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Zomba painter urges unity among artists

One of the means of portraying Malawian culture is through art, which is slowly taking shape considering that a number of artists in the country are now focusing on the form.

One such instance of an artist is Arthur Matembela, who comes from Chilunga Village, Traditional Authority (T/A) Malemia in Zomba and practises his artistic work at Chinamwali Township in the city.

Looking at his talent, one would ask themselves: “Is this talent really found in Zomba?”

Matembela ventured into art in 2002, initially as a signwriter.

Matembelela showing off some of his artworks
Matembelela showing off some of his artworks

“I started teaching at Mlauli Private Secondary School after passing my MSCE in 2001, but I thought of concentrating on signwriting after I saw my colleagues earning a lot of money from this trade. It did not take me long to get established in this field because I had an inborn talent. After 10 years as a signwriter, I then got interested in the arts and I ventured into drawings and paintings because a number of my clients asked me if I could draw and paint,” said Matembela, a father of one son.

However, the Zomba artist has called on fellow artists to work together if there are to achieve progress in the industry.

“Everyone is working alone and there is no unity among artists,” he said.

The man, who now owns Effort Arts and Crafts in the city, began part-time studies in pure arts and social sciences at Chancellor College (Chanco) in 2010 under the tutelage of respected arts academics Masa Lemu and Charles Kankuzi.

“I have always relied on artwork for my living since 2002. I don’t even think of switching to another field because I’m satisfied with my career. It’s really rewarding and apart from being rewarding, artwork helps me to express out my feelings and sell my country’s culture,” says Matembela.

He also hinted that negative criticism and poor marketing are some of the challenges that artists meet when doing their business.

He said that the public is not supportive when it comes to buying artworks. Matembela said the same artwork a Malawian can buy at K2 000 ($4) can sometimes be bought for K20 000 ($40) by non-Malawians.

“The public should know that things have gone up and they must expect expensive artwork. I should also find this opportunity to request our government that it should also be supporting us (artists) by sponsoring us so that we should be going abroad to interact with our fellow artists in other countries in order to learn one or two things,” pleaded Matembela.

Matembela, who is now a holder of Grade 2 Certificate in painting and decorations, urges up-and-coming artists to be determined and patient.

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