LUMA will exhibit six sculptures of the Holy Family (Mary, Joseph, and the Christ Child) by Shona sculptors from Zimbabwe. The country is known for its rich mineral reserves that produce a variety of stones. Sculptors from Zimbabwe’s Shona people have developed a distinctive style. Through skillful carving, burnishing, and rustication, they exploit the natural qualities in the stone to evoke different textures, like hair, skin, and clothing. Among the contemporary sculptors represented at LUMA are Washington Msonza and Kennedy Musekiwa. The sculptures are drawn from the collection of Hans D. Hubert of Overhetfeld, Germany. A former pilot, he became a collector and advocate of contemporary African sculpture when he settled in Zimbabwe, then called Rhodesia, in 1972. He has promoted Shona images of the Holy Family at nativity, or Krippana, festivals across Europe.

Image: Edious Nyagweta, The Holy Family, Zimbabwe, stone