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Colleen Madamombe'Preoccupied' original signed Shona stone sculpture by Colleen Madamombe2003
2003
About the Item
'Preoccupied' is an original black serpentine sculpture by the celebrated second generation Shona artist Colleen Madamombe. The sculpture presents a character common to Madamombe's work: a woman with a round face and wearing a billowing, layered dress. Here, she stands, almost leaning backward. She holds one of her arms downwards as the other reaches up toward her hair in a gesture of preoccupation. As is so desired of her work, this sculpture is a play in texture: their faces and hands are polished and smooth, which is juxtaposed with the rough-hewn surfaces of the clothing and hair.
black serpentine
21 x 11 x 12 inches
145lbs
Signed along the base on the reverse
Acquired directly from the artist (C-57)
Excellent condition with no chips or signs of wear
Colleen Madamombe (1964–2009) was born in Harare, Zimbabwe. Considered to be among the finest new talents from Zimbabwe, she won the award of Best Female Artist of Zimbabwe three years in a row, and became an established figure of the Second Generation of Zimbabwean stone sculptors.
Madamombe's sculpture is evidence of her strong determination, self expression, and creativity. The themes of womanhood, girlhood, pregnancy, motherhood, and the authority of the tribal Matriarch are visible in her artwork. These themes provided continuing inspiration and she looked forward to continue portraying the feminine experience through old age. Madamombe was interested in not only the emotional and spiritual side in a woman's life, but also the basic physical appearance and movement particular to females. She depicted in her forms these aspects of womanhood with a poetic clarity, revealing emotions such as pride, authority, energy, endeavor, sadness, tenderness and humor. Madamombe was a quiet and private person, however she had strong feelings concerning the changing role of women in Zimbabwean society. Opportunities were and are developing for women; however, she felt they were losing their positions of traditional respect. In her view, it remained difficult for women to pursue a career in the arts, predominantly because of an inherent lack of self-confidence. However another critical factor is that the idea of following one's own ideas and ambitions or pursuing a profession is foreign to many Zimbabwean women. Madamombe explained: "A lot of women are artists and just don't realize it – making pots and other things for the home, and not for sale."
Some of Madamombe's early works emphasized the importance of seemingly insignificant subjects such as ants, bees, butterflies and caterpillars. She admitted to a fascination with what she saw as the humility of insects, a trait she felt the human race had lost. Other creatures, such as the cat and the zebra have provided interesting subject material, but her fascination with the smallest of living things endured, remarking: "[I like] the way ants move in lines particularly. I love to watch their movement." She observed each of her subjects as closely as possible, and then carved from a strong mental image and the memories she held of the animal, insect, or person.
Madamombe predominantly worked in hard black Serpentine and used the outer blanket of the stone to create several different textures to contrast with the polished surfaces.
She died on May, 31 2009 and is buried near her rural home in Zvimba.
- Creator:Colleen Madamombe (1964 - 2009, Shona, Zimbabwean)
- Creation Year:2003
- Dimensions:Height: 21 in (53.34 cm)Width: 11 in (27.94 cm)Depth: 12 in (30.48 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:Excellent condition with no chips or signs of wear.
- Gallery Location:Milwaukee, WI
- Reference Number:
Colleen Madamombe
Colleen Madamombe was born in 1964 in Harare, Zimbabwe. She is considered to be one of the finest talents from Zimbabwe and has won the award of Best Female Artist of Zimbabwe for three consecutive years. Madamombe quickly became an established figure of the second generation of Zimbabwean stone sculptors. Madamombe's sculpture was evidence of her strong determination to express herself by creating a very individual style and choice of the subject matter. The themes of womanhood, girlhood, pregnancy, motherhood and tribal matriarchy were visible in her artwork. These themes provided continuous inspiration and she looked forward to portraying the feminine experience through old age.
Madamombe was interested in not only the emotional and spiritual side in a woman's life but also the basic physical appearance and movement particular to females. She depicted in her forms these aspects of womanhood with poetic clarity, revealing emotions such as pride, authority, energy, endeavor, sadness, tenderness and humor. Some of Madamombe's early works emphasized the importance of seemingly insignificant subjects such as ants, bees, butterflies and caterpillars. She admitted to a fascination with what she saw as the humility of insects, a trait she felt the human race had lost. Other creatures, such as the cat and zebra, had provided interesting subject material, however, her fascination with the smallest of living things had endured. "I like the way ants move in lines particularly. I love to watch the movement," she remarked.
Madamombe observed each of her subjects as closely as possible and then carved from a strong mental image of the memories she held of the animal, insect or person. Madamombe predominantly worked in hard black serpentine and used the outer blanket of the stone to create several different textures to contrast with the polished surfaces. Madamombe’s major works include The Birth, Dancing Woman, Growing Well and My Wedding Day.
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