Crispen Chakanyuka (1943 – 2002) was a

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

. Born in the

Guruve Guruve is a village and centre of Guruve District, Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi a ...

district, Chakanyuka completed his schooling in 1960, and traveled to

Nyanga Nyanga may mean: *Nyanga Province, of Gabon *Nyanga River, in Gabon and Congo *Nyanga people, an ethnic group from Congo *Nyanga, Zimbabwe, a town *Nyanga District, Zimbabwe *Nyanga National Park in Zimbabwe *Nyanga, Western Cape, a township in Sou ...

to look for work. There he met

Joram Mariga Joram Mariga has been called (and believed himself to be) the “Father of Zimbabwean Sculpture” because of his influence on the local artistic community starting in the 1950s and continuing until his death in 2000. The sculptural movement of whi ...

, to whom he was introduced by John Takawira. Mariga taught him to sculpt, soon sending him to

Frank McEwen Francis Jack McEwen, OBE (19 April 1907 – 15 January 1994) was an English artist, teacher, and museum administrator. He is best remembered today for his efforts to bring attention to the work of Shona artists in Rhodesia and for helping ...

at the

National Gallery of Zimbabwe The National Gallery of Zimbabwe (NGZ) is a gallery in Harare, Zimbabwe, dedicated to the presentation and conservation of Zimbabwe's contemporary art and visual heritage. The original National Gallery of Rhodesia was designed and directed by ...

. McEwen referred Chakanyuka to the Nyarutsetso Art Centre, where he spent two years sculpting and working as a teacher. Once established, he returned to Guruve and opened a studio. In 1966 Tom Blomefield, owner of the Tengenenge Farm in Guruve, asked Chakanyuka to teach him to sculpt. Chakanyuka did so, noting rich deposits of

serpentinite Serpentinite is a metamorphic rock composed predominantly of serpentine group minerals formed by serpentinization of mafic or ultramafic rocks. The ancient origin of the name is uncertain; it may be from the similarity of its texture or color ...

on the farm. As the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

began to impose restrictions on

Rhodesia Rhodesia ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state, unrecognised state in Southern Africa that existed from 1965 to 1979. Rhodesia served as the ''de facto'' Succession of states, successor state to the ...

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

farming became less profitable, so the two men turned the farm into the Tengenenge Sculpture Community. Chakanyuka stayed for some months, teaching a number of young sculptors. Chakanyuka was forced to give up his work and become a

builder Builder may refer to: Construction * Construction worker, who specializes in building work * Carpenter, a skilled craftsman who works with wood * General contractor, that specializes in building work ** Subcontractor * Real estate developer, who ...

when Zimbabwe's war of liberation started. He continued in this line of work for over twenty years before returning to sculpture in 1994, when he became an

artist in residence Artist-in-residence (also Writer-in-residence), or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs that involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs that pr ...

at the

Chapungu Sculpture Park The Chapungu Sculpture Park is a renowned cultural landmark and sculpture park, sculpture garden in Msasa, Harare, Zimbabwe, which displays the work of Zimbabwean stone sculptors. Spanning over 15 acres of landscaped gardens, the park is dedicat ...

. He has since returned full-time to sculpture, and has exhibited in a number of international shows and participated in several

workshop Beginning with the Industrial Revolution era, a workshop may be a room, rooms or building which provides both the area and tools (or machinery) that may be required for the manufacture or repair of manufactured goods. Workshops were the only ...

s in recent years. Chakanyuka's work is influenced by the art of the

Shona people The Shona people () also/formerly known as the Karanga are a Bantu peoples, Bantu ethnic group native to Southern Africa, primarily living in Zimbabwe where they form the majority of the population, as well as Mozambique, South Africa, and world ...

, and examples of his sculpture may be seen at the Chapungu Sculpture Park.

External links

Biography on the website of Artists for OrphansBiography on the website of the National Gallery of Zimbabwe
1943 births 2002 deaths People from Mashonaland Central Province 20th-century Zimbabwean sculptors {{Zimbabwe-sculptor-stub