Lord of art

Goncalo Mabunda is an artist from Mozambique who creates art installations and sculptures out of decommissioned weapons, from AK47s to rocket launchers.

He is also part of an art collective who have had their work displayed in the British Museum (I have posted about that exhibition previously in my blog).

I was lucky enough to attend the opening night of the exhibition at the ever enjoyable Jack Bell Gallery.

Goncalo Mabunda at Jack Bell Gallery

Goncalo Mabunda is the creator of sculptures made from decommissioned weapons similar to the ones that are on display in the Africa Gallery in the British Musem.

He has used the weapons to evoke masks and has also created several thrones.

Contemporary Art at the British Museum

Shortly after Mozambique's independence from Portugal in the 1974 the country plunged into civil war.  It is estimated that 7 to 10 million guns flooded into the country, which is an incredible amount when you consider how small the population of Mozambique is.  According to the Small Arms Survey of 2007 the asking price of an AK 47 in Mozambique was found to be $30 which is about £19 based on the current exchange rate (and this was probably less back in 2007).  

Schemes were set up after the civil war to encourage people to exchange weapons for tools and a group of artists (Cristovao Canhavto, Adelino Serafim Mate, Fiel dos Santos, Hilario Nhatugueja) have made the below sculptures - Throne of Weapons (by Cristovao Canhavto) and Tree of Life (by all 4 artist)