Elvis Mamvura, born in Harare in 1976, started sculpting at the age of 11 under the tutorage of his father, internationally recognized sculptor Albert Nathan Mamvura, now deceased. Elvis is one of the talented new generation of sculptors inspired by Shona culture and mythology.

Elvis has already gained a strong following in United Kingdom, where is work has been exhibited in a number of galleries including The Royal Albert Museum and Art Gallery in Exeter, AfricArt in Brighton (where he was artist-in-residence in 2001 and 2002, 2004), and the Worthington Museum and Art Gallery. His sculptures have sold to collectors in Germany, the US, the UK, Holland, Australia, France, Belgium and Canada.

While clearly influenced by his father, Elvis has developed his own distinctive style. “My father’s spirit lives in me”, he explains, “but I am not a stagnant being”. I am constantly growing towards revelation. My father’s spirit is in me, but so are plenty of other influences. I value all of them.”

Elvis often works with more translucent rocks, such as blue opal and saprolite - an unusual, milky white stone with a pink blush. Thematically he tends to focus on the family and on traditional Zimbabwean ceremonies such the marriage feast, praying for rain, or brewing beer - all of which involve the ancestral spirit beliefs. Elvis says that it is his way of thanking the spirits through stone, a practice that stretches back through his country’s history.

Elvis believes in dreams and in working towards making them a reality. “We are a new generation facing new pressures,” he says, “I reflect that in my work. I try to portray abstractly sometimes. I create what I think, feel, hear and see. I create what is in my heart from the way I know it and have grown up.”

Elvis has been represented in Canada since 2001.