Moffat Takadiwa: Second Life

Moffat Takadiwa (b. 1983, Hurungwe) lives and works in Harare, Zimbabwe. Takadiwa transforms post-consumer waste – such as computer keyboards, bottle tops, toothbrushes and toothbrush tubes, – into lush, densely layered sculptures and tapestry-like wall works and sculptures. A prominent voice from the post-independence artist generation in Zimbabwe, Takadiwa’s work centerstage his Korekore heritage while engaging with themes such as consumerism, inequality, post-colonialism and the environment. Takadiwa is also a founder of Mbare Art Space in Harare where he plays a major role in mentoring the growing artist community, establishing the world first artistic center dedicated to repurpose reclaimed materials.

Exhibitions include Second Life, Nicodim, New York (2025, solo, forthcoming); Possible New Dawn, Nicodim Annex, Los Angeles (2024, solo); Vestiges of Colonialism, Galeria Nicodim, Bucharest (2024, solo); Avantgarde & Liberation, Mumok, Vienna (2024); Stranieri Ovunque – Foreigners Everywhere, the 60th edition of the Venice Biennale exhibition, curated by Adriano Pedrosa, Venice (2024); Tales of the Big River, Galerie Edouard Manet, Centre d’art contemporain, Gennevilliers (2024, solo); Color is the First Revelation of the World, Orange County Museum of Art, Costa Mesa (2024); signifying the impossible song, Southern Guild, Los Angeles (2024); Feeling Without Touching, Nicodim, New York (2023); Zero Zero, Semiose, Paris (2023, solo); Vestiges of Colonialism, National Gallery of Zimbabwe, Harare (2023, solo); A Love Letter to LA, curated by Storm Ascher, Superposition Gallery, Phillips Auction House, Los Angeles (2023); Africa Supernova, Kunsthal KAdE, Amersfoort (2023); Nous sommes tous des lichens, Musée d’art contemporain de la Haute-Vienne – château de Rochechouart (2022); The Bull, Semiose, Paris (2022, solo); Brutalized Language, Nicodim, New York (2022, solo); Witch Craft: Rethinking Power, Craft Contemporary, Los Angeles (2021, solo); This is Not Africa: Unlearn What You Have Learned, ARoS Museum, Denmark (2021); Mr. Foreman you have destroyed the farm, Semiose, Paris, France (2021, solo); INXS: Never Before Seen Major Works by Simphiwe Ndzube, Moffat Takadiwa, Zhou Yilun, Nicodim, Los Angeles, CA (2020); Son of the Soil, Nicodim, Los Angeles, CA (2019, solo); Thread., Long Beach Museum of Art, Long Beach (2019); Stormy Weather, Museum Arnhem, Arnhem, The Netherlands (2019); Second Hand: Selected Works from the Jameel Art Collection, Jameel Arts Centre, Dubai (2019); Material Insanity, Museum of African Contemporary Art Al Maaden, Marrakech (2019); The Eye Sees Not Itself, Nicodim, Los Angeles (2018); and Chinafrika. under construction, Museum for Contemporary Art Leipzig (2017).
 

Collections include: Roc Nation Collection, Los Angeles; CC Foundation, Shanghai; Centre National d’Art Plastique, Paris; Collection of Art of European Parliament, Brussels, Belgium; National Gallery of Zimbabwe, Harare and more.