Kresiah Mukwazhi: Residency and workshop at Nafasi Art Space

Harare >> Dar es Salaam

Kresiah Mukwazhi is a multi-disciplinary artist living and working in Harare, Zimbabwe. Her work focuses on the empowerment of the female body in relation to patriarchal societal norms, and raises questions around belief and conformity.

Kresiah explains: “In my previous work I question the role that culture and religion has played in promoting this repression through black magic, genital mutilation etc. Being a woman in an African society often means that you are perceived as weaker and your opinion is insignificant.”

Having done most of her research in the Southern region of Africa, she now looks forward to extending her research and work in East Africa, where some of these social practices are still in practiced.

For her residency at our Regional Mobility Partner Nafasi Art Space in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Kresiah aims to create a body of work which will consist of two and three dimensional works based on research  gathered through interactions with women from various classes, work spaces and lifestyles, focusing specifically on those that still follow cultural believes.

Kesiah continues: “I would like to collect bras or personal clothing from those willing and add this to the material I use in creating the work. My intention is to transform this experience and materials into symbols of resistance and struggle as well as begin a conversation about what it means to be a woman today in a world influenced and controlled by technology and patriarchy. Can culture evolve? What holds us back from emancipation? How can we fight it? What role do men play in Feminism?”

During her residency at Nafasi, Kesiah will also host a free workshops and artist talk, culminating in a group art exhibition with the workshop participants open to the community during 1st – 5th April 2019. The workshops will cover the theory and practical understanding of experimental photography with a focus on storytelling through images and metaphors.