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Dr Tony Monda Art Zone

MYRIADS of chairs tango, swivel and cha-cha-cha in a Fauvist palette of greens, mauves, pinks and vermilion. Here, a series of paintings with vibrantly coloured distorted furniture create hieratic dance forms. On closer examination the chairs have human limbs, hands, feet, and heads. One is awakened to the fact that they are not simply chairs, but animated beings. Says the artist . . . “the chairs move, have emotions, they can build or destroy, choose to unite or revolt.

They have the ability to love or hate, or hurt, they can accept or reject”. The chairs are a personification of us — the Zimbabwean citizenry.

This is the crux of Cosmas Shiridzinomwa’s solo exhibition of paintings:
His painted chairs are metaphors for the life of the common man in Zimbabwe; a subject matter we can all relate to. We have all at sometime felt the bonds of friendship, the higher senses of solitude, or have received shocking news concerning someone dear to us.

It is through these chairs, common to us, that Shiridzinomwa, the artist communicates his emotions. Not only are the chairs metaphors for human emotions, they are organic entities that suggest patterns of movement, growth, retardation and morphosis. They are sociable and speak to us in a language we all understand. The chairs take on human characteristics and embody gestures akin to moments of happiness, times of sadness, emptiness, solitude and loss.

As a subject, the chairs by virtue of their anonymity and familiarity cross cultural confines, age restrictions and race boundaries. It is a simple subject with a definitive universal resonance. Of all the domestic furniture, the chair is one of the most socially functional items. The “chair” as a word carries with it attributes of leadership, attributes of friendship, of unity and social accord and commonality. It is these attributes that Shiridzinomwa exploits in his choice of subject for his current exhibition.

Taking his cue from an earlier exhibition — “Sound to Form” one senses a continuity in his melodious animation of both natural and man-made environments. His highly personal style of painting embodies caricature, wit and ingenuity. His senses are musical, where space and movement are painted in swirling brush strokes, diagonal perspectives and oblique viewpoints.

Chairs and tables rotate in a circular shindig in the work entitled “Fruitless Discussion”, whilst in the work entitled “The Rejection” the chairs collapse in a churning heap. “The Great Drag” depicts a single file of chairs pulling backwards in a desolated arena; an image which could read as a socio-economic metaphor for the current industrial lethargy.

His cinematic imagination reminds one of Dali’s caprices. He objectifies the irrational with an inspired accuracy and a personal knowledge of life forms. Absorbing, colourful and poetically profound Shiri-  dzinomwa’s 33-piece exhibition reveals him as a unique socio-cultural voice.

Born on March 5, 1974, in Zimbabwe, Shiri- dzinomwa received his art training at the Harare Polytechnic where he is identified in the public’s mind as the Dean of Students. This is a mark of respect for this hardworking, quiet and diligent artist. He has held over 73 art exhibitions since his graduation in  1995. “Episodes” is his fourth comprehensive solo exhibition.

Officiated over by Mr Lars Ronnas, Ambassador of Sweden to Zimbabwe, the exhibition at Gallery Delta is also supported by the European Union in partnership with the Swedish Embassy. Fellow artist David Brazier is responsible for the well resolved catalogue photography which lends weight to Shiridzinomwa’s talent.

The artist’s bird’s eye view of life and his unique perspective — above rooftops and under beds and tables can be seen as a reflection of his train of thought; a cinematic eye that roves under souls and sentiments probes the privacy of daydreams and explores the irrationality of the imagination. His surreal narrative and visual poetry of the Zimbabwean situation, places him in an artistic niche of his own.

• Dr Tony Monda holds a PhD in Art Theory and Philosophy and a DBA (Doctorate of Business Administration) in Post-Colonial Heritage Studies. He is a writer, musician, art critic, practising artist and Corporate Image Consultant.