Square Chikwanda
Encyclopedia
Square Chikwanda is a Zimbabwe
an sculptor, living and working in Harare, Zimbabwe. He first learned his art from his father, also a Zimbabwean sculptor.
, Chikwanda moved to the Tengenenge Sculpture Community with his father at the age of seven
. There his father taught him at an early age to wash and polish stone. He finished primary school and learned the art of sculpture to become a full-time artist at the age of thirteen, developing his own style. At the Community he had several students, of whom Jonathan Mhondorohuma
became a good friend. In 1993 he left the community to work in Harare
at the Chapungu Sculpture Park
. At this Park, Square continued expanding his artistic know-how, which made him one of the leading Harare sculptors. Square now (2006) works on his own in Chitungwiza
, a Harare suburb. His work has been exhibited worldwide.
, Lemon Opal, Springstone, Verdite and Cobalt
.
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
an sculptor, living and working in Harare, Zimbabwe. He first learned his art from his father, also a Zimbabwean sculptor.
Short Biography
Born in MvurwiMvurwi
Mvurwi is a town in Mashonaland Central province in Zimbabwe.Some of Mvurwi's schools include Holy Rosary Primary and Secondary School, Mvurwi Primary and HighSchool and Umvukwes Primary School which is one of the town's most elite learning facilities and...
, Chikwanda moved to the Tengenenge Sculpture Community with his father at the age of seven
. There his father taught him at an early age to wash and polish stone. He finished primary school and learned the art of sculpture to become a full-time artist at the age of thirteen, developing his own style. At the Community he had several students, of whom Jonathan Mhondorohuma
Jonathan Mhondorohuma
Jonathan Mhondorohuma is a Zimbabwean sculptor.A native of Mvurwi, Mhondorohuma attended primary school in his hometown, also completing his O levels there. In 1989 he was invited by his friend Square Chikwanda to come work at the Tengenenge Sculpture Community; he spent the next six months there...
became a good friend. In 1993 he left the community to work in Harare
Harare
Harare before 1982 known as Salisbury) is the largest city and capital of Zimbabwe. It has an estimated population of 1,600,000, with 2,800,000 in its metropolitan area . Administratively, Harare is an independent city equivalent to a province. It is Zimbabwe's largest city and its...
at the Chapungu Sculpture Park
Chapungu Sculpture Park
The Chapungu Sculpture Park is a sculpture park in Msasa, Harare, Zimbabwe, which displays the work of Zimbabwean stone sculptors. Its was founded in 1970 by Roy Guthrie, who was instrumental in promoting the work of its sculptors worldwide...
. At this Park, Square continued expanding his artistic know-how, which made him one of the leading Harare sculptors. Square now (2006) works on his own in Chitungwiza
Chitungwiza
Chitungwiza — known colloquially as Chi Town — is a high-density dormitory town in Zimbabwe. The town is approximately 30 kilometres south of the capital, Harare. It was formed in 1978 from three townships: Seke, Zengeza, and St Marys.- Background :...
, a Harare suburb. His work has been exhibited worldwide.
Style
Square's sculptures deal mostly with portraits and animals e.g. "Blind Portrait", Berlin, Germany or "Hippo", Tengenenge, Zimbabwe. His figures are generally very square and stylised : arms, legs and fingers are often square and show hard lines; noses have knife sharp edges. His sculptures remind indeed the art-deco figures of the 1930-1940 and are always polished to a high degree of perfection. He uses local Zimbabawean stone, e.g. OpalOpal
Opal is an amorphous form of silica related to quartz, a mineraloid form, not a mineral. 3% to 21% of the total weight is water, but the content is usually between 6% to 10%. It is deposited at a relatively low temperature and may occur in the fissures of almost any kind of rock, being most...
, Lemon Opal, Springstone, Verdite and Cobalt
Cobalt
Cobalt is a chemical element with symbol Co and atomic number 27. It is found naturally only in chemically combined form. The free element, produced by reductive smelting, is a hard, lustrous, silver-gray metal....
.
Recent Exhibitions
- Annual Heritage Exhibition, National Gallery, Harare, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1992, 1997.
- Museum for Humour and Satire, Bucharest, Bulgaria, 1988.
- National South-African Gallery, Overport, Durban, South Africa, 1991.
- Master Sculptors Of Zimbabwe, Art Center an der Friedrichstrasse, Berlin, Germany, October – December 2006
- Mestres Escultors de Zimbabwe, Museo Comarcal, Montsia d'Amposta, Spain, 21 May-21 June 2009.
- Master Sculptors Of Zimbabwe, Boserup Gallery, Boserupvej 100, Roskilde, Denmark, February 2010.
- Master Sculptors Of Zimbabwe, Sanomatalo Building, Helsinki, Finland, March 2010.
- Master Sculptors Of Zimbabwe, Friends For Ever Gallery, Friedrichstrasse 134, Berlin, Germany, May 2010.
Permanent Collections
- Museum of Tengenenge, Zimbabwe.
- Chapungu Sculpture Park, Harare, Zimbabwe.
- Africa Museum, Berg en Daal, The Netherlands.