African Art in Venice Forum 2026
African Art Dialogues and Strauss & Co announce a special collaboration with the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art at the 2026 edition of the African Art in Venice Forum, hosted during the opening week of the 61st Venice Biennale.
The Opening Breakfast
of the African Art in Venice Forum
Tuesday 5 May 2026
Hotel Monaco and Grand Canal
EVENT FULLY BOOKED
Talks Programme
Tuesday, 5 May
Beyond Visibility – A Method of Inquiry
Hotel Monaco & Grand Canal
10am onwards
Opening Remarks followed by, Africa In Minor Keys – Conditions of Visibility
Kemang Wa Lehulere, In Minor Keys artist (South Africa)
Beya Gille Gacha, Artist, Cameroon Pavilion Curator (France/Cameroon)
Myles Igwebuike, Designer and Diplomat (USA/Nigeria)
Moderated by: Ntshepe Tsekere Bopape, Artist, Curator, DJ, Writer (South Africa)
11:45am
Beyond Here: Queering African Art History
Ṣọlá Olúlòde, Here Project artist (UK/Nigeria)
Buhlebezwe Siwani, Here Project artist (South Africa)
Khookha McQueer, Here Project artist (Tunisia)
Damien Ajavon, Here Project artist (Norway/France/Senegal/Togo)
Pamina Sebastião, Here Project artist (Angola)
Moderated by: Kevin D. Dumouchelle, Here Project director and exhibition co-curator (USA, Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of African Art)
1:15pm
Foyer Activity Here Project Book Toast/Presentation
Sharing/previewing the global launch of The Here Project: Pride and Belonging in African Art (Smithsonian Books publisher; Penguin Random House global distributors), the largest survey of out artists from the continent to date.
2pm
North Africa at the Center: Rethinking Cultural Geographies
Mahmoud Khaled, Artist (Egypt)
Amina Diab, Curator (Tunisia) Adel al-Mandil, Collector, Collection Kinda (Saudi Arabia)
Moderated by: Meryem Sebti, Editor in Chief, Diptyk (Morocco)
3:30pm
Foyer Activity – Pan-African Cultural Legacies – Activating the Archive
Echoing Pan-African Cultural Legacies: Activating the Commons at The Recovery Plan, this interactive activation unfolds as a living counter-archive within the Forum. Drawing on the latest issue of Africa e Mediterraneo (curated by BHMF), it traces Pan- African convenings across time, foregrounding informal networks and alternative knowledge systems, while inviting participants to engage through reading, interpretation, and collective exchange.
4:15pm
Traditions Today: Performing and Processing Toward a Holistic History
Hervé Youmbi, New African Masquerades artist/curator (Cameroon)
Amanda Maples, Lisa Homann, and Jordan Fenton (New African Masquerades curators) (USA)
David Sanou and Chief Ekpenyong Bassey Nsa (New African Masquerades artists) (Burkina Faso and Nigeria)
Wura-Natasha Ogunji, artist (US-Nigeria; 1922 Revisited: Live Arts Program Participant)
ruby onyinyechi amanze, artist (Nigeria-US; 1922 Revisited: Live Arts Program Participant)
Bernard Akoi-Jackson, artist, writer (Ghana; 1922 Revisited: Live Arts Program Participant)
Moderated by: Khanyisile Mbongwa (Curator of Art in the Public Realm at Amos Rex – curatorial theorist, sociologist, and Sangoma (ancestral-indigenous healer), South Africa)
5:45pm
Foyer Activity – Jelili Atiku: Eyes No Dey Forget Wetin Heart See (Enact 1) (Performance)
Atiku’s Eyes No Dey Forget Wetin Heart See launches 1922 Revisited, a live arts program presented by Third Space Art Foundation during the opening week of the Venice Biennale. It features a mystical figure embodying the earth’s energy, embarking on a ‘Luminous Pilgrimage,’ a deliberate, trance-like journey that weaves through urban landscapes, integrating Orisha rituals with psychogeography and dérive. This immersive experience invites the audience to embody their true selves, confront societal expectations, and tap into the magic within and around them. Through this ritualistic dérive, participants are encouraged to surrender to the city’s rhythms, sensing the emotional resonance of spaces, and allowing the environment to shape their inner landscapes. The performance promotes self-discovery, transformation, and profound connection, addressing cultural identity fragmentation, reclamation, and restitution.
Discover South African Artists at the Venice Biennale
Strauss & Co Guides
Additional Programming
Wednesday, 6 May
1922 Revisited: Live Arts Program
Presented by Third Space Art Foundation in collaboration with the African Art in Venice Forum and the European Cultural Centre
8:45am-9:30am
Waves of Ash: Navigating Liminal Waters and the Unfinished Archive
Artists
Tsedaye Makonnen
Jermay Michael Gabriel
Beya Gille Gacha, Artist, Cameroon Pavilion Curator (France/Cameroon)
Myles Igwebuike, Designer and Diplomat (USA/Nigeria) (TBC)
Moderated by: Ntshepe Tsekere Bopape, Artist, Curator, DJ, Writer (South Africa)
10:00am-11:15am
Performance: The Dash
Artists
Wura-Natasha Ogunji
ruby onyinyechi amanze
11:45am-1:00pm
Performance: L’Opéra du Villageois
Hervé Youmbi, New African Masquerades artist/curator (Cameroon)
Artists
Zora Snake (Performer)
Maddly Mendy Sylva (Flutist)
Nakeu Wilfried (Technical Manager)
Thursday, 7 May
1922 Revisited: Live Arts Program
Presented by Third Space Art Foundation in collaboration with the African Art in Venice Forum and the European Cultural Centre
2pm-3pm
Performance: Eyes No Dey Forget Wetin Heart See (Enact 2)
Artist
Jelili Atiku
4:30pm-5:30pm
Performance: Waves of Ash
Artists
Tsedaye Makonnen
Jermay Michael Gabriel
Saturday, 9 May
1922 Revisited: Live Arts Program
Presented by Third Space Art Foundation in collaboration with the African Art in Venice Forum and the European Cultural Centre
12pm-1pm
Performance: Untitled: Flaggings IN MEMORIAM in the BLUES on some CUES and when WAX ain’t so LOST (a sketchy score for some processional gestures and an eventual celebratory discussion)
Artist
Bernard Akoi-Jackson
