Artist’s work highlights plight of Wild Dogs

GEORGE Mpofu is the 35th artist showcasing his work on the Woza Moya Artists’ Wall, and his work is being featured for the month of August.

The concept behind the Woza Moya Artists’ Wall and Artists’ Cards is to create and showcase the work of artists who have been hard-hit by Covid.

Each month, a different artist is paid to paint a 1.2m x 1.2m wall panel which is displayed on the wall outside the Woza Moya Hillcrest AIDS Centre shop.

Woza Moya assists the artist by marketing their work for the entire month their work is on display. A greeting card is made of the painted wall panel and sold in their shops so the artists can earn an ongoing passive income. This has worked well with artists earning from R200 to R1 000 a month from the sale of the cards.

The Woza Moya Artists’ Wall would like to thank the 100% Foundation for coming on board for an ongoing sponsorship and making this monthly event possible.


About the artist

Mpofu was born in Harare in 1982. He has three siblings, his father was an accountant and his mom took care of the family. He started making artworks at school and went to the School of Art in Harare.

He said he was inspired to make the Wild Dog by its beautiful colours, and he wanted to highlight the plight of Wild Dogs. He uses wire and glass beads. The artist has a unique style – he uses circular, coloured discs which are inspired by nature to make up his artworks.

“I have always known that I wanted to do art as I used to make small animals when I was young, and nature inspires me. I can make anything from wire, from animals to even portraits of people.”

Mpofu has since taken the time to teach other people how to make wirework. Wild Dogs are Africa’s second-most endangered carnivore after the Ethiopian Wolf. Once found in 39 countries, they now roam in only 14.

According to Mpofu, the total number of breeding Wild Dogs left are 1 400. As such, they are classified as Endangered on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.

Shop opening times:

Woza Moya is based at the Hillcrest AIDS Centre Trust, 26 Old Main Road, in Hillcrest, and is open from Monday to Friday from 08:00 to 16:00, and from 09:00 to 17:00 at the Woza Moya Windermere Centre. On Saturdays, the HACT shop is open from 08:00 to 14:00 and from 09:00 to 14:00 at Windermere. Woza Moya is the economic empowerment project of the Hillcrest AIDS Centre Trust.

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