The Sunday News
Peter Matika Senior Leisure Reporter
THE commissioning of the Amagugu International Cultural Centre perimeter wall last week highlighted the need to nurture and promote rural community-based projects to safeguard tradition and culture as well as a way of alleviating poverty.
There were a total of 27 murals painted on the perimeter wall at Amagugu International Heritage Centre, during the commissioning which was attended by various stakeholders that included villagers.
The commissioning was headed by renowned local historian and culturist, Pathisa Nyathi who is also Amagugu Heritage Trust director.
During the commissioning, Nyathi gave an outline of the Visual Expression of Indigenous Cultural Heritage (VEICH) project, which sponsored the project.
The project was done in partnership with Hivos and the Norwegian Embassy.
“The murals were painted under the auspices of the Visual Expression of Indigenous Cultural Heritage (VEICH) project supported by Hivos and the Norwegian Embassy. This is a project that holds promise to go a long way towards the research, documentation and promotion of our cultural heritage coming down from the pre-colonial period.
“The goal of this project is to contribute towards preserving and promoting indigenous culture and heritage. We regard visual art as a powerful means to provide insight into indigenous lifestyles. Even without written descriptions, the murals tell a story that people of all ages can easily relate to and identify with,” said Nyathi.
He also took time to honour the artiste — Bhekitshe Ntshali — who painted the murals over a period of three months.
“It is prudent to honour the visual artiste, who I am sure we all testify did a sterling job in painting the murals. Ntshali has spent three months at this centre — it has actually become his second home. Ntshali has further decided to extend his stay here by a further two months doing his personal painting work inspired by the beautiful Matobo environs. Ntshali did not work alone in painting the murals. A key facet of the project was the mentoring of four people from the Matobo community on visual painting — sketching, colour mixing and objects drawing,” said Nyathi.
He said the choice of murals was a result of community wide consultations and research.
“You would have noticed that the pillars of the perimeter wall are decorated with various motifs. These are motifs that were common not only in Africa but the entire ancient world. Today the meaning of these motifs has been lost in the thick mists of history. It is our hope therefore to reconnect with the past and revitalise the communicative role of these motifs many of which crafts practitioners today make use of without understanding the underlying messages inherent in these motifs.
“Undoubtedly, the murals have elevated the status of the centre through the provision of enhanced educational and cultural offerings,” he said.
In his final remarks Nyathi said the centre was there to showcase and safeguard the country’s cultural heritage.
“We have the passion, zeal, technical and professional competencies to fulfill our mandate. All that we need are collaborations and resource support to realise our grand dream. The culture that we are researching, documenting and safeguarding belongs to the community. It is our fervent hope that as we forge ahead we shall do so with the tacit support of the local community,” he added.
Also in attendance at the commissioning was the Principal Director in the Ministry of Sport, Arts and Culture, Reverend Paul Damasane, who in his remarks highlighted the importance of culture in national and community development.
He also encouraged the commercialisation of cultural heritage as a vital cog in supporting sustainable local level development.
The guest of honour, Stephen Matinanga of Hivos representing the Norwegian Ambassador to Zimbabwe, expressed satisfaction with the quality of the paintings and expressed commitment to supporting the local arts sector.
