Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. THE Alliance Française of Harare is hosting renowned French urban artists Ella & Pitr for an artistic residency in Zimbabwe until August 3, having started on July 12.
Hailing from Saint-Étienne, a small French city with a coal-mining and industrial past, the duo told NewsDay Weekender Life & Style that they began their collaboration on the streets.
They are now recognised worldwide for their monumental and poetic murals, as they embark on a creative journey at the crossroads of community art, memory, and tradition.
Recently, they returned from an enriching week in Matobo, where they worked alongside Ndebele women painters, learning ancestral techniques using natural pigments.
The artists described the experience as deeply moving.
“Sharing those (too short) days with women painters in Matobo just woke up the desire in us to come back and continue to paint and share time with them,” they said.
“The rhythm of life out there is perfect for staying connected with others, sky, and earth. This environment in the village is one of the best places to think right, feel good, create peacefully, and laugh a lot.”
They found an immediate artistic connection, explaining: “Those women are very close to us in a way because painting is painting.
“When people exchange about technique, it’s very easy to understand each other all around the world—because the translation happens through gesture.”
One of their most memorable moments was: “The first evening, sharing a meal in a hut with the Milky Way as our roof, when Soneni (our new friend) gave us two wonderful presents: the story of the turtle and the dance of the frog (ixoxo dance).”
Now in Harare, Ella and Pitr are collaborating with Budiriro 2 Secondary School, local residents and the CaliGraph collective on a community mural project, fostering creativity and ownership of public spaces.
The residency will culminate in a free public event tomorrow.
It will be a free public event featuring mural tours, exhibitions, hip-hop performances and video screenings.
Looking ahead, the artists revealed that the coming year will be packed with new projects in France, including exhibitions and a touring painting show titled Fermez les yeux vous y verrez plus clair.
For now, their focus remains on Zimbabwe — celebrating art, connection and the power of shared creativity.
Their iconic style features giant, dreamlike characters sprawled across rooftops, dams and walls.
Their works can be found in France, Norway, Chile, India, Portugal and beyond.
They use humour and poetry to reflect on space, fragility and the passage of time.
Their work transforms public space into a canvas for shared reflection.
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