CHITUNGWIZA Arts Centre chairperson Tendai Gwarazava says their entry to the Cecil John Rhodes Visual Art Competition is an opportunity for Zimbabwean artists to help in the positive reconstruction of the country’s history through honouring heroes of the liberation struggle and champions of independent Zimbabwe.
“The sculpture series concept will be called The Journey to Independence, which will comprise all our war heroes and the masses contribution to our independence,” Gwaravaza said.
“A Zimbabwean independence sculpture park can be created for that purpose. The sculpture park may also include Africa heroes to celebrate them for their contribution to the independence of Zimbabwe
“The sculpture park will be very useful for educational tours and tourism. The sculptures will be made out of stone as this is the form which has got historical significance and was used in making the Zimbabwe Bird.”
He appealed to arts stakeholders, donors and the government to fully support “this noble cause” through financial sponsorship and provision of raw materials to artists.
“We need to restore our cultural heritage and dignity as Africans by rebuilding our image on The Journey to Independence,” Gwaravaza said.
“This shall also help the ordinary people to fully understand the importance of our hard-earned independence as Zimbabweans.”
When Oriel College in London mounted a monument of its alumnus Cecil John Rhodes (1853-1902) in 2015, several controversial debates arose in Africa and the world at large questioning its significance for a man who was extremely racial.
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Several protests called for its immediate removal, however, several statements were released in defence of the former prime minister of Rhodesia and to that effect, Oriel College has engaged a commission to compile trustworthy and credible purgatory nuances for him.
One of them is the visual art competition in which several artists from across the world would want to contest.
As a matter of fact, it is common understanding and in wide viral circulation that: “Cecil John Rhodes (1853-1902) was a student at Oriel College intermittently between 1873-81. When he died, he left most of his estate to establish the Rhodes Trust to fund scholarships for students from Germany, the US and then British colonies.
“A sum of £100 000 (slightly less than 2% of his estate) was left to Oriel, of which £40 000 was designated for the construction of a new building to replace houses along the High Street side of the college.
“The New Building, as it was initially known, was erected in 1909-11. Its design incorporated a set of statues commissioned from Henry Alfred Pegram, which included one of Rhodes himself.”
Further read in part a report from Oriel College: “However, Rhodes’s activities made him controversial as a benefactor. He arrived in southern Africa in 1871 at the age of 17 and was based there for the rest of his life.
“He quickly made himself a fortune through diamond mining; and he went on to establish himself politically, entering the Cape Parliament in 1881 and becoming prime minster of Cape Colony in 1890.
“The conduct of these activities and their impact on black Africans attracted much criticism, both at the time and since.”
As tremendous efforts are being made everywhere across the globe, professor William Beinart, emeritus professor of African Studies at St Anthony’s College, Oxford, researched Rhodes’s most controversial activities from the 1890s where several issues emerged.
One of them is the following: “In June 2020, Oriel College’s governing body voted in favour of removing the Rhodes memorials.
“However, the High Street Building and its statue are Grade II* listed, the plaque in King Edward Street is in a conservation area and there will be significant challenges to overcome in order to gain permission to remove them.
“To inform the decision it had taken, the governing body voted to set up an independent commission of inquiry to look into the Rhodes legacy and to consider the actions available to it in relation to this legacy.
“The commission’s website has now been archived and is available here https://wayback.archive-it.org/org-467/20210601071310https://www.oriel-.”
Prominent Daily Mail Online journalist Lettice Bromovsky reported that: “The competition will feature artists from the Chitungwiza Arts Centre near Harare, with the winning piece to become the centrepiece of the exhibition, set to open in September.
“The aim of the new sculpture is to symbolise ‘the strength and courage of our ancestors’ and to inspire a vision for a future of peace and unity, according to Tendai Gwarazava, the chairperson of the Chitungwiza Arts Centre.
“The statue of Cecil Rhodes which stands on the facade of Oriel College in Oxford may be allowed to stay under plans for a compromise. This will include a new sculpture created by a Zimbabwean artist, to be selected through a competition organised by Oriel in partnership with the Oxford Zimbabwe Arts Partnership (above)”.
Added Bromovsky: “Large protests have been held at Oriel College over the presence of the Cecil Rhodes statue as demonstrators have called for it to be removed over Rhodes’ links to Britain’s colonial history.
“Lord Mendoza, the provost of Oriel College, explained that the new artwork would be part of a broader effort to ‘explore the nuances of the legacy of colonialism’ while giving space for dialogue on the complex issues raised by figures like Rhodes.
“Tendai Gwarazava, the chairman of the Chitungwiza Arts Centre, said: ‘The sculpture should symbolise the strength and courage of our ancestors, who despite facing unimaginable hardships, continued to fight for their freedom and dignity. It should inspire us to work towards a brighter future, where the people in the world can live in peace, harmony and prosperity.’”
