Fanizani Akuda

Fanizani Akuda was born in 1932 in what is now Zambia and never attended school. In 1949, he came to what is now Zimbabwe in search of work and worked as a cotton picker, bricklayer, and basket weaver. In 1966, Tom Blomefield brought him to his farm in Tengenenge. There, he first quarried stone, and soon began working as a sculptor.

He is known for his heads and figures with narrow, slit-like eyes and a subtle smile, often depicted in pairs or as a family. In 1975, he left Tengenenge and subsequently worked independently in Chitungwiza. In 2005, the National Gallery of Zimbabwe dedicated a retrospective to him. Fanizani Akuda died in 2011.

Exhibitions (Selection)

Commonwealth Institute, London (1981) · Kresge Art Museum, Michigan (1985) · Yorkshire Sculpture Park (1990) · Kew Gardens, London (2000)