On 12 June, Mcheno and More was at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe for the vernissage of Ingoma KaMama Wami ?, a solo exhibition by Amanda Mushate.
For us, this was yet another page in the Amanda Mushate story, a page whose meaning weighs heavy. Our introduction to Amanda Mushate was in mid-2023 at First Floor Gallery Harare, which was then based at Karigamombe Center. It was a double-exhibition titled Rudo Rwunouya Nemabasa, alongside Tashinga Majiri.
It is then that we first witnessed Mushate’s distinct abstract style which has been exhibited across the world over the five years that she has been in professional practice. Mushate’s brilliance lies in her ability to suspend emotion and memory within the canvas, all which becomes revealed as one gazes at the artwork.
Ingoma KaMama Wami ?, which translates to ‘A Song to My Mother,’ is a body of work that features paintings and synthetic sculpture which have a primary spotlight on maternal and filial relationships. This body of work is a tribute to Amanda’s mother — a woman whose quiet strength, enduring love and presence shaped the artist’s becoming in ways too profound for language alone.
In this exhibition, Amanda Mushate opens an intimate space of remembrance, gratitude and emotional reckoning. Amanda Mushate offers a poignant, painterly tribute that echoes across generations, memory and emotion. Her use of soft layering, shifting lines and deliberate textures suggests memory not as a fixed image but as a feeling suspended in motion.
These portraits are emotional landscapes – spaces where the artist searches for and converses with the presence of her mother beyond the frame and function as emotional cartographies – maps of maternal presence, strength and tenderness drawn from lived experience and inner reflection.
The decision to title the exhibition in Ndebele, her language of choice and one Mushate is more familiar with, is both an act of love and a cultural grounding—grounding the work in a specific cultural and linguistic terrain. It is a gesture of reclamation and affirmation, of motherhood and matriarchal legacy, and the stories women carry across generations, often in silence.
The act of titling in an indigenous language serves as further intimate offering, locating the personal narrative within a broader decolonial framework of remembrance. It is a return to the home of the tongue, the language of lullabies, and reprimands, of warmth and protection. In doing so, Mushate honours her mother and affirms her own identity.
Ingoma kaMama Wami ? goes beyond a song of praise, it is a song of presence and a recognition that mothers, are often the unseen scaffolding of our worlds. Ingoma kaMama Wami ? is rooted in Amanda’s personal journey, it speaks to a shared emotional territory. It invites the viewer to remember, honour and grieve – those we came from, those who carried us, those whose sacrifices remain etched into the background of our becoming.
We caught up with Amanda Mushate on the sidelines of the exhibition opening for a quick chat that revealed the psyche behind the artist. Enjoy!
From a student, to group exhibitions and now your first solo exhibition at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe. What does this exhibition in particular mean to you?
This was actually my fourth solo exhibition in Zimbabwe, but my first time doing a solo at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe. I participated in a group exhibition here last year titled Only What Is Revealed Can Be Known. My first solo exhibition was titled Nguva Ine Muridzi, at First Floor Gallery Harare.
This exhibition has given me a chance to push myself further, since the space I was working with was much bigger. It’s a milestone for me, this platform is an opportunity for my work to be exposed to a bigger audience.
The exhibition comprises of paintings and also sculptures made from synthetic hair. Why did you choose hair as a means of expression for this exhibition?
My mother was a hairdresser and she taught me how to do people’s hair at a tender age. Braiding is a core part of the African woman’s experience and I decided to explore it from an artistic point of view. At that young age, I always viewed braiding as like crowning a person.
Also, using this material was a way to honour the skills passed down to me by my mother.
You’re part of a new age of female visual artists redefining Zimbabwean art. What do you have to say about the perception of Zimbabwean art, and what role would you like to play in changing stereotypes?
I’ve noticed that a lot of people, especially in our communities, don’t really understand art. Most parents aren’t concerned with nurturing their children’s artistic talents. I want that to change. I want people to understand that art is a gift that anyone can have.
I wish to mentor a lot of young women in Art. I want to teach girls to be free to choose Art as a career and not fall to the pressures of society. I believe everyone is an artist, they just need shaping and that’s what’s lacking here in Zimbabwe.
Speaking of what’s lacking here in Zimbabwe, you’ve participated in exhibitions all over the world. What being done differently abroad, and what’s our Art industry’s biggest lack?
I’ve noticed that in other countries, art is more appreciated.
The major reason, I’ve seen, is that there are more art institutions in those countries than we do here in Zimbabwe. It was so disappointing last year when the National Gallery in Mutare had to shut down. People didn’t really understand what it meant until they heard that it was going to close down.
We need more art institutions spreading across Zimbabwe, in different cities—mentoring and platforming young artists so that we can do more as a country.
What words do you have to say for First Floor Gallery?
First Floor Gallery has played a big role in shaping my career, I’m thankful to them for taking my work beyond our borders.
I would also like to appreciate fellow artists, from within and outside First Floor Gallery, for being a part of my journey.
You are now a mother yourself, and you briefly explore the concept of inheritance in this exhibition. In the context of Art, what do you wish for your daughter?
I don’t want her to lack because I’m occupied with Art, I always want to balance being a mother and being an artist. I want to be able to give her time, attention and everything that she needs from me. Most importantly, I want to be able to take care of her through my Art.
I want her to understand more about what I’m doing. I wish for her to gain more knowledge in my industry so that years later, she can also work in the industry. I can’t say what God has planned for her; she might not become an artist like me, but maybe a collector or curator. I really wish her to be involved in the Art industry.
Ultimately, I want my children to understand where I’m coming from and where I’m going as an artist.
[End of excerpt]
Ingoma kaMama Wami ? is not only an ode to the past, it is also a wish for the future. As Mushate’s mother played a pivotal role in her rite to womanhood, she also finds herself playing that role for her own daughter.
Thus, the song never ends.
Ingoma kaMama Wami ? opened to the public on the 13th of June 2025 and is on show until 18 August 2025. Take some time to go and witness Amanda Mushate’s abstract brilliance at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe—20 Julius Nyerere Avenue. The Gallery is open every day from 0900hrs to 1630hrs.
Meanwhile, follow the Mcheno and More WhatsApp channel to stay on the pulse of Zimbabwean visual art. From exhibitions, seminars, workshops and everything inbetween, we are your best source.
