{"id":3131,"date":"2026-10-24T15:36:08","date_gmt":"2026-10-24T15:36:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blockspaceballads.com\/?p=3131"},"modified":"2026-10-24T15:39:39","modified_gmt":"2026-10-24T15:39:39","slug":"david-chikuzenis-self-possessive-art-universe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blockspaceballads.com\/?p=3131","title":{"rendered":"David Chikuzeni’s Self-Possessive Art Universe"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

By Rukudzo Onai<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

avid Chikuzeni’s sculpture is a self-possessive universe. Four things immediately stand out in the deceptive simplicity of this art: the massive hands, the \u2013 should we say \u2013 natural hair, the flat surfaces, and a hollow circle which keeps coming back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unworked natural stone stands for hair: a spiritual connector in its own right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What about the hands? In the grind of the elements \u2013 the buzz and blitz of global changes \u2013 the massive hands folding around Chikuzeni’s forms tell us the all too eternal message: “Possess yourself!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flat surfaces are the classical language of Shona Art. They channel emotion through balance, shadow and proportion rather than full-figure realism. In the abstract visions of early Shona Art, Albert Nathan Mamvura’s flat surfaces contrasted \u2013 for example \u2013 with the rounded figuration of his contemporary, Sylvester Mubayi. Chikuzeni is a living protege of Mamvura, while other school of thoughts are also well-represented by artists carving today at Chitungwiza Arts Centre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A fascinating anecdote: some of the Old Masters of Shona Art just looked at the raw stone, punched a few holes and \u2013 in their inner eye of dream, at least \u2013 the sculpture was complete. You may find a brooding head, massive hands or some such abstracted feature sitting around the negative space of a hollow circle in Chikuzeni’s sculptures. The circle organizes the features into a story, while the features give back character to the circle as a spiritual portal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is a mermaid somewhere called “The Womanfish.” Our ancestors had a peaceful relationship with nature based on respect for its rules. The totems they passed down to us ensure that each animal and each element will always have someone to look after it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This sculpture shows Masiziba, the Queen of the Lake totem. As half woman and half fish, she does not belong to her totem from a distance: She, herself, is her totem. This illustrates that the deepest harmony with nature is encoded through totems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are not only taught to honor our totems, but we also honor the totems of our mothers, the totems of our partners, and the totem of the land. In this way, our relationship with nature is not one of greed and exploitation but one of honor, care, respect and peace. Nature returns the favor by taking us under its wings to protect us from the wind, giving us its tail to swim through waves of life, and gifting us its fur to make us survive the cold forest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

INBOX TO ORDER OR INQUIRE ABOUT DAVID CHIKUZENI SCULPTURES<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Four things immediately stand out in the deceptive simplicity of David Chikuzeni’s art: the massive hands, the \u2013 should we say \u2013 natural hair, the flat surfaces, and a hollow circle which keeps coming back.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3132,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[107],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3131","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sculpture"],"yoast_head":"\nDavid Chikuzeni's Self-Possessive Art Universe | Blockspace<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blockspaceballads.com\/?p=3131\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"David Chikuzeni's 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