The history of the Zimbabwean lost treasure trove of paintings from the 1940s is quite intriguing. The collection of paintings was created by students of the Cyrene Mission school and was lost for 70 years. The school was established in 1939 by Edward Paterson, a Scottish clergyman who studied art in London.
The mission of the school was to offer formal art education to the black children of the region. This concept was revolutionary during a time when the country was under the control of a white minority and education for African students was practically nonexistent. Paterson included art in the curriculum at Cyrene from its inception and according to the school website, it was mandatory for the students to participate in art classes as part of a broader curriculum.
Rather than copying western art, the young artists were encouraged to paint through their own eyes. In doing so, they documented their daily life and reimagined biblical narratives through the use of African imagery and landscapes. The result was lush, imaginative and colorful artwork depicting everything from Jesus as a Black man to African folklore to chores at home.
Those paintings done over 40 years before the country’s independence are a reflection of life that inspires hope and speaks to the future. Although they were created when the county was still known as South Rhodesia during the rule of British colonialist Cecil Rhodes under discriminatory laws against black people, there was no segregation in Cyrene mission.
Over the years, after touring Europe and the US from 1947 till 1953 and later getting lost in storage at a church in London, the paintings which include works by Barnabas Chiponza were returned to the National gallery in the capital of Zimbabwe.
Cyrene Mission produced many black artists, scholars, teachers and practitioners; one of them being Adomech Moyo, who became the first African teacher of occupational therapy in southern Africa. William Mariwi who was also a product of the school became a highly praised artist of religious iconography. Richard Rachidi, another student from the school became the first qualified black art teacher in Malawi, his home country. Livingstone Sango was also a product of the mission and he became a prominent taxidermist with the National Museum in Bulawayo.
The chapel at Cyrene Mission near Bulawayo is still open, but undergoing renovations. The outside wall of the chapel has images of black angels, above the altar inside, is a mural of a black Jesus; all of these would have been considered controversial by the white community in the 1940s. It’s promises to be an interesting sight to see.
