Donald Chapenga was born in Zimbabwe on 28-06-1974. One of eight children, Donald attended primary school in Raffingora, and then moved to the Guruve Rural area and finished his formal education in 1995. He started stone carving as a hobby at a tender age following a family tradition, beginning in earnest and in 1995 he began sculpting with his brother Caste, and his two cousins.
Donald graduated to his own style in 1997 upon moving to the Chitungwiza Art Center, moving in 2011 to the Airport Road Sculpture Park in Harare.
In Guruve he worked with celebrated & accomplished sculptures like the late Brighton Sango, who hailed from the same village he grew up in. He also managed to meet other masters in the Shona sculpture movement from Tengenenge.
Donald was married to a fellow artist named Mandy in 1999 and had two children, a son Tamel and a daughter Tania. After Mandy’s death in 2011, he re-married.
The art he creates is based on abstracts, primarily flowers and fluid dancers. He works mostly with colorful stone including springstone, orpal and cobalt.
Donald’s work is currently in collections all over the world and we are delighted to have his work at Amazwi Contemporary Art Gallery in Saugatuck, Michigan.