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Mthabisi Tshuma, Showbiz Correspondent
FOR the past weeks, a stone sculpture portraying a person being inoculated has become the talk on social media.

The sculpture which is in Harare looks so simple at first glance, but a closer look unpacks the brilliance of nature. It shows Zimbabwe’s beauty through the spring stone found along the northern Great Dyke in Mutorashanga, Mvurwi area. The man behind the sculpture, David Ngwerume is a visual artist and lawyer by profession.

Every time he has displayed his artistry, he has turned a darling to many for his fantastic eye for detail. Tweets, tags and likes have been popping up from as far as China, the United Kingdom, United States of America and South Africa as people are appreciating Ngwerume’s sculpture. The artist said he is grateful for the support the sculpture has received globally.

“Day by day, I’m being tagged globally by people who say they’ve been jaw-dropped by my creation. This has been a great honour,” he said. Quizzed on what inspired the sculpture, Ngwerume said: “The unprecedented time of Covid-19 caught us all unaware and made us need each other more than ever. That on its own inspired me to play my part in encouraging people to get vaccinated.”

He said the piece took him four days to complete as he went on to urge people to do more to promote local art. Reflecting on the journey of his art, Ngwerume said he would not have made it far without support from his family as they spurred him on when he was young as he pursued arts and academics at the same time.

“It all started when I was in primary school. My crafts in art were always outstanding as I used to draw and make artifacts out of dry plants. When I was in Form 3, I met a renowned sculptor, Cosmas Muchenje who was trying to build a Sculpture Park in Musana, Bindura and I joined him. He trained me how to handle tools in stone sculpture, an art I mastered quickly and started producing my own pieces.

“When my parents noticed that I was passionate about art, they encouraged me while also motivating me to pursue academics saying it’d enlighten my art.” His focus now is to penetrate the global scene with more of his works. “I’ve very big dreams in art as my desire is to have my art go across the globe. I’m putting in the work as art is a discipline that requires you to practice. Fortunately, the lockdown has given me more time to perfect my skills and works,” added Ngwerume. -@mthabisi_mthire.