Biography

Peter Majaha Mumbi was born to emigrant parents in Zimbabwe in 1975. He showed an affinity to art at a young age and participated in school exhibitions from primary school level. After O'level Peter went to Mzilikazi Art Centre where he completed a one and a half year course which included training in stone and wood sculpture, drawing and painting, pottery and ceramic sculpture; he attained a certificate specialising in ceramic sculpture at the end of the course. Peter immigrated to Johannesburg in 2002 and has been practicing as a sheet metal sculptor, participating in various noteworthy projects. In 2008 he met up with artist Dean Simon and they collaborated on several projects: a metal hand for the 46664 concert and a series of statues for the holocaust project for the University of Pretoria.

Artist Statement

"In my chosen art form I follow a complex process of building up and crafting the sculpture form, resulting in the creation of emotive three dimensional figures. My work begins with a metal frame or skeleton. I then build up a layer of clay which represents the weighty flesh of the figure. Next I lay on the outer shell or skin of metal sheets, which I hammer down to fit the shape of the clay. When this initial process is finished I take the skin apart, having adapted to its new shape and form, and weld it together to produce the final artistic piece. I am inspired by the intricacies of daily life in Africa. Art can never be strictly defined or boxed into one clear function or vision; every individual has an art form or style that appeals to them, either as creators, critics or consumers of art. I view my art as a way for the world to know me and for me to know the world through a complex process of constructing representative form and life force within my sculptures."