Alberto Mabungulane Chissano first tried his hand at wood sculpture in 1964, and in the first decade of his career had his work displayed in multiple local and international group exhibitions. By 1972 Chissano had held his first solo exhibition abroad. Before Mozambique’s independence from Portugal in 1975, the Chissano Museum Gallery in Matola, a suburb of the capital Maputo (formerly Lourenço Marques), was established in his home. There he had the first of several generations of Mozambican sculptors learn the secrets of working in mafora and sandalwood at his side. Among the well-known Mozambican sculptors who trained at Chissano’s studio are Naftal Langa (1932–2014), Muando (1960--), and Ndlozy (1970--).