Benhura was born in Murewa, to the northeast of Harare. His father died before his birth, and he was raised by his mother. As he was an excellent student, it was suggested that he be sent to Salisbury for further studies. His uncle had a home in the suburb of Tafara, and Benhura went to live there at the age of ten; he lived with his cousin Tapfuma Gutsa, already a well-known sculptor. Benhura began polishing his cousin's sculptures, but soon began carving himself, making small offcuts before moving onto large stone. He sold his first piece at twelve.
Despite having no formal training, Benhura turned to sculpting full-time upon the finish of his schooling, showing his work at the Chapungu Sculpture Park for the first time in 1987. He joined the resident artist program there in 1990, staying until acquiring a home in Athlone, Harare, in 1995. Through the program he worked on larger pieces; he also began traveling during this period, attending workshops in Botswana, the United States, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany. He began to add metal to his stone sculptures.
Benhura is considered to be part of the second generation of Zimbabwean stonecarvers. In 2016, he sculpted a statue of Robert Mugabe.
The Chapungu Sculpture Park is a sculpture park in Msasa, Harare, Zimbabwe, which displays the work of Zimbabwean stone sculptors. It was founded in 1970 by Roy Guthrie, who was instrumental in promoting the work of its sculptors worldwide. One way this was done was by exhibiting the sculptures in Botanical Gardens in a touring exhibition called "Chapungu: Custom and Legend — A Culture in Stone". The places visited include:
Tapfuma Gutsa is a Zimbabwean sculptor.
Nicholas Mukomberanwa, was a Zimbabwean sculptor and art teacher. He was among the most famous protégés of the Workshop School at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe. He was a mentor to the Mukomberanwa Family of sculptors. Mukomberanwa married his first wife, sculptor Grace, in 1965 and they had eight children. In 1965, he decided to end his career with the police to become a sculptor full-time. He continued to hone his skills over the following decade, developing one of the most distinctive personal styles found in his generation of Zimbabwean stone sculptors. The gambit paid off, and by the late 1970s and in the 1980s his work was being shown in many venues. His work has been exhibited in galleries around the world. He also became mentor to many artists in Zimbabwe, including his children Anderson Mukomberanwa, Ennica Mukomberanwa, Lawrence Mukomberanwa, Netsai Mukomberanwa, Taguma Mukomberanwa,Tendai Mukomberanwa and nephew, Nesbert Mukomberanwa who are also sculptors. He remains one of Zimbabwe's most famous artists.
Ennica Mukomberanwa is a Zimbabwean sculptor. The daughter of Grace Mukomberanwa and Nicholas Mukomberanwa, she was trained by the first generation of sculptures. Her work is exhibited in private collections and at galleries around the world. She is a third generation Zimbabwean sculptor. In 2004, she was awarded a prize which allowed her to travel to Stockholm, Copenhagen, Scotland, and Canada. She is a member of the Mukomberanwa family of sculptors. She is the daughter of Grace Mukomberanwa and Nicholas Mukomberanwa, who served as her mentor. She is the sister of sculptors Anderson, Netsai, Taguma, Tendai Mukomberanwa and Lawrence Mukomberanwa, and the cousin of Nesbert Mukomberanwa.
Joram Mariga has been called 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 which he was part is usually referred to as “Shona sculpture”, although some of its recognised members are not ethnically Shona.
John Takawira, was a Zimbabwean sculptor. The background to the sculptural movement of which he was a leading member is given in the article on Shona art.
Henry Munyaradzi, also known as Henry Munyaradzi Mudzengerere, was a Zimbabwean sculptor. The sculptural movement of which he was part is usually referred to as "Shona sculpture", although some of its recognised members are not ethnically Shona. He worked initially at the Tengenenge Sculpture Community, 150 km north of Harare near Guruve, which he joined in 1967. In that Community, and ultimately in the wider world of lovers of Zimbabwean art, he was known simply as 'Henry'.
Square Chikwanda is a Zimbabwean sculptor, living and working in Harare, Zimbabwe. He first learned his art from his father, also a Zimbabwean sculptor.
Collin Sixpence is a Zimbabwean sculptor.
Coster Balakasi is a Zimbabwean sculptor.
Arthur Fata is a Zimbabwean sculptor.
Fanizani Akuda (1932–2011), also known as Fanizani Phiri, was a Zimbabwean sculptor. He was a member of the sculptural movement "Shona sculpture", although he and some others of its recognised members were not ethnically Shona. He worked initially at the Tengenenge Sculpture Community, 150 km north of Harare near Guruve, which he joined in 1966.
Eddie Masaya is a Zimbabwean sculptor.
Sylvester Mubayi was a Zimbabwean sculptor.
Agnes Nyanhongo is a Zimbabwean stone sculptor.
Zimbabwean art includes decorative esthetics applied to many aspects of life, including art objects as such, utilitarian objects, objects used in religion, warfare, in propaganda, and in many other spheres. Within this broad arena, Zimbabwe has several identifiable categories of art. It is a hallmark of African cultures in general that art touches many aspects of life, and most tribes have a vigorous and often recognisable canon of styles and a great range of art-worked objects. These can include masks, drums, textile decoration, beadwork, carving, sculpture, ceramic in various forms, housing and the person themselves. Decoration of the body in permanent ways such as scarification or tattoo or impermanently as in painting the body for a ceremony is a common feature of African cultures.
Sculpture and in particular stone sculpture is an art for which Zimbabwe is well known around the world.
Bronson Gengezha is a Zimbabwean sculptor.
Celia Winter-Irving, was an Australian-born, Zimbabwean-based artist and art critic who wrote extensively on Zimbabwean art, especially Shona sculpture, when she lived in Harare from 1987 to 2008.
Tengenenge is a community of artists and their families located in the Guruve District of Zimbabwe. It has achieved international recognition because of the large number of sculptors who have lived and worked there since 1966. These include Fanizani Akuda, Bernard Matemera, Sylvester Mubayi, Henry Munyaradzi and Bernard Takawira.
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