Zitye, Secondhand Kings 2

Masimba Hwati’s works begin with the opening of his father’s diaries, a police officer in colonial and postcolonial Zimbabwe whose passion for music and fashion styles imported from the nation that colonised his country, saw him nicknamed ‘Ringo Starr’; a nod to the Beatles drummer. Lifting photographs and texts from his father’s young life, Masimba considers his own and his father's ‘reinvention of self’. Placing himself in the frame, using props, clothes, and sets, he emulates and reinvents the images he has of his father in different guises: his police uniform, costumed as a Masai Warrior, or clad in collarless suits mirroring his treasured British bands using second-hand clothes. 

Tin types, black and white photography, masks, and illuminations allow Masimba to retreat in and out of the shadows whilst providing the platform to sculpt and define both inward and external perceptions. This artist's role in the image forms a self-reflection on inwards reflections versus other people's perceptions. This series of works is a rumination on the manner in which colonisation and liberation shape the identities and behaviours of nations and individuals. Wearing the ruff of a German mercenary, holding an instrument from a military brass band, or resting his arm over a spear, we see Masimba bedeck himself in clothing and objects representing a history of military ceremony and regalia. Emblematic of violence, these objects of conflict have been silently assimilated into mainstream culture.