TRIBUTE TO TOM
BLOMEFIELD- A Kind and
Happy Man
Written by Roy Guthrie,
Founder of Chapungu
Sculpture Park
December 6
th
2020
I remember a time when needing to
go to Tengenenge to purchase
sculpture, I would phone Tom
Blomefield to advise him and to seek
permission to visit. His reply would
always be the words “ Just come Roy-
Just come”
The story of Tengenenge and Tom
Blomefield is essentially a human
and spiritual one. It’s not about
academic or intellectual
achievement. Tengenenge- the name
means “ The Beginning of the
Beginning” is a joyful intuitive
release of artistic creation which has
been described as possibly the most
pure art development of this
century. It is though the forces
within the mountains of the Great
Dyke of Zimbabwe find release in the
creations of the artists. Certainly
artists are still inspired by the stone
as it emerges from the quarry. They
still work instinctively without
measuring or drawing and certainly
respect the stone as living and not
inanimate matter.
Why did Tengenenge develop and
grow to contribute so much to
Zimbabwe Culture and to enrich the
lives of so many beyond its borders?
The catalyst was its founder, Tom
Blomefield, a man of empathy who
related personally to his farm
workers and later the sculptors and
who respected their cultures and
their way of life. He spoke their
languages, attended their
ceremonies, danced their dances
and laughed and grieved with them.
I believe these qualities (rare in
those times) allowed artists to create
from within their own memories and
cultures without fear of criticism or
censure.
There are hundreds of stories about
this humble and unassuming man.
Permit me to relate just one which
epitomizes the early years of
Tengenenge:
In 1966, Fanizani Akuda was a
foreman on a remote cattle ranch.
His longtime friend Anderson, had
been fired from his ranch and was
making sculpture at Tengenenge. He
wrote to Fanizani “ We are making
carvings out of stone and the owner
is a “kind and happy man”. Fanizani
replied that he and Anderson had
“long been friends and there was no
reason now to lie to him- stone
could not be carved and there were
few kind and happy bosses” Letters
were exchanged until finally Fanizani
came to Tengenenge. He recalls . “ It
was so as he had said- they were
carving stone and he was a kind and
happy man. After initially refusing to
sculpt, but agreeing to mine 30
tonnes of stone for the other artists,
Bloemfield gave Fanizani tools and
persuaded him to try. His very first
pieces bore the qualities that define
his work even today- humour,
tragedy and pathos.
There will be many reading this who
will turn to their much loved Fanizani
sculpture and mentally thank Tom
Blomefield for recognizing the
potential of the reluctant young
artist.
And so we should all thank Tom
Blomefield for the vision and
foresight- the perseverance through
years of great difficulty, through
financial and personal problems,
through ill health, through lack of
support, and at times through
derision and contempt. Tom
Blomefield’s support and
encouragement of the sculptors of
Tengenenge is a story of tenacity
and considerable courage, but it is
also one of joy, adventure and
achievement.
Tengenenge became after all the
starting point for many of
Zimbabwe’s greatest artist, Henry
Munyaradzi, Bernard Matemera,
Sylvester Mubayi, Fanizani Akuda,
Makina Kameya, Josia Manzi , Alice
Musarara and many others.
Please accept my apologies for not
attending this tribute ceremony
personally. I too am getting older!
Roy Guthrie
Founder and Director
Chapungu Sculpture Park
December 6 2020
We at Chapungu remain steadfast in
paying tribute and promoting all the
Zimbabwean Sculptors- both past
and present. Since our return to
Zimbabwe, Chapungu Sculpture Park
in Harare is being restored and we
will pay tribute to Tom Blomefield
and the Tengenenge artists and
remember his contribution to what
has become the most important art
happening in Africa in the past two
centuries.