Emmanuel Changunda is a fine example of the artistry, skill and dedication that the top echelons of Zimbabwean sculptors have.
Having Moved to England his Talents are now receiving the international recognition his calibre of work deserves.
David Schischka Thomas
Sole Trader at Le Monde Art et Antiquities.
Emmanuel is a talented artist/sculptor working within the Shona tradition, but he is not afraid to explore new avenues. He is intellegent and articulate and can be trusted to work to a brief. He is an easy person to work with and an accomodating personality, which is important within the limitations of a funded project. Most importantly, Emmanuel is ambitious and determined to succeed. His hard work and talent should reap rewards in the future.
Richard J Bond
I had met Emmanuel Changunda in 2000 while I was visiting and studying Stone Sculpture In Zimbabwe. He was working under an artist, Amos Supuni at the time, who was hosting me at his residence. Emmanuel assisted in teaching me stone sculpture, and showing me Zimbabwe. He is an excellent artist with great creativity, skill, and patience.
Renate Braimah
Owner, AfricArt
Emmanuel has in the last 2 years run stone sculpting workshops at AfricArt, Brighton, teaching English people how to carve – the African way. He was a very well liked teacher as he managed to combine hands on demonstration with verbalising ideas and concepts as well as talking students through the process of how to overcome certain problems. I also rate him very highly as an artist as he has managed to achieve a very difficult thing: to fuse his traditional stone carving methods and aspects of his Zimbabwean culture with an expression of his new experiences since living in the UK. I hope he will decide to show his work at my Open House Exhibition during next year`s Brighton Festival in May.
If it had not been for my own persistence, my journey to becoming an artist almost certainly wouldn`t have happened. I had a passion for art in my younger years but didn`t go to art school.
Instead I went to church, which turned out to be my circuitous route into becoming an artists and sculptor. On my way to church at Silveira House Catholic Mission I would pass through the workshop of the late Internationally acclaimed artist / sculptor Amos Supuni. As an untrained youngster I would drop in and ask about learning sculpture and whether I could become his apprentice. For a long time Amos refused to entertain the idea, until one day my persistence finally wore him down and he eventually agreed to me becoming his apprentice. I worked for Amos for three years and it was the best apprenticeship in Shona stone sculpting that any young man could have dreamt of. In 1998 I helped him produce a series of new work commissioned by the new Atlanta Airport in Georgia, USA,
Since those early days I have been following the legacy of my ancestors. Passing on the tradition of Shona stone sculpting from one generation to the next. Keeping alive the tradition of making handmade carvings the way our ancestors did centuries ago. For me this is natural and something I must do. Preserving the uniquely African Shona stone sculptural heritage that has endured for centuries. And even though I am interested in developing new styles and fusing traditional techniques with the modern, my heart will also be true to that great heritage that I was born into. Shona stone sculpting is in my blood!
Sculptures by emmanuel changunda
Credentials
Qualifications
Nottingham Trent University.
Learnt my craft under the tutelage of acclaimed sculptor Amos Supuni.
Artist in residence.,Nottingham Trent University.
Learnt my craft under the tutelage of acclaimed sculptor Amos Supuni.
Artist in residence.
Exhibitions
yes