THE yokes and bondage of the African women in colonial times prevented them from practising their art in public spaces.
The intellectual, social and cultural space of African women in formerly colonised nations had been restricted and socially reduced in importance to the backroom of contemporary art and thinking.
It has thus been ingrained in our mental associations to relate the African woman artiste with the minor arts of domestic utility crafts, batiks, pottery, basketry and beadwork.
Zimbabwe is one of the few countries where traditionally and culturally, women have societal influence and power and gender equality in the socio-cultural and socio-political spheres.
Spirit mediums, royal queens and female political leaders have been guiding our cultural way of life for centuries: We have a national symbol of colonial resistance in the person of Ambuya Nehanda and we have the Shona concept of Sherukuru a female-led, spiritual aristocracy which acknowledges the governance role of women in our societies.
Zimbabweans are astutely aware of the relevance of, and the decisive role that females play in leadership, creativity, domestic and cultural spaces.
Further, the accommodative nature of Shona cultural ways recognises the talent, vision leadership and the guardianship roles that women play in society – from the early education of children to the maternal advice of mid-wives; our aunts and tetes have been given a decisive voice in our communities.
The making of pottery and the other practicalities that go with ritual and ceremony are the artisanal domain of women.
They also create our processional instruments – i.e. rattles, hosho, gourds, ankle rattles; clean the deze that houses and carries the Mbira. Women grind the corn and work the fields, and are literally responsible for the ceremonial preparation, arrangement and consummation of African indigenous socio-religious activities.
The field of Occidental art has a history of omitting women from their social positions and influential roles of governance.
The Western contemporary gender discourse in the arts at times limits critical commentary on art created by African women. Contemporary art made by African women in particular, is often erroneously associated with minor arts.
This Western anomaly therefore, denies the African women artistes a contemporary identity; belittles their intelligence and undermines their creative abilities and philosophies.
It is refreshing therefore, to note that a comparative number of indigenous Zimbabwean women artists have acquired Post-graduate art education and technical experience in Occidental universities and are addressing Post-Colonial African and global socio-cultural and political issues in their discourse.
In independent Zimbabwe today, women artists of indigenous ethnicities are responsible for great works of contemporary art.
It is on this premise that one looks at a selection of work from progressive indigenous Zimbabwean women artists; printmakers, photographers, sculptors and videographers, whose achievements have gone largely unnoticed despite their outstanding proficiency.
Following Zimbabwe’s independence in 1980, the indigenous artist needed new impulses for artistic self-expression and these were manifested in the art created by the new rank of Post-Independent African women artists most of whom were active but unacknowledged. The women artists of today are made up of post-graduates, self-taught and intuitive artists.
Artists, Agnes Nyanhongo, the late Colleen Madamombe, Locardia Ndandarika, Letwin Mugavazi, Berry Bickle, Gillian Rosselli, Olga Azevedo, Marjorie Wallace, Netsayi Mukomberanwa, Estelle Mbefura, Gemma Rodrigues, Zanele Anne Mutema, and Ashley Breda are some of whom have achieved international recognition but remain comparatively unacknowledged.
Although economically, they may have gained a livelihood from their artistic activities, many had not gained social recognition until the mid-1990, while others became visible in the new millennium.
One such woman is Masvingo-born, professional artist, Ashley Breda, a Post-Graduate scholar, multi-media sculptor and installation artist.
She is one of the unsung artists claiming her space as a voice of reason on the international arts circuit.
Breda is best-known for her works which cover profound socio-economic and geo-political topics.
Post-Colonial, Pan African issues such as colonial over-crowding and housing for Africans, urban displacement, mismanagement of environmental resources, the financial negligence of African economies and indigenous land rights are some topics she addresses in her art works.
Studying and living in the UK and Zimbabwe has inspired her to tackle African socio-cultural issues that are often misunderstood and misconstrued in the Western world.
Her works explore the questions of identity and racism, as well as ideas and theories relating to socio-economic criticism of the spaces women occupy in formerly colonised African societies.
Among the more experimental and dynamic young artists is Zanele Anne Mutema whose works have graced many galleries and symposiums around the world.
Born in Harare in November1988, Zanele Anne attended Queen Elizabeth Girls High School. She applied and won scholarships to study at the Visual Art School, National Gallery, Harare Polytechnic and The Peter Birch School of Art.
Mutema first exhibited her work in 2008, at Mona’s Gallery and has since taken part in many exhibitions in Zimbabwe and abroad.
Her art works celebrate contemporary female accomplishments and the power of the crafted object as a culturally valuable asset.
Photographers Davina Joggee, Anne Mpalume, and filmmakers Rumbie Katedza, Xholiswa Sithole, Tsitsi Dangarembgwa take-up the camera lens as their media of artistic discourse.
All five women have won international film awards and have endorsed Zimbabwe as an artistic incubator to be reckoned with for women photographers and filmmakers.
Davina Jogi, a renowned Zimbabwean artist and photojournalist, returned home from her studies in South Africa 2010.
She was employed as an assistant photo editor at The Times newspaper in South Africa from 2008 – 2010. During this time she was nominated for World Press Photo’s Joop Swart Masterclass twice, and was selected to participate in their project – “The Road to 2010 and Beyond” which provided a platform for African journalists to tell the story of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Davina has undertaken assignments for the Open Society Initiative of Southern Africa (OSISA) and the International Anti Poaching Foundation (IAPF) in Victoria Falls.
Her art photography tells positive stories about Zimbabwe which have not been covered by the international mainstream media.
Outstanding Zimbabwean conceptual artist, painter, photographer and sculptor Gillian Rosselli, is an art lecturer at Harare International School. Gillian Rosselli’s work has always been tied to the land and the elements. Her works capture the elements of nature; the earth, the wind, fire and water.
In the 1995 ground-breaking “National Heritage” she swooped three awards of distinction and merit for her mixed media works “Shona Folklore”, “Our Thirsty Land” and “Work of a Rural Wood Carver”.
Doris Kamupira, Juliette Copperi and Mercy Moyo are contemporary women blacksmiths and metal forgers who tackle the hammer and anvil, welding and assembling metal artworks.
All have fared extremely well in the male dominated world of metal sculpture, metal forging, blacksmithing and assemblage art.
It is not by coincidence that today Zimbabwean women are holding their own and proving their mettle in international artistic discourse in their expression of our culture.
To date there are over 73 known and world-recognised Zimbabwean women sculptors, painters, printmakers, textile artists, filmmakers and graphic artists. Chances are, there are many more talented women artists who are not known.
It is therefore vital to acknowledge and direct attention to Zimbabwean women’s creative activities in the context of contemporary visual arts.
It is imperative for Zimbabweans to celebrate the history and contribution made by these unique, talented and patriotic women.
By wagering and claiming their space within contemporary post-colonial expressions of Zimbabwe, women artists are perpetuating the important centrality of their roles in determining and defining African culture.
The intricate detail and buried meanings in their work is an excellent example of how the African female voice which was previously muzzled and mute, has been released and today offer intellectually stimulating discussions of our African society.
Dr Tony Monda holds a PhD. in Art Theory and Philosophy and a DBA (Doctorate in Business Administration) and Post-Colonial Heritage Studies.