GONÇALO MABUNDA

“Mabunda seems to be telling us: Do not destroy but transform. Do not erase but use weapons to redesign a new world of peace, so as to forget the atrocities of war.”

- KYO NOIR

PROFILE ARTWORKS CV

Gonçalo lives and works in Maputo. He was born in 1975 and started his career in 1992, as the assistant to the director of the Associaçao Nucleo de Arte, in Maputo. He is a self-taught artist who later became the Director of the Associaçao Nucleo de Arte.

We first met Gonçalo in 1993 at the Associaçäo Nucleo de Arte, in Maputo where Jumbe used to spend lunchtime breaks from his humanitarian work repatriating millions of Mozambican refugees from adjacent countries, admiring the work of young artists who were creating beautiful work from decommissioned weapons of war such as AK17s, bazookas, and landmines. 

As part of a negotiated peace agreement after a brutal civil war in Mozambique, weapons were collected from demobilized soldiers of both the government and rebel forces. Church agencies and other humanitarian NGOs then donated the decommissioned weapons to aspiring artists as part of the reconciliation process for peace; and thus “… having them passed on from the hands of destruction to the ones of local creatives”!  The artists were tasked with making the country’s transformation visible by mirroring the journey towards peace in their creations. Forged in the artists’ hands, the weapons became nearly unrecognizable, acquiring grace, lightness, becoming associated with the peace process, reflecting community, harmony, the joy of reunited families and the forging of a new nationhood.

Making a living from creating art in Maputo, was challenging in the immediate aftermath of the civil war. However, the early 90s in Mozambique and the whole subregion, was a tremendously hopeful, positive and forward pitching moment.  Artists were unleashed in their creativity because peace had returned and even more importantly hope. The Nucleo d’Arte provided studio space and some funding. Many of the artists based at the Nucleo only needed funds to buy their materials. Jumbe often advanced these funds and Gonçalo, one of these young creatives trying to forge his path, became a close friend. He never wanted to receive any assistance ‘for free’ and so he began acquiring a number of his early works. At the Nucleo d’Arte many young skilled metal sculptors received artistic and hands-on training and they blossomed. 

Goncalo quickly gained traction in the southern African region and started developing a global presence by participating in high value exhibitions, and fairs at renowned international galleries and museums such as the Akka Project Gallery (Dubai), Marrakech Art Fair (Morocco), Cape Town Art Fair (South Africa), Venice Biennale Art Fair (Italy), Jack Bell Gallery (London), Bozart Gallery (Lisbon), Gallery du Passage (Paris), and the Palais de Tokyo (Japan). His work is part of the permanent collection at the Brooklyn Museum of Art in New York and held by key collectors across the world. It is critical that his work is also appreciated by collectors across the African continent. He is known for his highly political thrones welded from decommissioned guns. Recently he has moved to creating modernist mask-like sculptures infused with color.

aKAZ!ATL is proud and privileged to hold a number of Gonçalo’s pieces dating from the 90s. These sculptures were completely forged from decommissioned  AK47s and handguns. In their creation, Goncalo transforms the cold harsh metal of the guns into anthropomorphic and highly symbolic figures. The hope is to offer them for viewing and sale to collectors in Atlanta.  We would be delighted to display them in our home to anyone interested. 

Some of Gonçalo’s work is currently on view at our Haugabrooks Gallery, please schedule a visit to view