Dominic Benhura is one of Zimbabwe’s most prominent contemporary sculptors within the ‘Shona sculpture’ art movement. He has exhibited worldwide, and his artworks feature in many public and private collections. In 2003, Dominic was privileged to meet Nelson Mandela when one of Dominic’s sculptures, ‘Swing Me, Mama’, was installed in a display commemorating Mandela in Johannesburg.

Dominic was born in Murewa in eastern Zimbabwe in 1968. He was a bright child, and did well at primary school so he came to Harare in 1980 to attend secondary school. He stayed with his uncle Sekuru Gutsa and his cousin Tapfuma Gutsa, who was already a well-known young sculptor; Dominic and Tapfuma became friends and Dominic began working with stone. An early sale to a foreign diplomat enabled him to pay his school fees, and his career in stone sculpture was assured.

After leaving school with good grades, Dominic immediately turned to sculpting as his full-time profession. He brought his pieces to the Chapungu Sculpture Park, and in 1990 he was admitted onto their Artist Residency programme. With the exposure and contacts gained through his time at Chapungu, where he stayed for five years, Dominic’s reputation grew steadily. He ‘extended himself mentally, physically and creatively’ and by 1995, he was regarded as one of the most important ‘second-generation’ artists.

Dominic Benhura has never been afraid to take an experimental approach to sculpture. He has pushed the boundaries of the materials traditionally used in stone sculpture in Zimbabwe, using one stone to inlay into another to create interesting decorative effects. He has also explored incorporating other media into his work, using metal, wood and wire to give his work new unique qualities. Dominic has also been at the forefront of promoting contemporary Zimbabwean sculpture worldwide. Most recently, he attended a solo exhibition of his work in Germany in July 2024.