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At the Gallery
The popular notion that if one wants to hide something they must put it in plain sight is a charitable piece of knowledge that finds itself at home in Harare.
The Sunshine City is bedecked with various works of art which were either commissioned by organisations or donated for the public’s enjoyment. Amongst the “hidden” works are murals, paintings and sculptures that tend to be works of pure genius that scream from partial obscurity which may qualify to being landmarks and points of reference for this never sleeping city’s citizens and tourists alike.

What stands out the most is the comfortable truth that art is for art’s sake and it livens out spaces for that particular reason. Art is meant to be enjoyed regardless of one’s opinion of it thus a circumvention of the city centre with an open mind and an alert eye to quickly pick up what is and what is not art. Often an individual can confuse Decorative Objects with art and as much as they are used in public display these decorative objects are usually tied in with corporate branding rather than expression of physical and metaphysical energy.

One who seeks to view art in their forum must simply embark on a walk down First Street Mall in the heart of Harare’s Central Business District and almost immediately the eye takes note of various interesting pointers.

On the southern end of the street are checkers that were formerly used for Chess games and almost immediately the viewer takes note of the non-functional fountain at First Street’s intersection with Speke Avenue. The fountain is divided into eight arches and carries some similarity to the Independence arch on Joshua Nkomo Road has monumental value due to the suggestive message it expresses.

A walk further up the street would lead one to Jason Moyo Avenue where a functional object has a conceptual design. The public toilets at the intersection of the two streets are in the form of a ship and as architecture is a form of art, the humorous placement of a ship sailing forward in the opposite direction of traffic somewhat reveals the sunny disposition of the Sunshine City’s town planners. Then again one can find the natural link between the aquatic nature of a lavatory and a ship and how they can result in a usable structure that can double as art in its architectural nature.

At George Silundika Avenue stands a sculpture cum fountain designed by Lesley G. Field at the eastern end of the mall. It was erected in 1974 as a gift to the people of Salisbury to mark the celebration of a local corporation. The style of the artwork reveals the zeitgeist of the 70s with its reduction of physical construct. The work has the properties of an obelisk however, the abstraction of the negative spaces in this sculpture creates something echoing possibility and sustainability in cuspate and straight lines. The viewer can arguably deduce that the work has heavy inferences of Henry Moore’s reclining figures and was possibly executed with a deconstruction of the aforementioned artist’s work in an orderly and vertical inclination.

The final work is located at the junction of Kwame Nkrumah and First Street which is a bronze sculpture of two Sable Antelope which viewed in profile, present an engaging animal version of contrapposto where the weight of the two beasts appears to lie on the two inner-placed legs. The sculpture was executed by Gillian Kaufman who was commissioned by the Harare Municipality. The work expresses the spirit of the city through what are the mascots of the metropolis which appear on the armorial bearings of council. The placement on what was formerly Union Avenue is also significant as the Sables are extremely close to each other moving towards the east; a movement that is embodied in smooth musculature into the rising sun that defines the city which never sleeps and remains industrious.

At the northern end of the Mall First street meets Samora Machel Avenue where the Great Zimbabwe Bird stands at the Reserve Bank and not far from there a balancing elephant supports its entire weight with its trunk, this was created by a French artist named Phillipe Berry in partnership with sculptor David Mutasa.

The First Street Mall is a melting pot where many members of public converge and facilitate their business and the ambience is invigorated by the presence of this art. The art serves its purpose and each of the artworks that have been mentioned commonly share a cause as they were all endowed by different organisations to the pleasure and enjoyment of the citizens of Harare and shall serve that purpose for generations to come.

A mural by Leonora Barta jazzes up the Modern architecture of National Gallery of Zimbabwe, which is not far off from First Street. At the façade of the building are artworks from important stone sculptors from different generations which have become definitive traits of Zimbabwean Art.

In addition there is a tiled structure that has depictions from the works of Weya women artists on narratives surrounding HIV/AIDS. A sculpture garden is at the Gallery’s rear where the peaceful surroundings provide an enjoyable atmosphere for members of public who want to view these legendary works.

Inside the Gallery works are housed for public appreciation and this is also part of the Public forum. The Gallery’s atmosphere deals with a paradox on what public art is in the sense that artwork is displayed on the building’s exterior and housed on the interior. It is important to note that all these artworks belong to the people of Zimbabwe.

The National Gallery of Zimbabwe’s Permanent Collection is like these public artworks as each and every piece that is housed by the Gallery is acquired for the same reason which is Public enjoyment. The National Gallery of Zimbabwe serves as custodian of artworks that have been acquired since 1957 with the intent to broaden the State Heritage. Work was sourced from European museums of Art and are continuously being purchased locally and globally to appeal to a wider variety of tastes.

Embassies and individuals have made donations of artworks and individuals such as Sir Courtauld bestowed their private collections for the enjoyment of the citizens of this nation. There have been donations by artists and in many cases the National Gallery of Zimbabwe has purchased works at exhibitions around Zimbabwe as well as its own exhibitions.

The Zimbabwe Heritage Exhibition is a great example of this as this was a platform to acquire work for the nation’s heritage and members of public are welcome to enjoy and appreciate the works of art that have been given to them.