What is your name?

My name is Mercy Moyo.

Where are you from?

I am from Harare, Zimbabwe.

Have you thought of a name for your dream studio and what your ideal space looks like?

Yes, I have already started using the name of my dream studio is Mercystudio20. In this studio space, there would be painting studios, printmaking studios, gallery space, and a library.

Who are your favorite printmakers/artists and inspirations?

Käthe Kollwitz, German artist did a print called “Besuch im Krankenhaus” (1929). She would work with things that were taking place during her lifetime and I believe it correlates to my life and how we lose our loved ones each time and the moments that need to be recorded by an artist.

Elizabeth Catlett’s art piece “Survivor”, the texture of the movements made by the tool to create the form of the art piece.

William Kentridge, a South African artist who majors in drawing in his work, and the way he draws and erases and creates a sense of motion in the work

Curlee Raven Holton and Bisa Jackson etc.

Where did you discover printmaking and how did you get into it?

I was in school at BAT studios in Zimbabwe in 2003. I kept on practicing doing linocuts and etching.

What is one tool you could not create without?

I can say 2 tools, an etching needle and pencil because the basis of every artwork is drawing.

You’ve stated before that your Zimbabwe background influences most of your work. How does it fuel your creative output?

Looking from where I come from and inspired by my surroundings and society. I have learned to study more on my subjects and understand the material that is required to complete artwork for a better outcome.

I’ve read that you like to experiment when creating your works, like using book pages in an earlier piece. Does experimentation continue to shape your approach to creating?

Yes, it does. I got opportunities to work in different media and l shared my work with others I gathered feedback and evaluation and I came up with what I want to work with so I can say my work has evolved through getting feedback from art curators artists and non-artist.

Being an artist since the early 2000s, can you describe your perspective on the changing art world and where you see yourself in it?

I think there are more art opportunities than in 2000 and there are more available all over the world thanks to social media. Of course, there is an element of dependence on the digital platform so the creative side wears off. I see myself owning a gallery and having an art school someday.

You spent some time at Frontline Arts (then PCNJ) for a residency program (in conjunction with time at the Experimental Printmaking Institute at Lafayette College under Curlee Raven Holton). Could you describe your experience working at Frontline?

I had a wonderful experience. Rachel assisted me in most of what I wanted. Everyone who was available at Frontline was just good to me. I was coming from a different setup where I was exposed to certain printing techniques. I think Frontline helped me achieve that.

Rachel (left) Mercy (right), working on etchings at the Frontline Arts print studio in January 2016.

I’ve noticed you’re well-versed in several different art mediums. Do these various techniques work off each other in your artist pursuit?

I try to avoid working with too much colors in an art work and l do 70-80% drawing and then 20-30% painting.

What have you learned in your search of human behavior in art?

Human behavior, the potential and expressed capacity for physical, mental, and social activity throughout human life. Humans [are] like other animal species.

Mercy also has work at Black Wall Street gallery in NYC for the month of February. See the exhibition page: https://bwsgallery.com/from-zimbabwe-w-love

To follow Mercy’s work, visit:

https://www.instagram.com/mercystudio20/

https://www.facebook.com/mercy.moyo.9066

Interview by Hugo Gatica, January 2022