SCULPTOR Colin Mpofu (34) has successfully made inroads into the South African art and crafts market by making plastic and wire pieces of animals that are on demand in Johannesburg’s Boksburg area.
BY SHADRECK MARIRIMBA
Before relocating to South Africa after the dwindling of foreign tourists, Mpofu used to specialise in stone and wood sculpturing.
“In 2012, I started making some artworks and travelling all the way here to South Africa to sell them. This was the birth of my plastic curio type of art,” he said.
Mpofu produces intricate wildlife pieces such as elephants, lions, falcon, buffalo, baboons, rhinos, hyenas and leopards.
“I have redefined nature by taking it from the bush to people’s homes and still making people feel connected to the beauty of it,” he said.
Mpofu said it was easier to use plastic and wires since they were lighter to carry and the duty at the border was not too high before he started securing his raw materials in South Africa.
“It wasn’t until a friend advised me to look for plastics and wires here in South Africa and it was when I moved here to Witbank in Mpumalanga Province to continue pursuing my art,” he said, adding that after the move, his clientele grew.
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“Witbank is a strategically positioned city and most tourists going to Kruger National Park pass through it. I took advantage of that and I started creating a new client base by displaying my artworks at malls and the response was massive and encouraging,” he said.
The father of one said his pieces ranged from R300 to R500 and from the proceeds, he has been able to build a house Gweru and finance his family in Zimbabwe.
