Mazola's 'Medicine Man'.

Paul H. Williams, Contributor

Mazola's works of art force you to stare at them, to think, to wonder, to ask questions. And from April 20 to May 18, you will get an opportunity to do some more staring, thinking, wondering, and asking at his second Harmony Hall solo exhibition, 'VISION 30-50'.

VISION 30-50, Mazola told Arts and Education, "is a celebration of the continued journey of that inward growth of becoming art. It's like always walking and driving in the moon where there is no gravity". That journey started after high school, he said, when he worked at odd jobs, such as clearing people's farms as a labourer, because he wasn't privileged.

"But, it was during this dark period that I saw the vision of working towards this journey of becoming art, an all-round artist," Mazola said. That vision was conceived 30 years ago and he has become art at 50. April 9 was his 50th 'earthday'.

"The works on display are a reflection of this journey, no particular style, as such, but more as the interfusion of poetry, written or spoken word, music, and sculptures, assemblages, paintings in different media, mixed media, etc. It also serves as an indicator of my future experimentations," said the man who was born Mazola wa Mwashighadi in Taita-Taveta district, Kenya.

"There is no particular theme, but one theme about faith (not religious), which gives me the iron will to still go on, and taking the next step even when I do not see the staircase," the multidimensional artist, living and working in Jamaica since 1997, said. His work has accentuated the beauty of many local and overseas homes, and he has a large collection of his pieces, mainly assemblages, at Great Huts Paradise On The Edge, at Boston Bay, Portland.

first solo

Mazola's first solo at Harmony Hall was in 2003, and he has had other solo exhibitions in Trinidad, Barbados, Kenya, Antigua, "just to name a few" places. Among numerous corporate and individual commissions, Mazola has done work for the Totem of Heritage, University of Technology, Jamaica, and book illustrations for Jacaranda Designs, Nairobi, Kenya.

In addition, the award-winning Mazola's work has appeared at group exhibitions, such as Art of Sculpture, Mutual Gallery; Two to the Power of Three, Simon Bolivar Auditorium, Trinidad and Tobago; Eight Kenyan Artists, Milan and Rome, Italy; the Ninth Asian Art Biennale, Bangladesh; Scotland Africa Travelling Exhibition, Edinburgh and London; Young Generation, Mutual Gallery, Kingston; Royal Overseas League, 11/12 Annual Exhibitions, London, England; and the Kenya Arts Festival, National Museum of Kenya, in Nairobi.

From 1991-94, Mazola pursued a diploma in fine arts (drawing and painting) at the Creative Art Centre in Nairobi, and he was the recipient of a Commonwealth Art and Craft Fellowship which obtained at Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts, majoring in Sculpture.

Over the years, Mazola has won several awards, which include the Commonwealth Art and Craft Fellowship for the Caribbean region; the Savannah Gallery Prize at the 11th Annual Exhibition of the Royal Overseas League; the Juror's Prize at Tea Glorious Tea, at Revolution Gallery, Kingston; and the third-place prize at Art Africa in Kampala, Uganda, in 1994.

Harmony Hall is located four miles east of Ocho Rios, and gallery hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.