Artist Focus

Artist Focus: Gedion Nyanhongo

Gedion Nyanhongo passionately transforms hard and enduring stone into sculptures that capture all that is good and worth preserving in the world. “I believe sculpture has the capacity to lift people’s spirits in a way that can make their lives better,” says the artist, who was influenced and taught by his father, Claud, one of the pioneers of the Shona Sculpture Movement of Zimbabwe. Nyanhongo is now considered the leading Shona Stone Sculptor in the world.The Preacher, opal stone, 22 x 6 x 6"

Nyanhongo’s expressive works are deceptively simple and flowing sculptures carved completely by hand. His imagination is influenced by each stone he chisels into. He says, “The stone calls to me, telling me what it wants to become. I remove what doesn’t belong.”The Bride, springstone, 21 x 9 x 6"Collectors can see his work June 5 and 6 at 57th Street Art Fair in Chicago and June 12 and 13 at the Old Town Chicago Art Fair. June 19 and 20, he will exhibit in the Leeper Park Art Fair in South Bend, Indiana, and June 25 through 27 at Des Moines Art Festival in Iowa. –