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Minister Kazembe Kazembe

At the Gallery 
The National Gallery of Zimbabwe on December 14 witnessed the official opening of the Zimbabwe Annual Art and Rough Diamonds exhibition by the Minister of Sports Arts and Culture Honourable Kazembe Kazembe.

The Zimbabwe Annual Open Exhibition is the flagship exhibition which caters for mutually compatible sectors of the art industry. In previous years, the exhibition witnessed an overwhelming response as the National Gallery of Zimbabwe provided a world class showcase which hinged the considerable efforts that were made to by artists. The presentation of quality artworks was sourced from both emerging and established artists.

This edition will be the 50th cycle of the esteemed exhibition and its coinciding with the 60th Anniversary of the institution makes it one of the oldest arts events, which, in turn, wraps up the commemorative year with celebratory cheer.

It emphasises on encouraging artists to produce their best works for the local and International community to see the remarkable talent in Zimbabwean art. Thus it promotes the visibility of Zimbabwean art, encourages and showcases new talent and plays a central role in the rise of Zimbabwean artists in the world art market.

Art is a potent vehicle and has thrived for decades therefore the Zimbabwe Annual Art Exhibition provides a platform for artists to educate the audience on their past, present and future culture through the medium of art.

The first generation of Zimbabwe’s stone sculpture artists immensely contributed to the existence of the institution. This year’s Annual Exhibition seeks to bridge the National Gallery of Zimbabwe, artists and the public in celebrating the institution’s 60th Anniversary. The Zimbabwe Annual Exhibition is running under the theme under the theme Form and Colour: The future is written by artist

As a national institution, the National Gallery appreciates pursuits by artists and values their creativity by continuously staging this platform. Visual Art language is one of the most powerful mediums to express and define any society’s identity; it is a reflection of the pulse of the nation and its history.

It is against this backdrop that the National Gallery of Zimbabwe will continue promoting and supporting Zimbabwean artists by offering platform to exhibit their works at the gallery. Contemporary art exhibitions seek to showcase, as well as create, greater awareness and appreciation of Zimbabwean contemporary art to the rest of the world.

The Annual Exhibition was initiated in 1958 as the Federal Art Exhibition and work came through the Workshop School setup, one could argue that the Stone Sculpture movement was stimulated through the actions of the Federal Art Exhibition in the 1960s.

The exhibition took a new name after the fall of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland and became the Annual Art Exhibition from 1965 to 1973; growing in stature and number of submissions year on year. It may be argued that the growth in the exhibition’s vigour was owed to Frank McEwen’s prolific urge to market Zimbabwe’s art and encourage its development through education of the masses.

The exhibition’s purpose was much like the precursory Annual Art Exhibition and the Federal Art Exhibition’s; to celebrate the pinnacles of Zimbabwean achievement in Visual Art. The mandate was to collect contemporary Zimbabwean artwork, which reflected the enthusiasm, history, identity and soul of the nation’s creative class. The Zimbabwe Heritage Exhibition thus sought to collect and conserve for future generations. The best of the artwork across several media reflected the cultural diversity, shared history, and creative power of Zimbabweans.

Ordinarily staged as the Green Shoots exhibition, Rough Diamond will be adopted to relate the exhibition to the National Gallery of Zimbabwe’s 60th Anniversary celebrations; that said, the jubilee theme being diamond contributes largely to the branding of this exhibition.

The Rough Diamonds student exhibition presents works of emerging artists who have spent the past two years obtaining essential creative skills. As an art institution it is the National Gallery of Zimbabwe’s mandate to nurture artistic talent and build the local creative industry. This is successfully being achieved through the National Gallery School of Visual Art and Design (NGSVAD).

These students would have undergone a thorough and vigorous training process that included extensive studio time, workshops with master artist, examined by an authorised examination board and have participated in multiple discussions and debates that have enriched perspective on art.

The history of the National Gallery school of Visual Art and Design dates back to 1962 when the Director of the National Gallery by then, Frank McEwen opened a Workshop School. The main thrust and objective of the school was to encourage indigenous creative expression through informal interaction. Since several graduates of this school are now participating on international platforms such as La Biennale di Venezia and are signed to some of the world’s leading Galleries

These Zimbabwe Annual Art Exhibition and Rough Diamonds Exhibition are currently on view at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe and will run until 2018.