BULAWAYO - The Annual Lozikeyi Lecture at the Bulawayo National Art Gallery hosted Senator David Coltart speaking on the subject of art and law in Zimbabwe. He raised the issue of the banning of Owen Maseko's art depicting Gukurahundi Here’s some of what he had to say: The challenge for all of us is what we are to do with our past. Are we prepared to learn from it or are we determined to bury it and run the risk of repeating the shocking mistakes of the past. Whether we like it or not the past did happen and we need gentle means to deal with it.
It is in this context that Art has a vital role to play in reconciliation. For it can introduce us to our collective past in a relatively gentle way. It can introduce visions of reality and help us all as we realise truth and with that the mistakes we have made.
The tragedy of simply banning politically controversial art is that we then never get the opportunity to debate it and learn from it. Ironically by taking a step further and prosecuting an artist one stands the risk of further inflaming a sensitive issue and thus retarding any hope of reconciling communities.
In conclusion my belief is that art should only be banned on the grounds of public security when works of art are gratuitously inflammatory and not by any stretch of the imagination visions of reality but rather visions of unreality or untruths. Even then I believe that Artists should only be prosecuted when they are guilty of repeated and deliberate attempts to subvert truth with the intention of stirring up racial, ethnic or religious enmity or hatred.
Post published in: Arts