AfroRenaissance
About
About this Room
A series of portraits that go beyond form to become emotional and poetic territories. These works reveal two intertwined timelines — what begins and what is remembered — through expressions ranging from the curiosity of childhood to the meditative stillness of old age. Young and elderly figures are portrayed with depth, celebrating presence, memory, and the dignity of life’s cycles. This is an invitation to witness both what is still visible and what is fading — a tribute to the clarity of lived experience.
From the Sacred to Memory:
Stagings of Power and Presence
About this Room
This section delves into the interplay between the sacred, ancestral heritage, and the construction of collective memory. The artworks evoke spiritual and cultural figures of power, exploring rituals, symbols, and archetypes passed down through generations. Beyond religious representations, these visual stagings are living manifestations of the sacred in everyday African life — not as something distant or fixed in the past, but as a dynamic force shaped by resistance, faith, and artistic expression. Here, bodies become temples, masks gain voices, and visual marks serve as testimonies of a people's identity and their ongoing reimagination of history through art.
About this Room
This section explores spaces of light where geometry, colour, and emotion converge in a visual language of affection and memory. The works present a dialogue between abstraction and figuration, creating symbolic compositions that reflect the inner landscapes of the artists. Squares, rectangles, and vivid patterns become windows into states of tenderness, joy, and contemplation. The female figure emerges as a central presence—dancing, blooming, praying—embodying ancestral energy and poetic expression. These pieces are vibrant affirmations of emotional resilience and cultural beauty, blending pop and spiritual references in a language that is intimate, powerful, and unmistakably African.
Body and Community:
Stagings of the Everyday
About this Room
This section explores the intersections between individual presence and collective life. The works capture moments of everyday intimacy and social rituals, transforming simple scenes into stages of resistance, connection, and memory. Through varied techniques and mediums, the artists reframe gestures of daily life—dancing, carrying, observing—as acts of identity construction and cultural affirmation. The body becomes not only a subject but also a medium of communal storytelling, echoing both ancestral ties and contemporary realities.
In the Illusion of being free
Blackson AfonsoAbout this Room
This section reflects on the complexities of freedom—its promises, its contradictions, and its absences. The featured artworks delve into the subtle boundaries between autonomy and control, exposing the illusions that often masquerade as liberation. Figures appear in fragmented or confined spaces, suggesting psychological and physical limitations. Yet, even within constraint, there is resistance: a gesture, a shadow, a glance that defies imposed narratives. The artists invite us to question what it truly means to be free, and whose freedom we are talking about.
Faces that claim the Present
Amadeo CarvalhoAbout this Room
This section centres on the portrait as a powerful act of affirmation. The faces depicted do not merely look—they confront, demand, and claim space in the present. These works reflect a conscious positioning of Black and African identities in today’s world, not as passive subjects of representation, but as agents of their own narratives. Through direct gazes, expressive gestures, and bold visual language, the artists restore dignity and presence to bodies often marginalised or stereotyped. These are not portraits of the past—they are declarations of now.
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