Zimbabwe Artists Project

            In Shona culture crops are not consumed before the ancestral spirits are informed.  Here we can see the people informing the spirits that the crops are ripe.  They bring a few fruits of their harvest to a place they are all informed of.

            Here we can see some of the fruit they have brought.  A woman has just brought a water melon (mapodzi).  The others have already brought pumpkins, maize, groundnuts and sorghum.  They clap their hands to show that they are satisfied with their harvest and then they can return home and eat from their crops.

This story was handwritten by the artist and is tucked into a pocket at the back of the painting. (37” x 26”)