Musekiwa’s unique artwork rises from the scrap heap

Standard Style
Chitungwiza-based visual artist Terrance Musekiwa brings scrap metal and trash back to life in the form of amazing creatures.

Chitungwiza-based visual artist Terrance Musekiwa brings scrap metal and trash back to life in the form of amazing creatures.

BY Nicola Gibson

The 25-year-old artist’s piece of art titled Reurura Upone where he exhibits artistry skills through the use of different materials, including scrap material, glass, stone, plastic and resin, is out of this world.

In this piece of work, Musekiwa explores the connection between a mirror and a person.

Terrance Musekiwa with his work titled Reurura Upore. Picture: Tafadzwa Ufumeli
Terrance Musekiwa with his work titled Reurura Upore. Picture: Tafadzwa Ufumeli

“Reurura Upone is my latest project. Here I want people to see the connection between a mirror and a person. I want to bring out an idea of the mirror reflecting what an individual wants to see on the outside and not the inside. What is good outside might be ugly inside,” Musekiwa told The Standard Style at his workshop at Makoni Shopping Centre in Chitungwiza last Tuesday.

The 25-year-old said he takes anything for creativity’s sake and finds joy in the challenge presented by holding different materials to make a single compact piece.

He will be showcasing Reurura Upone at the Two-man Exhibition to be held in Bulawayo next month.

“In the project, stone is fused with and comes alive in struggle and conversation with glass, cloth and plastic to challenge the aesthetic and ideological preconceptions,” he said.

Musekiwa’s work shows all the ingredients that reflect his uniquely-privileged background, having been born in a family of well-known sculptors.

One of his famous works titled Chigondora presents the bottom remains of an aged Tonga basket that once was an aesthetic object in somebody’s wooden and mud kitchen in Binga.

Musekiwa says he is inspired by God to do his art work. “I am amazed by God’s creation of this earth, He is indeed my greatest inspiration,” he said. He also looks up to the works of his father Kennedy Musekiwa, who is a second generation sculptor.

Terrance graduated from the National Arts Gallery of Zimbabwe School in 2013 and ever since, his work has been exhibited at local and international expos.