Agnes Nyanhongo
Agnes Nyanhongo, born in 1960 in Nyanga, Agnes is considered to be one of the most prominent and successful of the second generation of Zimbabwe´s sculptors and one of the few women sculptors in her field.
As a child she spent a great deal of time helping her father with the polishing of his sculpture. The sensitivity with which she expresses her ideas and her respect for the material that is so apparent in her work could arguably have resulted from these early formative experiences.
In 1981 she moved to Harare and in 1983 began a three-year course at the B.A.T. Workshops, where she was considered to be one of the most promising students. Her quiet determination and belief in her work have carried it along a purposeful and individual path and have now earned her great critical acclaim and many awards. She works quite extensively with the human form, sometimes specifically with female issues, but always expressing a calm strength and almost watchful peace that seems so true to her own personality and character.
Agnes derives some inspiration from the stone itself, but much of her work portrays the natural world around her, including birds and rabbits, watching closely, but ultimately working from her own mental images of the subject matter. However, it is in the area of traditional spiritual stories that she has become increasingly involved with recently.
Not only does she feel that it is as important now as it ever was to retain the traditional Shona stories and beliefs, but she believes, as a sculptor, she has a greater responsibility to do this. ´´It is easier for artists as they can portray them in a striking figurative way which, when combined with a strong title, will remind or tell the viewer of an important story and this will remain with them´´. Women´s issues too have run through her career. I try somehow to express the role women play in society and the way they are being treated - they are still not free. They are struggling for freedom. Men must also see this because it is something that exists between men and women. At times her work has a quite specific message; for example, Mother & Child Refugee (1987) portrayed an overtly political image of the tragedy faced by the vulnerable victims of the Mozambique war.
Agnes has now worked at Chapungu for five years and relishes the opportunity to escape family distractions and interruptions and have a place of her ´own´ to work. Working mostly with Serpentine, but favouring the Green variety native to her home area of Nyanga, recent works have included Thinker, Resting Bird, Water Spirit and Chapungu. Her work has taken its place alongside those of the greatest Zimbabwean sculptors in many successful exhibitions worldwide.
Artist Sculpture:
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