The Mestaria Gallery in Alserkal Avenue in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, will be showcasing a collection of traditional Zimbabwean sculptures by contemporary artists in their new exhibition “The Shona Collective”.
The Shona Collective exhibition will be running from January 27 until February 17, 2023.
The exhibition will showcase the work of nine Zimbabwean artists from their atelier, The Shona Collective.
The artists are David White, Bywell Sango, Gregory Mutasa, Tawanda Makore, Royal Katiyo, Leonard Sezhendo, Lovemore Bonjisi, Witness Bonjisi, and Dominic Benhura.
Speaking to The National, the Shona Collective founder, Demitris Petrides, said:
I am excited to show the world how the third generation of Shona sculptors has transformed into producing more modern works with new types of stones that can only be found in Zimbabwe.
… I am a strong believer that every single piece will find its predestined owner.
The Shona art style is a centuries-old stone sculpting tradition of the Shona, with the skills and techniques passed down within families from one generation to the next.
The sculptors used only a hammer and chisel to carve stone.
They all work with the same materials which include the hardest varieties of serpentine gemstones such as springstone, fruit serpentine and leopard rock. | The National