekwe and it was then that he began art at a very tender age.
Mazarire began his art studies in the year 2001 with Harare Polytechnic and completed his Diploma in Applied Art and Designs in 2003. He further pursued his studies with Chinhoyi University in Creative Art and Design from 2005 to 2009.
Currently Munyaradzi resides in Epworth with his wife and two children and has become a popular figure due to his extraordinary creative abilities.

MEL : WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO VENTURE INTO ART?
MUNYARADZI : I HAVE HAD A PASSION FOR ART EVER SINCE I WAS A LITTLE BOY
   AND IT GAVE ME SOME FORM OF INNER SATISFACTION WHEN I
   ENGAGED IN ANY FORM OF ART.

MEL : APART FROM THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ZIMBABWE
   WHERE ELSE HAVE YOU EXHIBITED YOUR WORKS?
MUNYARADZI : NOT ONLY HAVE I SHOWCASESD MY WORKS WITHIN THE
   COUNTRY BUT I HAVE ALSO SHOWN IN OTHER COUNTRIES.
   IN ZIMBABWE I'VE BEEN TO DOMBORAMWARI ART GALLERY,
   GALLERY DELTA  AND DZIMBANHETE ARTS INTERACTIONS
   TRUST.IVE ALSO EXHIBITED IN FRANCE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF
   AND NGONG FOREST IN KENYA.

MEL :WHAT THEMES DO YOU USUALLY CAPTURE?
MUNYARADZI  :THEMES OF VISUAL EXCITEMENT.

MEL :WHAT MEDIA DO YOU USE TO PRODUCE YOUR ART?
MUNYARADZI :I USE A VARIETY OF MATERIALS NAMELY FIBRE GLASS,
   METAL, WOOD, ASBESTORS BUT LETTER TO GOD ARTWORKS
   I USED ZEST AND MIXED MEDIA.

MEL :WITH THE CURRENT TRENDS LIKE GLOBALISATION AND THE
   RISE OF INFORMATION, COMMUNICATION AND TECHNOLOGY
   (ICT) HOW DO YOU VEIW AFRICAN ART IN THE NEXT FIVE
   TO TEN YEARS?
MUNYARADZI:AFRICAN ART IS DEVELOPING MORE AND MORE EACH DAY AND
   IN THE NEXT ERA ARTISTS WILL HAVE THE FREEDOM OF
   ENGAGING IN ANY FORM OF ART SO AS TO FULLY EXPRESS
   THEMSELVES.

MEL :MANY ARE OF THE VEIW THAT AFRICAN ART HAS BEEN
   INFLUENCED BY WESTERN TRENDS. WHATS YOUR VEIW?
MUNYARADZI:IN ACTUAL FACT IT IS AFRICAN ART THAT HAS INFLUENCED
   EUROPEAN ART,IT'S THE OTHER WAY ROUND.

MEL   :HOW HAS THE NATIONAL GALLERY BEEN OF ASSISSTANCE IN
   EXHIBITING YOUR WORKS?
MUNYARADZI:THE GALLERY HAS HELPED IN EXPOSING AND
   NETWORKING TO OTHER ARTISTS. IT HAS ALSO GIVEN ME
   ROOM TO HOST A LECTURES AND TALKS SO AS TO FULLY
   DISSERMINATE INFORMATION OF MY EXHIBITION TO THE PUBLIC.

MEL :ANY RECOMMENDATIONS TO OTHER ARTISTS PERTAING TO
   GALLERY SERVICES?
MUNYARADZI:PERSONNALLY I HAVE GAINED SO MUCH PUBLICITY THROUGH
   THE GALLERY,IVE APPEARED IN THE PRESS NAMELY DAILY NEWS
   AFRICAN COLOURS, ZIMBO JAM AND EVEN ON THE NGZ WEBSITE
   WITHIN A SHORT SPACE OF TIME.
   IF ONE IS TO EXHIBIT AT A NATIONAL INSTITUTE HE OR SHE IS
   TO BE GLOBALLY RECOGNISED AND ALSO THE GALLERY OFFERS
   ENOUGH SPACE TO EXHIBITE AND ACCOMMODATE SPECTATORS.

HARARE CONVERSATIONS WITH JELILI ATIKU

2011-11-15T01:51:00.000-08:00

Opalamba- Heart to heart was the title of the talk that took place yet again at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe on the 2nd of Novembert 2011.
Jelili Atiku is a contemporary Nigerian sculptor, vidoe and performance artist.He is also an artist of Human Rights in Nigeria.
Opalamba is a Yoruba proverb which means broken bottles ahead, by this Atiku brought about his idealogies basing on the veiw that changes in Africa began when the white men came yet Africa had her own culural values and norms.
In his discussion Atiku went on further to highlight that bodies become the cover of expressing art.His work centres on the notion that,'art is supposed to increse the sensitivity of his beholder.' What inspires his works he says are both his personal and country's experiences henceforth he burns hthe edges of his works after completion so as to symbolise the burning sentiments that linger inside him.
Atiku says he uses the colour red in most of his works because he believes red symbolises the blood that has been and still is being spilt over the continent because there still wars in Africa and also because he sees himself as a soul and also believes that red symbolises love and energy which he has for his country Nigeria.
Atiku also uses African symbols in most his works and the ladder which he carries in one of his performances represent all the efforts and struggles African face in different parts of the continent.
There came in a question from the floor asking if it were feasible to separete Western materials or devices from an African performance and he explained that it was inevitable for the changes brought about by globalisation hence the continent and the West are inter linked.
However he also stated that though one may wear western clothes he remains an African therefore the body is a vocal point of expressing art.
Conclusively, Atiku stated that it is up to us as Africans to redefine what we have done so as to equate rather than seperate with the West this can be achieved by knowing and observing ourcilture.

WEEK OF CUBAN CULTURE

2011-11-03T23:57:00.000-07:00

Our country Zimbabwe is coloured with people of various tribes,cultures and races and amongst is the Cuban race.Due to their limited population within the country very few people people have a clear undastanding of their culture and it is due to that fact that the Cuban Embassy together with the National Gallery hosted the 'Week of Cuban Culture' from the 18th to the 22nd of October 2011.
The inaguration of the Week took place on the 18th and remarks were made by His Execellency the Ambassador of the Republic of Cuba in Zimbabwe Mr Enrique A. Prieto Lopez thanking the country for accommodating the Cubans in our country and the gallery for hosting the event.In his spech he also anticipated for a successful week that would turn out to be a great learning opportunity.
For five continous days people were trafficking into the gallery from all parts of the city to come and witness the events that were taking place.Amongst the activities occured was the Cuban fashion show, Cuban Health and Education,testing of Cuban dishes,dance,documentaries so as to mention a few.
The Week also brought in the involvement of school children from Northpark Primary school and Mount Pleasent Primary who took part in the competitions and won various prizes.They also learnt a few things about the foreign culture through the documentaries that were shown to them hence enabling them to have a better undastanding of other surrounding cultures.

The National Gallery serves as a platform for not only conserving and appreciating diverse cultures but it also plays a unifying role in bringing people of different colour in one accord henceforth enhancing co-existence within the country.

CLOSING OF THE ZIMBABWEAN PAVILLION

2011-11-03T23:26:00.000-07:00

On behalf of the Zimbabwe community our partners; Ministry of Education Art,Sport and Culture, National Gallery of Zimbabwe and British Council and our sponsors; Monaco National Musee Nouveau, European Union, Institute Francais and the Principality of Monaco we would like make it known to you that the Zimbabwean Pavillion has been closed.
We apologise for any inconviniences and would like to thank you for all the help and support you have given us throughout thee project.We do hope to see you again in 2013.

Many thanks.

For further information please contact

Raphael Chikukwa
Zimbabwe Pavillion Curator
National Gallery of Zimbabwe
20 Julius Nyerere Way
Causeway
Harare
Zimbabwe

mobile : + 263 773 670 385

tel : + 263 4 704 666/7

fax : + 263 4 704 668

email : raphchikukwa@gmail.com

HARARE CONVERSATIONS WITH ANNEMARIA WILLIS

2011-11-03T03:17:00.000-07:00

"The Creative Enterprenuer" was Annemaria's topic for the conversations held at the national gallery on the 25th of October 2011.
As young and creative artists they ought to be collaborative and not conform to the traditional means of expanding their businesses. In the discussion Anne highlighted the fact that most businesses are the small scale businesses and then develop to become large businesses.It is such a large gap which questions the existence of medium scale businesses.She then noted that as young enterpreneurs,one should cover ground at a pace which is suitable and ideal to whatever it is they intend to venture into.
Not only that but she also noted that as an artist the thing that one is passionate about is the very thing they are good at and by that the creator is always involved with his creation.Thus the enterprenuer creates the market and does not wait to fill in the gap of an already existing market. Creative enterprenuers target the local market for the nearer the more familiarity and the increse in interest.
The young artist is to be dynamic, full of energy and should not listen to the myths about the creative industry hence the need to be determined and level headed.
The enterprenuer is normally financially risk averse and the sources of income come from the THREE F,s which are;
FAMILY,FRIENDS AND funny enough FOOLS.
As a tool kit she equipped the audiece with common aspects of a successful creative enterprenuer listed below:

being a values led individual
to have a conceptual or creative thinking
being stategic thinker
to have a commercial uptitude
to have progect management
being customer sensitivity
to have good networking abilities
good leadership qualities
Innovation-it not only a process but also a set of disciplines
risk assessing-anticipate all risks you are likely to come across then come up with possible alternatives or solutions.

After sharing her discussion the audience also made some add on's and also asked questions on the application of theoratical frameworks in cases of the creative sector and she said that they partly do apply for they assisst the enterprenuerer in the planning and research of the business.

Lastly her word of advice to the audience was to ALWAYS carry your business card for you may never know where your opportunity lies...

Harare Conversations September 2011 at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe.

2011-10-17T05:53:00.001-07:00

Thesis on the work of Romauld Hazoume: Culturalization and counter culturalization by Daniela Roth (An art Scientist and Sociologist) and Ten Thousand Men and Six Years of Sweat: The Visions of Kariba Dam Construction, 1954-1960 Curated by Raphael Chikukwa.

Opening remarks by Raphael Chikukwa,

Raphael gave a brief narrative of the exhibition (Ten thousand men and six years of sweat: the visions of Kariba Dam Construction), why he decided to exhibit it, the title of the exhibition and its history .He wrote an article on the exhibition and these circulated within the audience hence he did not further explaining.

He says chose such a title for the exhibition because he had come to the realization that the men who had constructed the dam had played a very big role and it was only fair enough if their efforts had been appreciated. Kariba Dam construction was one of the major projects in the 1960’s and today its story remains vivid in the minds of those who worked on it and the Tonga who were affected by the dam. Artworks documenting the Dam’s construction occupy the National Gallery of Zimbabwe’s Courtauld Gallery. Among the paintings by Waalko, Giovvanni and Hatty are atefacts showing the Tonga’s way of life. The Tonga were greatly affected by the Dam’s construction hence their way of life had to be shown together with the works and how they remain part of the cultural sphere of contemporary art.

Daniela also shared her thesis based as the guest of honour and it was on the works of Romauld Hazoume, a Benin artist born in 1962 and best known for the Jerry canes. Her presentation included to Hazoume’s way of life, his art and how he started. Hazoume has managed to use found objects to express himself and his works that include paintings have made the intangible tangible and realistic. His art therefore resembled the African culture and some of his works include; the rainbow snake the Dragonfly – created from the Jerry canes question several issues that include slavery, globalization, capitalism etc.

“I am an artist, do what I want,” he says. In European countries people expect black people to wear masks because of their black colour and so he made the masks hence the masks speak culturalization.

His masks were made from plastic and not wood and his paintings have made the intangible tangible and realistic. Daniela’s thesis was followed by a question and answer segment. ( a sculpture which resembled the 200 years of slavery ,a symbol of eternal disaster for slavery still exists), (this piece of work serves as a warning of the effects of globalization) so as to mention a few.

The audience also asked many questions such why Daniela took interest in that particular artist and she explained the work was amazing but was never put into consideration and also because she wanted to question Germany’s Education about African art since they are of the view that whatever transpired in Africa was not of importance.

Some of the questions were also in relation to the Kariba dam construction such as the origination of the and justice being exercised after their execution and Raphael explained that they were the original settlers of the area and though the dam had to be constructed at their expense for a bigger cause they should have received a fair share of compensation.

Not only was the audience inquisitive but they also made contributions as to urge the African nation to always resemble themselves as Africans in whichever way they desire because Africa is everywhere they are; for it is what we believe in and how best we convey our ideas. That means we ought to be smart enough to know that we should not be divide d anymore for we are all Africans and w share the same struggles.

As Koyo (curator from Senegal) said “Art is not a terrain of beauty, style and glamour alone but it is also a terrain of extremely high political, social and economic confrontation….”Thus the art man’s piece speaks a thousand words more than a thousand people.

UNICEF LAUNCH AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ZIMBABWE

2011-10-03T07:04:00.000-07:00

Tuesday September 29,2011 the National Art Gallery of Zimbabwe hosted a launch with UNICEF entitled Launch of the National Action Plan for Orphans and Vulnerable Children(phase 2,2011-2015) through the Child Protection Fund.

The launch took place in the Coultaud Gallery and guests from various sects and sections of the gorvernment, churches ,donor community and most importantly he children from the Child Representatives were present.The eventwas also marked by the guest of honour Prime Minister Honourable Morgan Tsvangirai, Minister of Labour and Social Services Honourable Paurina Mpariwa, Deputy Permanant Secretary Madam Thokozani Khupe and other honourablemembers and members of staff from the gallery.
Some of the themes for the launch included empowering families, providing adequate love , child protection and identity and prioritising the girl child.Children from the Child Representatives gave a speech raising part of their concerns such as facing difficulties in obtaining national identity cards and birth rights.
The Prime Minister Honourable Morgan Tsvangirai also gave a speech asserting that the children had spoken and it was now up to yhe government to implement.He did also mention that the gorvenment is committed to the welfare and has adopted to some of the programmes that are in support to the children such as the Street Kid Fund, BEAM,Child Protection Fund so as to mention a few.
The Donor Community has also given much support to the children for the have introduced cash transfers as a means of increasing school enrolement and better health. The transfers aim to make the shocking poverty statistics atale of the past and raise household income.
Local artists who attended the launch include Oliver Mtukudzi, Prudence Mabhena and a number of visual artists who performed celebrating songs.

It is every child's right to attain good education, to be loved, to play and to have their voices heard and by protecting these rights we will help build a better Zimbabwe.