The Shona tribe of Zimbabwe where all men are sculptors

The Shona tribe of Zimbabwe where all men are sculptors
Shona traditional culture, now fast declining, was noted for its excellent ironwork, good pottery, stone sculptures and expert musicianship. Elementary education, Christian missions, and partial urbanization have weakened traditional institutions and leadership in Shona, However, magic and witchcraft continue as important means of social control and explanations for disasters.
The Shona tribe is Zimbabwe's largest indigenous group, their tribal language is also called Shona and their population is around 9 million. They are found in Zimbabwe, Botswana and southern Mozambique in Southern Africa and bordering South Africa. Representing over 80% of the population, the Shona tribe is culturally the most dominate tribe in Zimbabwe. There are five main Shona language groups: Korekore, Zeseru, Manyika, Ndau, and Karanga. The Ndebele largely absorbed the last of these groups when they moved into western Zimbabwe in the 1830s.
The Shona are farmers of millet, sorghum, and corn, the last being the primary staple, and a variety of other crops such as rice, beans, peanuts, and sweet potatoes. Cattle are kept by most groups, but, although useful for their milk, they are mainly for prestige, as a store of value, and for bride-price payments. Shona villages consist of clustered mud and wattle huts, granaries, and common cattle pens and typically accommodate one or more interrelated families.
Traditionally, Shona people live in isolated settlements, usually consisting of one or more elder men and their extended families. Most decisions were made within the family, although organized political states were recognized as a source of centralized power. A principal chief who inherited his position and power in the same divine manner as a king headed them. He usually lived in a centralized location and was complemented by his court that advised him about most important decisions. The head chief often received substantial payment in the form of tributes from his constituency.
African Shona art from Zimbabwe.
The Shona believe in two types of spirits. The shave spirit and the vadzimu spirit. Shave spirits are most often considered to be outside or wandering spirits and vadzimu are ancestral spirits. Shave spirits are connected to populations living outside of Shona territory and may be connected to neighboring people. These spirits may be either malevolent or benevolent. Bad spirits are associated with witchcraft, while good spirits may inspire individual talents associated with healing, music, or artistic ability. Vadzimu represent all that is ideal and moral about a Shona way of life. They are usually associated with recent ancestors or with more remote culture heroes whose exact genealogy has been forgotten. They serve to protect society, but may withdraw this protection if the Shona moral ideals are not respected.
Shona artist are well known for their stone sculptures and are typically called "Shona" sculptures because it is the name of the tribe in Zimbabwe that has traditionally created these works of art. The stone carving has been part of the Zimbabwean culture since 1200 AD when Great Zimbabwe, an archaeological masterpiece of their early ancestors, was built.
The solid forms and beautiful surfaces of Shona sculpture express an extraordinary emotional power". Today the art form commands worldwide recognition with the world's most talented carvers being recognized in Zimbabwe Shona art.
The Shona sculptures are produced from a variety of stones. Serpentine stone, with its considerable range of colors and hardness, is the material most commonly used by the sculptors. Most serpentine stone used was formed over 2.6 billion years ago. Serpentine stone exists in a diversity of colors including black, the hardest and least common, browns, mauves, greens, and yellows. Sometimes sculptures are also made semi-precious stones like "Leopard Rock" and Verdite.
Although known for their stone sculpture, the Shona Tribe of Zimbabwe has a rich artistic heritage, which includes decorative fabric painting using sadza too. Sadza is corn, a primary basis of their diet. Corn is ground into a fine meal, which is then cooked with water until it is the consistency of mashed potato. Although eaten plain, sadza is often served with a vegetable or meat sauce to give it flavor. Their painting technique uses the sadza instead of wax as a masking between the different paint colors. After painting, the canvas is left to dry in the sun. Finally, the fabric is washed to remove the sadza leaving it with a unique finished appearance. Designs often use traditional geometric patterns mixed with stylized objects from everyday Shona life.
Drawing on ancient sculpting traditions they have produced a modern art movement of dignified, exquisite works. Reminiscent of renowned artists, Picasso and Henry Moore, these extraordinary, intense works speak to all humanity.

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